Today we took a day trip from Sturgis to Spearfish. This little town is located at the northern edge of the Black Hills.
Spearfish is situated at 3,600 ft above sea level. We approached the town via scenic 14A through Spearfish Canyon.
The day was cool and high limestone cliffs and towering spruces were beautiful, but J.J. had to be extra attentive to the winding canyon roads. I ran across a two way road to snap this photo of the Bridal Fall.
Gold was discovered in 1874 by European Americans. The Black Hills limestone cliffs wear scars from the mining days. For more information, go to: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/
Spearfish Creek flows for 40 miles mountain and drops 3,000 ft over its course.
White water rapids at times looked mighty and powerful.
Our banker at Wells Fargo Box Elder branch told us about the casinos at Deadwood. Since it was on the route to Spearfish, we drove down its Main Street to take a look.
Neither one us have any interest in casinos and gambling. Deadwood looked too commercial for our taste so we did not make a stop.
The Historic Fish Hatchery is a free family attraction located just a couple blocks from the Main Street along Spearfish Creek.
Between 20,000 to 30,000 rainbow trouts are stocked out of this fish hatchery each year. The South Dakota Dept of Game, Fish & Parks release them to nearby lakes and streams for anglers to enjoy.
During the 1920's, 10 specially designed "Fish Cars" were constructed. They carried over 72 million fish across 2 million miles of railroad track. Today, the work is done by refrigerated tanker trucks.
Aloha -- Cathi
