The Ride Is Never Long Enough...

As an alternative title, I considered: "Well, that would be embarrassing..."  More on that in a bit.

A gorgeous day here in the Black Hills, we were anxious to ride some new roads.  OK, they aren't "new roads," but some roads we haven't ridden yet since we've been here.  We have been concentrating our riding time in the southern Hills.  Time for a venture north.

Heading out...

Through town and out Highway 44 (Rimrock Highway).  Our end goal is to cruising the the curves in Vanocker Canyon.  There is a bridge out (overweight truck incident) on Nemo Road, so the two ways to Vanocker Canyon: Interstate up to Sturgis, or out and around on Highway 385, almost to Deadwood, then take Nemo Road south to where it intersects with Vanocker Canyon Road.

Yeah, Highway 385.  I have referred to Hwy 385 as "the backbone of the Black Hills" - it kinda divides the Hills east and west, while the road runs north and south.  Plenty of good curves and hills.  Not much traffic as we headed north.  This route add another 20 miles compared to taking Nemo Rd or Norris Peak Rd, but the riding and the scenery is great.

We turned south on Nemo Rd, with about 13 miles to get to the turn onto Vanocker Canyon Rd.  We stopped at that intersection to re-hydrate and give me a chance to pop in a fresh battery on the GoPro.

I didn't have a plan for what to do with the video on the GoPro; kinda thought about cutting it down to a 3 or 4 minute view of riding on Vanocker Canyon; then, looking the video over, I decided to make another fun "movie trailer"... with Joan as the star, since all my video was her or the view riding through the curves.  This "movie trailer" allows a lot of quick views with some fun "spy-type" music.  Here's the world premier...

We stopped just outside Sturgis to top off our fuel tanks.  I was expecting less mpg because of the highway riding on Rimrock and Hwy 385... I got 96mpg with the Vespa!  A new record for me.  Not to be outdone, she got 107mpg with her Xmax!  That scoot seems to defy the laws of physics and engineering: bigger, heavier, more horsepower - and it still beats my mighty Vespa!  I would trade with her sometime to see if my body weight over hers is the difference, but she is not a fan of riding my Italian scoot.

A decision to be made: take the Interstate from Sturgis back to Rapid City, then Hwy 16 back to Hart Ranch.  OR... turn around and go back the way we came, with lots of great curves and hills... 35 miles via Interstate, or 75 miles via Vanocker Canyon once again.  The vote was 2-0 for the canyon!

The video above shows some of the fun riding through the canyon, so I shot some stills on the way back.  Going up the canyon, we got behind this GoldWing trike.  I saw it go by while we were still at the gas station.  I guess they were out for a leisurely, speed limit abiding, ride...

 

He pulled over at a turn out... I'm thinking: to avoid the embarrassment of being passed by a Vespa scooter on this fun road.  ;-)  I am glad these trikes (Goldwing and Harley) exist - it gets people out riding who may not be confident in their ability to balance on two wheels.  I have ridden a couple trikes (back when I did some work for Lehman Industries, who made the GoldWing conversions and initially made the HD trikes)... not the same experience as being able to lean into curve and pick the best line... you have to "muscle" the trike through a corner.  But, there was no way this trike was going to stay with us.

We enjoyed our cruise back through the canyon, then turned north on Nemo Road...

It wasn't long before we came up on another vehicle (the roads had been blissfully devoid of traffic)...

Yes, a late model Corvette.  Now I'm guessing that this Vette could have left us in his dust if he had decided to go for it.  In fact, he slowed a bit, probably to let us pass... but, it was just as we came upon a solid double yellow line.  He got on it a bit; not much over the speed limit, but it allowed some more spirited riding.  A few miles later, when we came to Hwy 385, he turned north, we were going south.  I'm also guessing he didn't want to be passed by a couple scooters.  ;-)  I may be reading more into it.

Traffic had picked up a bit on Hwy 385...

Yes, more trikes - I think there is a gathering in Deadwood over the next few days.  The traffic in our lane was pretty much doing the speed limit, so it wasn't an unpleasant ride.

When we got to the intersection with Rimrock Highway, we waited to see what the traffic in front of us was doing... they went straight, so we turned east... once again, no traffic in front of us.  Either of these highways would have gotten us back with nice riding, so we were pleased to take "the road less traveled."

In some areas around here, it isn't just deer you have to be concerned with...

If you can't read it, that sign on the right is warning motorists about a Bighorn Sheep crossing area.

In the past, this route back into the Rapid City area would take us close enough to Culver's, where we could enjoy a strawberry sundae with their frozen custard (even creamier than ice cream).  Not wanting to go inside, we instead chose to stop at the Hart Mart at Hart Ranch and get some ice cream to take back to the coach.

A nice way to finish off a nice afternoon of riding.