Dusty – Page 3 – The (Mostly) True Adventures of Lupe

Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 232 – Flag Mountain & the Dragon Caves with Cousin Dusty & Uncle Joe (5-26-18)

Bright and early Lupe was all corked up. The lucky American Dingo’s enthusiasm soared higher yet when she realized another outing with Cousin Dusty and Uncle Joe was in the works. Flag Mountain (6,937 ft.) along the E edge of the western Black Hills limestone plateau country was today’s destination.

By 9:00 AM, Joe was parking the G6 at the start of a spur road off USFS Road No. 189. The spur road gains nearly 400 feet of elevation in a little less than a mile before ending near the summit of Flag Mountain. Lupe and Dusty could get a good romp in on the way to the top while Joe and SPHP chatted.

**Nipple Butte (6,800 ft.)** from the spur road leading up Flag Mountain. Photo looks S.

The trek up the spur road went by quickly. Before long the end was in sight. Leading the way, Dusty and Joe followed an old rock stairway to the top of Flag Mountain.

Approaching the end of the spur road. Photo looks NE.

A short flight of stairs at the end of the road winds up to the summit.

Dusty and Joe on top of **Flag Mountain**. Photo looks W.

This was Lupe’s 6th ascent, but Dusty & Joe had never been to Flag Mountain before.

Flag Mountain (6,937 ft.) used to sport a fire lookout tower at the E end of the summit ridge. Part of the old rock foundation wall still exists. Lupe got up on the wall for a look around. Off to the W, the limestone plateau country was about as high as Flag Mountain, but the views to the N, E and S were fabulous.

Loop up on the old lookout tower foundation. The ridge on the L is **Peak 6962**. The more distant ridge beyond Lupe is **White Tail Peak (6,962 ft.)**. **Terry Peak (7,064 ft.)** is even farther away at far R. Photo looks N.

Looking S now. **Castle Rock (6,783 ft.)**, **South Castle Rock (6,840 ft.)** and **Nipple Butte (6,800 ft.)** appear clustered together on the L.

No one else was around when Dusty, Joe, Lupe and SPHP first arrived, but that didn’t last long at all. This was the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. Within a few minutes the roar of engines could be heard. ATV’s appeared. People started coming and going. Dusty, Joe, Lupe and SPHP moved to the W end of the summit ridge to let others enjoy the views from the lookout point at the E end.

While a steady stream of people came and went, Joe began setting up his portable Ham radio. A small pine tree provided good support for a 16.5 foot long antenna.

The Flag survey benchmark is located on the limestone summit ridge W of the old fire lookout tower foundation.

Numerous ATV’s came and went. Several are seen below at the end of the spur road. Parts of Deerfield Reservoir are in sight beyond **Reynolds Prairie**. Photo looks SSE.

The original plan had been for Joe to “activate” Flag Mountain using the Summits on the Air (SOTA) website. On prior trips to the Black Hills, Joe had activated Custer Peak, Boulder Hill and Silver Mountain. Joe had gotten a huge, essentially overwhelming response each time. Summits on the Air had been a blast!

Unfortunately, when Joe tried to schedule an activation alert for Flag Mountain on the SOTA website yesterday evening, there no longer seemed to be a way to do it. Something had changed. Despite best efforts, neither Joe nor SPHP could figure out the problem. The system now seemed to require a second password and wouldn’t take anything Joe submitted. Phooey!

Summits on the Air or not, Joe was planning on transmitting Morse Code from Flag Mountain. Of course, without an activation alert scheduled, whether anyone would pick it up was uncertain. Another potential problem was that the 11 year sunspot cycle is at its low point during 2018. Conditions for transmitting radio waves tend to be poor.

Joe getting ready to transmit from **Flag Mountain** with American Dingo Lupe standing by ready for action! Photo looks NE.

A small pine tree provided support for a 16.5 foot antenna. The setup also included 4 lateral wires running out from the center.

Dusty relaxed in the shade of the pine tree supporting the antenna. Lupe, however, stayed on alert near Joe. She knew how this worked. Her job was to bark a warning if anyone showed up and started getting too close to the thin lateral wires strung out from the antenna.

Lupe on the alert for intruders. Her job was to bark if anyone else showed up and got too close to any of the wires.

So he could hear better and wouldn’t get too many questions about what was going on, Joe waited until a quiet period when all the people and ATV’s had left before beginning to transmit.

Right away Joe had good news! Some sort of amateur radio contest was going on. Hundreds of people were on the airwaves! And despite the unfavorable sunspot cycle, the atmospheric conditions were excellent. Joe stayed busy making contacts from around the nation. He could even hear stronger stations in Europe and South America.

Joe & Lupe broadcasting live from Flag Mountain!

