SPEARFISH, SOUTH DAKOTA
I just arrived in South Dakota, where I'll be spending two weeks in the southwest corner of the state. And my, how the landscape has changed! Hiking in Spearfish is distinctly different than anything I've seen so far. The hills are covered with dense trees and lush greenery beneath. And everything is blooming right now!
Here are some shots from Crow Peak Trail, a 6.4 mile out and back, with an elevation gain of 1,454 ft, peak elevation of 5,822 ft.
Here's a close up of those pretty pinkish white flowers that adorned my path
And finally a view from near the top.
From the actual peak, you can see Spearfish sprawled across the valley before you, but unfortunately it doesn't show up very well in photos. Fun fact ... when I neared the top, I got passed by a guy on a mountain bike. The hike was a bit of a haul, but hiking uphill seems *much* easier than pedaling uphill!
From Crow Peak Trail, I headed over to Devil's Bathtub. This trail was easy - a flat 1.6 miles out and back, but oh my goodness, so much fun!
The first part of the hike is just getting from the parking lot to the trailhead, but it is far from boring as you walk alongside a creek to your right through a path of bright purple flowers. How pretty is this??
The path itself wanders through the woods, frequently crossing back and forth over the creek. When in doubt where you should go, look for the wettest part of the trail from all the little feet that splashed through the creek.
I, on the other hand, elected to keep my hiking boots dry and carefully chose sturdy stepping stones each time I crossed.
In the pic below, you can see a photo shoot in progress for a recently engaged couple. ❤️
Along the way, three little twerps came running around a curve ahead of their parents toward me - two boys, around 8 and 10 years old, and their little sister, about 5 or 6. The oldest stopped right in front of me, bursting with excitement at what he had to share.
The big brother: You gotta check it out, there's a WATER SLIDE up there! You gotta see it. It's the Devil's bathtub. I went down the slide but I hurt my hip.
The little brother: I went down the BIG slide. He only went down the little slide.
The big brother: That's because I hurt my hip.
Me: It sounds scary.
Both boys: It's not! It's AWESOME!
(Girl keeps trying to interrupt her big brothers to tell me something ... "guys, guys, I'm trying to say something!")
Boys, talking over each other: there are two slides, a big one and a little one, they go into a bathtub.
Me: a bathtub! Did you bring your soap??
Boys: [looking confused at my comment, then ignoring my comment, then talking over their little sister, and ignoring their parents' request to leave the poor lady alone.] No, you swim in it. You gotta see it!
And then they ran off and the little girl was left standing alone before me.
Me, to the girl: what were you going to say?
The Girl: Umm ... wellll ... [a little deer caught in headlights as she suddenly had the conversation to herself with nothing to say] ... ummm ... it's really fun! [And then she ran off to catch up with her brothers.]
LOL! So cute. ❤️
And shortly after that, I arrived at the Devil's bathtub. Here is the "big slide" into the bathtub. The little slide is below the tub.
Here's a better picture of the water slide. The boys were right, it IS pretty cool! It made me wish I'd worn my swimsuit and water shoes.
The picture below does a better job of showing just how clear the water is. Plus, someone left a couple tubes behind for the next lucky kiddo to come along.
Devil's Bathtub is a fun little hike for your entire crew ...
whether you're young or old,
whether you want to get wet or stay dry,
whether you're wearing a swimsuit or dressed up for engagement photos,
whether you have something to say ... or not. :)
Enjoy!
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