Some days turn out better than you hope. This was one of those days.
Today’s trip from Wall to Rapid City seemed likely to be bad. The weather promised temperatures in the mid-90s and winds strong from the S. That’s not a headwind, but a strong wind from the side can be annoying. Worse still, the route was to be largely on Interstate 90, with road construction in progress. Yes, bikes are permitted on many interstates here in the west. The only other route was much longer, and would be significantly into a strong headwind. I didn’t have much choice.

To beat some of the heat, and because I get to bed early and am on Central (Eastern?) Time, I got up a little after 4. This is not as gruesome as it sounds; I just woke up then. After a convenience store breakfast (nothing else open then), I hit the road around 6:00. Still nice and cool. I-90 turned out to be amazingly nice. I have become used to large trucks whizzing by at 70 mph on many roads I have traveled. They are almost always considerate, and move over far to the left, but can only do so if there is no oncoming traffic. On I-90, they routinely got in the left lane leaving the right lane between them and me (on the margin). What’s more, because of the construction, the right lane was closed off for the first 10 miles, so it served as a “bike lane” for me. The highway ran down into the Cheyenne River Valley, which was quite beautiful.

After 19 miles, there was a parallel small road, also beautiful, and because of I-90, completely deserted. I expected it to continue only 10 miles, but it turned out to go all the way to Rapid City. Riding this road was fantastic. Pavement in good shape, lots of gentle descents and climbs, crystal clear air and only a few wisps of clouds; really wonderful biking. I could see the Black Hills in the distance, which was nice after so much flat landscape.

Arriving on the outskirts of Rapid City, I stopped for some rehydration and ran into two really nice guys, father and son, both named David. We talked for quite a while about my trip and the route ahead. They had great tips about the roads and even suggested a good motel. Thanks David and David!

Rapid City is not large (70,000 population), but it is the only city for many miles. The parts that I have seen are dominated by malls, which could be anywhere. Malls are especially painful to traverse on a bike. They feel dehumanizing.

I’ve spent a lot of time trying to figure out my route over the next week. There are few places to stay, and every choice influences what is possible the next day(s). Turns out to be quite a puzzle when there is often no plan B.  My tomorrow looks fun: winding roads through the Black Hills. I’ll be staying at a back country resort near the height of the land. Then there will be more mountain riding Monday, ending with a long gradual downhill to Sundance.