Despite not being able to set up a Summits on the Air alert this time, Joe stayed plenty busy making successful contacts with other Ham radio operators. Photo looks N toward **White Tail Peak**.

After a good half hour of Ham radio fun, Joe was satisfied. Time to pack it all up, and think about heading back down the mountain.

Joe and lateral wire defender, Lupe, after the Ham radio fun was over. Defending the wires had been a cinch. No one had come along to threaten them. Photo looks ENE.

Lupe, Joe & Dusty ready to depart. Photo looks E.

On the way back to the G6, there was some discussion about possibly climbing nearby Nipple Butte (6,800), too. However, the day was warm beneath a cloudless sky. Cooler activities sounded like more fun. Joe drove while SPHP gave directions on how to get to the Dragon Caves.

About 3 miles SW of Deerfield Reservoir on USFS Road No. 291 is a turn to the W onto a bridge over Ditch Creek. This is the start of USFS Road No. 385. Immediately past the bridge a dusty side road goes straight on up a little hill. The Dragon Caves are right around a bend to the R (N).

Apparently the Dragon Caves are no great secret. Hordes of ATV’s were coming down the hill when Dusty, Joe, Lupe and SPHP arrived. While the dust they stirred up settled, Dusty and Lupe gladly took advantage of this opportunity to cool off in Ditch Creek.

Lupe in Ditch Creek. Cooling off in the creek was way better than a hot climb up another mountain.

Dusty takes a turn in **Ditch Creek**, too.

When the last of the ATV’s left, everyone headed up to the Dragon Caves. SPHP wasn’t sure what Joe was expecting of “Dragon Caves”, but he may have been surprised to see 3 huge horizontal shafts disappearing into the mountainside. The openings really were large enough for dragons!

Dusty, Joe and Lupe arrive at the Dragon Caves.

No one else was around when Dusty, Joe, Lupe and SPHP walked into the middle cave. The air was much cooler than out in the sunshine only a few feet away. A vast dimly lit corridor led into the mountain.

Perhaps 100 feet in, the corridor met up with similar corridors coming from the other two cave openings. Several more passages went off in other directions. Despite the size of the openings, it was rather dark this far from the entrance. SPHP brought out a small flashlight. It helped, but the batteries were low. The huge caverns remained dimly lit.

Joe at the end of the middle cave looking toward other passages.

Joe doesn’t really believe much in dragons. As a geologist, he puzzled over why anyone would go to such expense as to mine out huge passages like this in sedimentary rock? Lupe, however, wasn’t so sanguine.

SPHP, don’t you think we better get out of here before the dragons return? Those ATV’ers probably stole all the dragon’s treasures while they are away. The dragons are going to be mighty unhappy when they get back and find us here instead of their piles of loot!

None of the passages seemed to go much farther into the mountain. A few looked like they had caved in. The only clue to Joe’s question about why anyone would mine out a place like this was an odd discontinuity in the rock. A smooth, vertical wall of rock of a different color completely blocked one passage.

Lupe immediately suspected a magical door, but didn’t say so to avoid unnerving everyone else. What if the dragons were still actually at home just beyond it? Joe wondered out loud about that apparent fault line, too, but the notion of a magical door isn’t the sort of conclusion an experienced geologist is apt to leap to at first blush.

Joe takes a picture while Dusty sniffs for clues.

Fortunately, the magical door never did open. Although the outside world seemed very bright and hotter than ever, the American Dingo was relieved when the exploratory tour of the mysterious Dragon Caves was finally over. Joe wanted to go up on top of the hill over the Dragon Caves to see if any clues about the local geology could be discovered. Everyone made a brief foray up into the forest above the caves.

Disappointingly, nothing of geological note was really to be seen above, although stands of lovely wild irises were blooming on the way there.

Back down below, Joe noticed a pile of big brown rocks some distance from the front of the Dragon Caves. These large rocks showed signs of mineralization, but nothing significant enough to justify the amount of excavation evident here. The Dragon Caves remained a mystery.

As far as the Carolina Dog was concerned, that was fine with her. At least the dragons hadn’t returned to explain it all in fiery detail.

After visiting the Dragon Caves, enough time remained in the day for a couple more quick sightseeing excursions. Ditch Creek campground was only a mile S of the Dragon Caves. Maybe Dusty and Joe would like to see it? The whole place was packed with people when Dusty, Joe, Lupe & SPHP arrived, but Loop and Dusty managed to sneak in another quick plunge into clear, cold Ditch Creek.

Looper and Dusty at Ditch Creek again, this time near the Ditch Creek campground a mile S of the Dragon Caves.

