Lake Loop Trail Photo Album

At what age should a human being cease venturing on to single track trails with a mountain bike? I actually pledged to avoid this situation five years ago, so how did I find myself in the midst of a moderately difficult Lake Loop Trail in South Dakota?

During June in most years I hunker down and wait out the run off that bloats the streams and rivers in Colorado from the middle of May until the end of June or even sometimes the middle of July. Occasionally I searched out a cold water lake, but when I was working, it was an opportunity to get caught up so that I could fish frequently once the streams dropped to prime levels. But now I was retired, and I had more time, so why not travel to a part of the country that is not subject to high mountain snow melt?

The Black Hills of South Dakota stood out as a viable option that met my criteria. The terrain is referred to as hills and not mountains, right? With this solid reasoning swirling through my brain, I reserved a USFS campsite for Whitetail Campground at Deerfield Reservoir in the Black Hills of South Dakota for June 12 and 13. Jane and I felt it was prudent to reserve a campsite since the dates coincided with a weekend, and we noticed that most of the sites were reserved at Custer State Park.

We packed the Santa Fe on Thursday evening and got off to a reasonably early start on Friday. We were anxious to test out our new Coleman propane camp stove and 50 gallon cooler. We arrived at our reserved campsite by 6PM on Friday evening without any significant incident, making the trip in seven hours including thirty minutes of stoppage time for bathroom breaks and switching drivers. Our camp site was tucked at the farthest end of the upper loop away from the lake and next to the campground hosts.  After we erected the tent and appeared to be reasonably situated in our new home, the campground hostess approached us and provided some information. I took advantage of the local source of information and asked if she had any maps of the area that showed hiking and biking trails.

Ready for Action

Pam’s eyes lit up, and she returned from her RV after a few moments with a map of the Deerfield Reservoir national forest area. The hiking and biking options consisted of an eleven mile lake loop and a long trail that began below Deerfield Reservoir and continued to Pactola Reservoir. Pam’s husband, Jim, an employee of the national forest service joined us and warned that there were numerous fallen trees on the Lake Loop Trail that had not yet been cleared.

On Saturday morning after a breakfast of blueberry pancakes, Jane and I decided to undertake a bike ride on one of the trails on the map. Our campground was along the Lake Loop, and eleven miles seemed like a nice moderate distance so that became our choice. We applied sunscreen and filled our hydration bladders and set out on the dirt road that skirted the southern shore of the lake. This was a pleasant one mile, and then we turned right on to paved route 17, but after less than a mile we reached the inlet where Castle Creek flowed into the lake. Just above the inlet a small bridge spanned Castle Creek which was probably double its normal size.

Could this be the Lake Loop? I pulled out the map and studied it and concluded that this was in fact the Lake Loop. The path on the opposite side of the creek was covered with grass and not worn like we expected. In fact we did not even anticipate that the Lake Loop was a single track. After a quick conference, Jane and I decided to press on. The first sign that we were in for an adventure beyond our naive assumption was the large number of small evergreen trees that leaned over the path. We managed to avoid them, but this involved frequent turns from one side of the path to the other, and in some cases ducking and taking advantage of the protection provided by our helmets.

Jane Attacks the Trail

The first mile was fairly flat, but then we encountered a sharp uphill section of single track. I mustered my best single track adrenaline rush and managed to complete the first climb, but the up and down terrain would continue for another two or three miles. Eventually we surrendered our pride and pushed our bikes up the steep inclines over the numerous rocks and roots that attempted to block our progress. Of course, as mentioned by the campground hosts, we also dismounted on several occasions and lifted our bikes over large fallen trees.

We thought we were conquering the unanticipated technical single track when we found ourselves on a double track path that had been driven on by a vehicle within the last year. This stretch was less technical, but it did challenge us with a steep climb. As we crested the hill, we found ourselves on a maintained gravel road, and we could not find a trail on the other side of the road. Once again we consulted the map and determined that we were on the road that accessed the North Shore trail head, and we had somehow missed a turn that allowed us to remain on the Lake Loop. No problem, we made a right and continued down the gravel road until we found signs for the Lake Loop and resumed our progress on the rolling single track.

Back Near the Lake

We had already dodged small evergreens, climbed over logs, climbed steep wooded hills and gotten lost. What else could this trail throw at us? Water. After more steep up and down roller coaster terrain, we reached a crude log crossing of a small stream. Two or three logs were placed side by side across the stream which was also flowing at a volume two to three times normal. I went first and began to try and carry my bike while attempting to balance on the slippery wet logs. Fortunately Jane suggested that I roll the bike through the water and mud and use it as a crutch to lean on. I came to my senses and accepted her suggestion and made the crossing without drenching my only pair of sneakers. Jane followed me and accomplished the crossing without incident as well.

Yikes, a Stream Crossing

A Pretty Spot on the Lake Loop

Unfortunately as we continued and cautiously descended a steep downhill through some tall grass, Jane’s front tire skidded on an angled log, and she collapsed in a heap. I heard her calls of distress and quickly returned to find her sprawled on top of her bike shrieking in pain. At this point I had visions of biking ahead for assistance, but the pain subsided and being the tough outdoor trooper that she is, she managed to stand and continue on. We would discover on Sunday that she acquired two large bruises on her inner thighs as reminders of the incident.

Once again we could see a small tributary stream ahead, and we assumed another stream crossing would be necessary. This was in fact true, but before we reached the crossing we were forced to negotiate a muddy bog that represented more evidence of the heavy rain received by the area within the previous week.

Finally we crossed the tiny brook and ascended a meadow until we reached a fence. The trail followed the fence line and then descended to another improved gravel road. The map indicated that this was the access road to Custer Trailhead, and Jane and I paused to consider our options. When we studied the map, we concluded that we completed 1/3 of the lake loop, and there was no indication that the nature of the trail would change for the next third. We came to our senses and decided to bail. Bailing was not a cushy ride, however, as we completed a long sustained climb of the Custer access road and then turned on to route 17 for some additional uphill exercise.

So Green

Eventually we reached the paved section and coasted downhill to the inlet and then returned on the dirt road to our campground. What an ordeal! We felt quite fortunate to escape our two hour ride with two large bruises on Jane’s legs, and truth be told we were quite proud of our accomplishment. Jane calculated that we rode for ten miles, although three miles consisted of the difficult technical single track. It was quite a kick off to our road trip to the Black Hills of South Dakota.