1880's train and Sturgis Bike Rally

Hello all.........

Wow......what a week going on here. The Sturgis Bike rally is everywhere........not just Sturgis. They are everywhere....in every town in the Black Hills. You see lots of black leather going on........and every kind of bike imagineable. They're beautiful.... from custom made jobs to trikes with gorgeous paint jobs. From my job at the front desk of the lodge here, the bikers I've talked with have been fun, polite, and interesting to talk with. We love the hustle bustle of this week......there are vendors everywhere, catering to the bikers. Cookouts, bands, concerts and traffic jams.........and I'm talking bike traffice jams.

Yesterday on our day off, we took the 1880 train from Keystone to Hill City. This is a 2 hour, 20 mile round trip thru the Black Hills of South Dakota on a historic, breathtakingly scenic and relaxing vintage steam train. The train follows the original route of the CB&O Railroad laid down in the late 1880's to service the mines and mills between Hill City and
Keystone. This train affords spectacular mountain scenery, including vistas of Harney Peak, the highest point between the Swiss Alps and the Rocky Mountains. The Black Hills Central Railroad operates three Baldwin steam locomotives and two diesel locomotives throughout the season. We sat in an open air car, enjoying the passing scenery, while the cool breezes of this beautiful day ruffled our hair. As we crossed different roads, people waved and took photos. It seems everyone here loves these old trains.

On Tues, another day off, we went to a wild horse sanctuary, up on a ranch in the Black Hills here. This ranch, if you can imagine, consists of 11,000 acres.......rolling hills, lush valleys, and the Cheyenne River runs thru it. Besides having corrals of quarter horses, and some paints for sale, along with some of their foals, there is a 500 wild herd of horses out on the range. These horses started with an original herd of 300 horses which the owner had bought out in California. At that time, the horses were near death........emaciated from too little food and poor care. They were nourished back to good
health and turned out on the range, forever more having the Black Hills to run and roam. Their foals now run free, as does the entire herd. We took a 2 hour guided bus tour out on the range to see them.......what a sight! There were stallions chasing each other, mares suckling their colts, and horses running everywhere, tails and manes flying. They were a sight to see.........horses free, as they were meant to be. We enjoyed seeing them so much...... I hated to leave them.

We love the Black Hills.........they grow on you. They're covered with Ponderosa Pines on their ridges. There is so much land here, it seems to get into your blood. The air is fresh and clean.....the winters very mild. They get around 14" of snow in their winter season. And the sky........ blue as can be........I find myself gazing up at the passing clouds as they pass over the mountains......I'm always wondering what's on the other side! That must be why we're out here.......always wondering what's on down the road. We'll see you there.

Love.......Kathie