Day 85, heatwave

Oh, did I sleep well.

Except that moment when I woke up in the middle of the night, no fly on the tent, to the sky filled with lightning. I could smell the rain and jumped out of the tent to put the fly on.

I'm glad I caught it early.

My spot for the night.

I headed straight for Mount Rushmore. Depsite waking up before 6 to get an early start, by the time I rode two or three miles to the monument, the sun was already high in the sky.

Regardless, I was able to take some photos, instead of the sun dangling off of Washington's ear, or someone else hopping in the frame.

From Mount Rushmore, the road sharply descends into more towns akin to Deadwood, catering exclusively to tourists. And as I left the mountains, it got hotter.

The smoke from the wildfires in Montana is obscuring the view...

Rapid City was scorching. I asked the Forest Service employee at the visitor center, just outside of town, for a map of the area. She wanted nothing to do with me.

That's a bit unfortunate - I try to be as courteous and friendly as possible. But she acted as if I was wasting away her time. Every other Forest Service personnel I've interacted with has been amazing - I hope she was just having a bad day.

The road into Rapid City is under construction. Due to the narrow, unpaved street, I rode generously in the middle, a line of cars building behind me.

And then, thud. Accompanied with a plastic sounding slide.

I turned around to watch a minivan run over my platypus water bottle. All two liters of it.

Well, that sucks. I definitely need to replace it before I venture into the Badlands.

I found a really amazing, local outdoors shop with a similar product. A little more flexible, and three liters instead of two, the Hydra Pack is my new water reserve.

From the that shop, I moved about two blocks away and spent the afternoon in the library, which was a strange experience. At least half the patrons were not doing anything.

They weren't reading, or on their phones. Or talking.

Just sitting.

I guess that explains why the librarian said under no circumstances should I leave my bike outside, leaning against the window, unlocked.

I found an incredible place to camp along skyline drive, overlooking the city. There is a section of mountain bike trails on the east side, perfect for wild camping. The only real issue is the short ride in, intended for mountain bikes.

Not a 100+ lbs touring rig.

Rapid City lies just beyond the trees.

At least it was flat.

Joe