It was a short drive from Heartland RV Park in Hermosa to Rush-No-More Campground in Sturgis, SD. From there we explored the towns of Sturgis, Deadwood, and Lead.
Sturgis was a quiet little town, but that changes dramatically every August when hundreds of thousands of visitors arrive for its world famous motorcycle rally. We found many of the downtown stores minimally open, but busily preparing for the upcoming event. We stopped to see Knuckles Bar with all it's motorcycle memorabilia.
Deadwood, a historic mining town with lots of local stories of gold, gambling, and rowdy characters, was fun to visit. We saw the saloon where Wild Bill Hickok was shot, and the cemetery (Mt. Moriah) high above main street where he and other local characters (Calamity Jane, Madam Dora DuFran, Potato Creek Johnny, Preacher Smith, Seth Bullock and Colorado Charlie Utter) are buried. A tram tour took us to see the historic sites.
Lead, site of the Homestake Gold Mine from 1870's until 2002, one of the longest continually operating gold mines in America. It is also recognized as the oldest, largest, and deepest mines (shafts descend more than 8000 feet below the surface) in the western hemisphere. Since closing it has been re-purposed by Sanford Lab as a Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory.
I would not want to go in a mine 8000 feet below the surface! That's deep!
ReplyDeleteI would not want to go in a mine 8000 feet below the surface! That's deep!
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