BLACK HILLS ATV

 One of the surprise thrills of my visit to the Black Hills of  South Dakota was our ATV venture to the forest roads of the mountains near Mt. Rushmore.

A hidden secret of the Black Hills National Forest are the many forest fire roads that crisscross the mountains.   There are many places to rent street legal ATV's.  Our team of seven took a two seater and a four seater for an afternoon ride spanning 35 miles of back country trails.

The ponderosa pines of the Black Hills have been attacked by a relentless Ips Beetle.  The beetle, which can reproduce four times in a year, has devastated the pine forests.  The beetle infection has cost the Black Hills National Forest 40,000 pine trees a year for the last two decades.  The topography of the region is being changed from  pine forests to grassy mountain balds. While it is sad to see, the views on the backcountry trails have been greatly expanded.

We were told that if we took the right trail we could see Mt. Rushmore.  And sure enough just over the crest of a mountain ridge we spotted the shiny white faces of Mt. Rushmore in the distance.  Seeing this we understood that our elevation was over 6000 feet!

As nice as the picturesque views were to see, the real thrill was riding fast across the forest trails in the side by side ATV whose street speed was 35 mph.  Our 2 seater outpaced the 4 seater, but Grayboy had the responsibility of keeping his family and his mother in law safe, while Big D and I were trying to push the limits of our testosterone!

Of course Billy Buck was itching to drive and after a bit both Big D and Grayboy relented and the seven year old left everyone with a splash of mud, a great big grin and a cloud of dust!

Of the many fun things our family experienced during our trip to South Dakota, the ATV ride was acclaimed by all as the thing we will remember the most.  The scenery, the sense of adventure, and the thrill of the fast ride down a forest trail were the ingredients to a fun afternoon.

The Black Hills while being redefined by the beetle infection retain an ecological resilience.  While the views will no doubt be changing, the grassy balds interspersed with towering pine forests is a beautiful combination of color against the Black Hills.

Make an ATV adventure a part of your visit to the Black Hills of South Dakota, and tell them the Fat Bald White Guy, his little boy Big D and Billy Buck sent you!