WOW! HARD TO BELIEVE SEVEN DAYS HAS ALREADY GONE BY! THREE YEARS AGO MY GOOD FRIEND STEVE CLARK AND I TOOK OFF CROSS COUNTRY FOR AN 11,000 MILE JAUNT. CLARK ASKED ME ONE DAY, “GOFORTH, HOW LONG WE BEEN OUT?” I ANSWERED, “A WEEK AND HALF OR SO.” WE STARTED ADDING IT UP AND LAUGHED….IT HAD BEEN THREE WEEKS ALREADY WHEN HE ASKED. JUST PROVE TIMES FLIES WHEN YOU ARE HAVING FUN!
ANOTHER GORGEOUS DAY OF RIDING YESTERDAY. ON THE ADVICE OF THE CABIN OWNER, DAVE COLE WE PARTED FROM MY PRE-PLANNED ROUTE. (OK, I WILL GIVE SOME OF YOU TIME TO GET BACK IN YOUR CHAIR….YES, RICK GOFORTH ACTUALLY CHANGED HIS RIDE PLAN) HE TOLD US OF A GREAT RIDE NOT FAR FROM THE CABIN ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF LEAD/DEADWOOD. WE TOOK IT. WHAT AN AWESOME RIDE. OVER 30 MILES AND NO OTHER BIKES! HE TOLD US ABOUT A GREAT BAR/PUB WE SHOULD CHECK OUT. SAM ELLIOTT HANGS OUT THERE. THE MOONSHINE GULCH SALOON! UNFORTUNATELY IT WAS CLOSED YESTERDAY. GOOD NEWS, IT WILL BE OPEN TODAY AND WE ARE GOING BACK!
YESTERDAY WAS ALSO A “BATTERY” CHALLENGING DAY. I PUT MY CAMERA BATTERY IN THE CHARGER EARLY IN THE MORNING TO GIVE IT A LITTLE JUICE. A LOT OF GOOD IT DID ME WHEN I PULLED THE CAMERA OUT TO TAKE THE ABOVE PICTURE. THAT’S WHEN I REALIZED THE BATTERY WAS STILL IN THE CHARGER BACK AT THE CABIN. AT LEAST IT WAS A GOOD REASON TO COME BACK AND HAVE A SALAD FOR LUNCH!
GOT GOING A SECOND TIME AND HEADED FOR MT RUSHMORE. FIRST TIME HERB HAD BEEN. IF YOU HAVE NEVER BEEN, PUT IT ON YOUR BUCKET LIST. IT’S JUST AMAZING!
LEFT THERE TO DO MY TWO FAVORITE ROADS HERE IN SD. IRON MOUNTAIN HWY AND NEEDLES HWY. WAS SO PSYCHED ON THE GOOD VIDEO I WAS GOING TO GET. AND THEN THE HELMET CAMERA BATTERY DIED! I WAS PISSED. WE GOT BACK TO CABIN AND I WAS GOOGLING TO SEE IF ANYONE ELSE WAS HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THE BATTERY LIFE IN THE NEW GHOST CAMERA. I PLUGGED THE CAMERA IN TO MY COMPUTER TO JUST SEE IF I GOT ANY FOOTAGE AT ALL. WELL, I’M GLAD TO ANNOUNCE HERB IS NOT STEALING CEREAL AND PUTTING CRAP IN MY COFFEE! I REALIZED THAT I HAD TURNED THE CAMERA ON SITTING AT THE TABLE AND HAD VIDEOED OVER AN HOUR OF US HAVING BREAKFAST AND COFFEE! WHAT A DUMBASS!
SO, IT’S OVER TO SPEARFISH CANYON TODAY AND A TRIP BACK TO NEEDLES HWY TO GET SOME MORE GREAT FOOTAGE. TONIGHT IS LAUNDRY NIGHT AND TOMORROW WE WILL HEAD TO LOVELAND, CO AND ON TO GRAND CANYON.