Tag along with Colleen, Chris, Trina & Robert!
| Colleen and Chris were planning a dirt roads ride. Robert and Trina were going along. I had no plans and figured - why not! |
| Video Dirt Riding 2007-06-13-dirt-riding.mpg MPG, 5.5 MB, 1 min 18 sec Charles? starting off the day and deciding what to do / where to go. |
| Sheriff Colleen [Dantes Dame] and Chris [Req] at Lynn's Wild West Dakotamart |
| The group assembled at the
grocery store - ready to leave. "One of these bikes is not like the others..." Photo courtesy Chris [Req] |
| It didn't take long to find dirt... |
| No cars, RV's, billboards... Grass, cattle, horses, trees, hills, pleasing views ! |
| Which is the road less traveled - the right looks to be !! |
| The first of many cattle grates
for the day (and I recall one in the middle of a corner on a quicker, asphalt road) |
| That big black thing kept eyeing us. |
| Group shot Chris, Colleen, Robert, Trina, me Trina's easy to spot - mostly grey. Chris, somewhat - mixed grey / black. Good luck keeping the rest of us straight. |
| Rolling by the big black beast moved away from the roadway - thankfully. |
| Smile for the camera! |
| Another "which is better" set of shots. |
| Grey ahead - that's Trina |
| This could be a Northern Wisconsin / U.P. Michigan shot |
| Bear Mountain Lookout tower - and it is staffed. Apartment for one. |
| Colleen & Chris. No photo of the apartment in the glass center - didn't seem right to take a pic of the lookout's home. |
| And a reverse shot (photo compliments of Chris) |
| Panorama Click for a larger size There was a forest fire in the area some time back. |
| Tower work - the black bulge is a guy working. |
| Burned trees on the ridge. |
| On a slow(er) moving gravel road I'm not sure a "twisties ahead" sign is really needed. |
| The valley started to get interesting - narrower with exposed rocks. |
| Nice location for a house |
| Three of the group dotting the
twisty gravel - Colleen has spead ahead and it out of the pic. The
"black dots" in the sky are dual rotor Chinook
military helicopters. We would find more military operations / camps later. At one point we went past a "slow down now - military checkpoint sign" - and while there was no checkpoint in the roadway for us there was at the side of the road - along with a member atop a vehicle pointing a machine gun (probably not loaded???) at us "unknowns" practicing, I assume, friend or foe decisions. Would have been a good photo to get! |
| Colleen |
| Chris |
| Robert |
| Trina |
| Lunch at Deadwood SD (tourist town wanting visitors to crack the wallet and leave some green behind) |
| Colleen was leading the ride. She had missed a turn off and we backtracked for "this little road". Her logic was - it was along a river / stream so it should be good. It was. Certainly worth the backtrack! |
| Chris |
| Robert |
| Trina |
| The little canyon road with
requisite stream Just east of Rochford SD |
| Old rail line - turned into a bike / hike trail, the George S. Mickelson Trail |
| More military. We even had a humvee convoy behind us - and they were making good time coming up the gravel twisties |
| Military camp |
| You can't easily make out the coils of razor wire at the perimiter - but it's there. |
| The same old rail bed twisting off into the lush, green trees. |
| Not often do I get photos of me. Photo courtesy Chris [Req] |
| Photo courtesy Chris [Req] |
