Honoring Teddy Roosevelt & Meeting the Neighbors. Day 23, July 11, 2017

Road trip to Lead (as in leading your horses) where mining is the point.  This is the place that Mr. Hearst made.  Yes that family as all of you from California know so well, made more than a fortune here!  In Lead we were able to finally get a strong signal and take care of some business.  The town itself is kind of sleepy and looking like it has seen hard times but I could see that it had turned the corner and was coming back. Unlike Deadwood it would appeal to someone like me who likes low key anymore.

After taking care of business we continued our excursion up the road to Roughblock Falls, along the Spearfish canyon.  As you can see from the photos below, they were pretty special.  I dare you to find anything like that in California that has so few people crowding in to take pictures.  Just another beautiful  piece of America:  The Black Hills National Forest – not the same as the Shoshone National Forest with its distant vistas, this place is more like getting down into it  – more like driving through the Smoky Mountains, if you have ever  been there. 

Next we set out to find the “Theodore Roosevelt Monument” on Roosevelt Mountain above Deadwood.  Saw it on the map but there were no real directions.  Took us about an hour and a lot of peering into google maps but we found it!  Apparently the Mayor of Lead and the first Administrator of the Black Hill’s National Forest, Seth Bullock (who, by the way was from, Ontario (not sure what city) Canada)  & Teddy Roosevelt became  friends when they were both deputies.  Turns out they were both real conservationists and after Roosevelt died the construction of this tower, pictured below was organized by Bullock in 1919. (why do people always wait til you die to give you a monument?)

Finished with that, we made our way (the long way by the way) to Rochford.  Given a heads up by our fellow campers Katie and Joe, we just had to check out the Rochford Gulch Saloon which was anything but a saloon.  More like a General Store with beer for sale and lots of hats, bras and dollar bills on the ceiling.  This place doesn’t quite measure up to Al’s Bar in San Felipe standards but it is a real slice of life and a real oasis after a long dusty ride!

Home for dinner and a game of bocce ball with our next door (this time) neighbors Todd and Lynn from Tehachapi, CA.  Nice folks – Grandparents touring their 3 grandkids in a big 5th wheel.  Lucky kids I say!


More lightening, thunder and rain tonight  - WOW it’s a bigger ass rainstorm – love it!  Tomorrow onto Rapid City.  Here's some pics

Restored Opera House in Lead, SD

Portion of Roughblock Falls featuring Ceilidh

The spectacular end of Rohghblock Falls

Saw this Guy on the Roadside?

Long Sought After Roosevelt Monument



The Bar at the End of the Road (Rochford, that is)


Just Rewards




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