Staying cool had become a theme on this warm day. The final stop was at Deerfield Reservoir. Dusty and Joe had seen Deerfield Lake for the first time only yesterday during Expedition No. 231 to Hat Mountain (6,779 ft.). The lake had been a hit then, and Cousin Dusty was looking forward to another refreshing swim while fetching sticks.

W end of **Deerfield Reservoir**. Photo looks W.

Oh, yeah! What a great way to end the day!

The afternoon wore on. The time came to return to Grandma’s house for dinner, and an evening of fun and relaxation. Tomorrow, Cousin Dusty and Uncle Joe were going with Aunt Andrea down to David & Mush’s 40 acre ranch in the southern Black Hills. Lupe wouldn’t see them again before they all left for home in Arvada, Colorado.

Lupe’s adventures with Cousin Dusty and Uncle Joe were over for now. Dull days laying around resting up at home were ahead, but not too many of them. June was almost here! The Carolina Dog didn’t know it yet, but soon she would be setting off on her first big Summer of 2018 Dingo Vacation to the Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming and beyond!

Cousin Dusty & Uncle Joe in the Dragon Caves, Black Hills, SD 5-26-18

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Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 231 – Hat Mountain with Cousin Dusty & Uncle Joe (5-25-18)

Lupe was beside herself with joy! SPHP had just informed her that Cousin Dusty and Uncle Joe were in town. That could mean only one thing – an adventure in the mountains! The Carolina Dog couldn’t wait. She insisted that SPHP take her to Grandma’s house to pick them up right away. Sure enough, it was true! Dusty and Joe were there, ready and waiting to go.

Hat Mountain (6,779 ft.) in the W central Black Hills was the day’s peakbagging objective. Although Dusty and Joe have visited South Dakota many times, they had never been to this part of the hills before. Maybe they would enjoy seeing nearby Deerfield Reservoir before heading for the mountain? A quick stop was a success. Dusty and Lupe both had a fun time cooling off in the lake. Dusty loves fetching! Joe threw a stick into the water for her several times.

Dusty enjoys a cool swim while fetching a stick. Photo looks ENE.

Lupe emerges from Deerfield Reservoir. The American Dingo didn’t go swimming like Dusty did, preferring to restrict herself to just wading.

Once Dusty and Lupe were done cooling off, it was time to head for Hat Mountain. The trek started 0.5 mile S of the lake at the junction of Deerfield Road and USFS Road No. 691. For the first mile, everyone followed No. 691 going SSW toward the mountain. The last 0.25 mile was an easy off-road hike up Hat Mountain’s N slope. Dusty led the way.

On the way up Hat Mountain’s N slope. Photo looks S.

The top of Hat Mountain (6,779 ft.) is a flat oblong close to 80 feet long and half that wide. Bushes grow in a small depression toward the S end, but no trees are found on the summit. Joe and Dusty were impressed with the 360° panoramic views.

Dusty and Joe on the summit. Part of Deerfield Reservoir (R) is in view. **Custer Peak (6,804 ft.)** is on the far horizon way beyond Dusty. Photo looks NNE.

The **valley of the N Fork of Castle Creek** is seen in the distance beyond Joe. Photo looks NW.

Cousin Dusty on Hat Mountain. Dusty was doing mighty well for a 12 year old! She loves visiting the Black Hills where she can roam off leash like Lupe.

While Dusty and Joe pondered the views, Lupe and SPHP went over to get a photo of the old Hat survey benchmark. Set in 1950, it’s looking rather worse for the wear now. The “A” in “Hat” has been completely obliterated, though parts of the “H” and “T” are still visible.

*Hey, SPHP! The survey benchmark is over this way, remember?* This was Lupe’s 4th ascent of Hat Mountain. **Green Mountain (7,164 ft.)** is the highest ridge on the L. Photo looks SSE.

The Hat survey benchmark is easy to find toward the E side of the summit area.

A week ago on Expedition No. 230, Lupe had gone with Rizzo, Buddy & Josh Hilpert to Ward Draw and K2 Peak. Josh had told SPHP about a friend of his who had seen lots of pieces of old Indian artifacts up on Hat Mountain. Although Lupe and SPHP had been on Hat Mountain 3 times before, SPHP had never noticed anything like that up here. Still, it was an intriguing tale, and one of the main reasons Joe had been interested in coming to Hat Mountain today.

An initial scan of the small rocks scattered across the summit area proved disappointing. Joe found a few pieces of rock that looked like they might possibly have been chipped as part of a tool making process, but none even faintly resembled a finished product. SPHP didn’t see anything unusual, and the few poorly chipped rocks Joe came up with didn’t interest Lupe or Dusty at all.

Despite the discouraging results on the summit, Joe wasn’t ready to completely give up on the idea that there might be something of interest here. Joe decided to make an exploratory circle a little below the top of the mountain to see if might be possible to run across something down there. Dusty went with Joe, while Lupe and SPHP hung around up top just enjoying the views.

