Pringle to Mount Rushmore KOA: Friday, May 20th 2016

May 20, 2016

Camping at the trail head. I slept on the picnic table.

My night in the trail shelter was uneventful. Once the nearby dogs had settled in for the night, it was quiet and peaceful. I woke up early, but snuggled in my sleeping bag until the morning started to warm up. Then I packed up, ate my usual oatmeal and coffee breakfast, and headed north.

I trudged on, with a big long hill leading up to the Crazy Horse Memorial. There is a decent, if somewhat distant, view of the Memorial from the trail. The trail passes under the access road to the Memorial, without any connection. It's sort of strange that whoever designed the intersection didn't seem to want to encourage trail users to visit the Memorial.

There wasn't any sign, but I suppose this is a reminder of the old railway that became the trail.

Look carefully. That's the Crazy Horse Memorial in the distance.

Crazy Horse from the Mickelson Trail. It's a good distance!

The trail is mostly rubbish free. It was a surprise to spot these wrecked cars. They are in private property.

The weather was turning threatening as I got closer to Hill City. I tried to check the weather using my phone, but had no data reception. I didn't especially want to stay in Hill City, and made an impromptu decision to leave the trail on the road up to Mount Rushmore. There were a few options for camping on that road, but the road was much steeper than the rail trail. Worrying about the weather, I stopped at the KOA, and took a cabin. It's just a wooden cabin with bunk beds and mattress, no bedding, no chairs, and use of the common bathrooms and showers.

Quite the downpour.It included some hail.

Today's ride: 29 miles (47 km)
Total: 62 miles (100 km)

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