Spearfish South Dakota

Next up on our travel plan is the town of Spearfish South Dakota as we continue our southeastern trek. There are many things to see and do in the local area including the historic Deadwood SD.

The Route

It was an easy enough route at 68 miles, but US 14 from Devils Tower to the I-90 was chocked full of hills and 40mph turns. A little slow going. Once we got to I-90 it was a great drive as the Elkhorn Ridge Resort is just a couple of miles off the interstate.

Elkhorn Ridge Resort

This RV park bills itself as a resort and nearly meets all of the standards that I would expect. The interior roads are wide and paved and all RV pads are concrete and plenty long enough. They had a pool, tennis courts, and some other outdoor games as well.

So, yeah, I guess that qualifies as a resort category for most folks, but I also expect to have some sort of organized activities for the guests. Maybe I got a little spoiled from our winter time at Llano Grande down in South Texas along the border at the 55+ resort. With 30-40 activities per day, that was a resort!

Spearfish SD

There are many things to do in this area and having Spearfish as a hub worked out great. Besides, it is a cool old western town with many attractions of its own! The

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DC Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery

The oldest fish hatchery in the west, DC Booth was built in 1899 to help introduce trout in Wyoming and South Dakota. They had a railroad car specially built to transport fish eggs to the hatchery and then grown fish out to the streams.

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The delivery timing had to be perfect in a time well in advance of cell phones. Imagine this rail car, hitching a ride on a passenger or freight train, having to coordinate deliveries in the 15 minute stops at a rail station. All the while, keeping the fish alive with air and ice to keep them cool!

Deadwood Cool Nights Auto Show

Our RV park was being used by many folks attending this huge car show and auction. Many large motorhomes were pulling car trailers loaded with some classics. I love the old classic cars as much as the old historic buildings.

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Spearfish Canyon Loop

This 22-mile loop out of Spearfish includes some beautiful canyons, waterfalls, hikes, and a lodge with restaurant at the midway point that we stopped for a swell lunch. Very nice day.

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Deadwood SD

This small historic western town has some serious wow factor. The streets are lined with large old buildings that are very well preserved. Probably the best that we have seen. But, beyond the building facade is a modern casino. Doh…

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It was named by early settlers after the dead trees found in its gulch. The city had its heyday from 1876 to 1879, after gold deposits had been discovered there, leading to the Black Hills Gold Rush. At its height, the city had a population of 5,000, and attracted larger-than-life Old West figures including Wyatt Earp, Calamity Jane, and Wild Bill Hickok (who was killed there).

Deadwood was known for its lawlessness, several historic fires, and that it almost became a ghost town until an 1989 law allowed gambling in town.

Sturgis SD

I have heard of this small western town for years from my motorcycle riding friends. They would either ride or else trailer their bikes to Sturgis for the annual bike week event. Something like 500,000 to 900,000 people show up for this couple of week event every August. Then, the town goes back to its 6,000 residents. Not sure how it can man up for an event like this.

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I was cruising through town in our little Honda car a couple of weeks after the big show. It looked like a ghost town.

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