Joe and Dusty circle the summit of **Hat Mountain** looking for artifacts. Photo looks NNE.

Lupe in the depression at the S end of the summit area. According to the story Josh had told SPHP, there were supposed to be lots of pieces of artifacts here, but even Joe, who is a geologist, couldn’t find anything too interesting. Photo looks SSW.

**Black Elk Peak (7,231 ft.)** (L on the horizon) and **Green Mountain (7,164 ft.)** (R). Photo looks SE with help from the telephoto lens.

**Black Elk Peak** (L) and **Little Devils Tower (6,960 ft.)** (R). Photo looks SE with lots of help from the telephoto lens.

Lupe a little below the S end of the summit area. Photo looks NE.

Joe & Dusty continue circling the summit. Photo looks WSW.

The stroll below the summit was scenic, but unproductive. Joe found even less of interest down below than up on top. The whole artifact deal was basically a bust.

Oh, well. Just looking had been sort of fun. Joe and Dusty returned to the summit for a group photo with Lupe.

Cousin Dusty & Uncle Joe with Lupe on **Hat Mountain**.

Then it was time to head back down to the G6.

**South Castle Rock (6,840 ft.)** & **Castle Rock (6,783 ft.)** (both on L), **Nipple Butte (6,800 ft.)** (Center), and **Flag Mountain (6,937 ft.)** (R) from USFS Road No. 691 on the way back to the G6. Photo looks N with help from the telephoto lens.

Upon reaching the G6, Dusty and Lupe were both very much in favor of another refreshing short side trip to cool off in Deerfield Reservoir.

Dusty & Joe back at **Deerfield Reservoi**r. Photo looks NW.

Lupe wading in **Deerfield Reservoir**. Photo looks W.

Then it was back to Grandma’s house for dinner on the deck, fun chasing tennis balls on the front lawn, and the traditional walk up the hill and around the bend to the cul-de-sac.

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Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 201 – Summits on the Air! (Silver Mountain, 4-22-17)

Start 9:16 AM, 48°F, Boulder Hill Road (USFS Road No. 358) 0.5 mile N of Hwy 16.

Note: Summits on the Air is an awards scheme for radio amateurs that encourages portable operation in mountainous areas. A point system awards points for both transmitting (“activating”) from a mountain or picking up the signal (“chasing”).

Joe & cousin Dusty were in town! That meant one thing – time for some Summits on the Air action! Lupe was all for it. She and Dusty arrived at the top of Silver Mountain around 10 AM. It was a beautiful day to be on the mountain.

Lupe hadn’t been on Silver Mountain in more than 2 years. Although the views are excellent, Silver Mountain is not one of Lupe’s favorites. Target practice gunfire can usually be heard off to the W, which makes her nervous. To Lupe’s dismay, the guns were blazing away again today. **Boulder Hill (5,331 ft.)** is in view on the L. Photo looks NE.

Cousin Dusty just below the summit. The distant gunfire didn’t bother Dusty at all. She paid not the slightest attention to it.

Dusty lives in Arvada, Colorado, but was up in South Dakota for a weekend visit. Dusty really likes exploring the Black Hills with Lupe.

Joe had posted notification on the Summits on the Air website that AA0Q (his call letters) would “activate” (start transmitting from) Silver Mountain at 11:00 AM. With an hour to go, he had plenty of time to set up his antenna and portable Ham radio.

Preparations to start transmitting from Silver Mountain included setting up this 16 or 17′ long antenna with four lateral wires at the very summit. Photo looks NE.

Joe said he liked the layout on Silver Mountain (5,405 ft.). The forest had burned years ago, so there were no big trees around to obstruct the views in any direction. The mountain sloped away fairly steeply on most sides with nothing any higher for at least a couple of miles in any direction.

Although Silver Mountain was a good physical setup for Ham radio transmissions, Joe wasn’t at all certain how well things were going to work out. The 11 year sunspot cycle hits its low in just a couple more years, and atmospheric conditions are usually best for amateur radio band transmissions when sunspot activity is high, not low.

As it got close to 11 AM, everything was ready to go. The antenna and portable radio were all set up. SPHP was trained to keep a simple log of Joe’s contacts. Lupe and Dusty were prepared to ward off any intruders.

At 10:55 AM, Joe started transmitting in Morse code, receiving a first response almost instantly. That contact “spotted” AA0Q on SOTA’s website confirming contact with Joe. Silver Mountain was on the air!

An immediate explosion of activity came from dozens of “chasers” all trying to make contact at the same time. AA0Q was overwhelmed by the response, as usual. Joe did his best to make rapid contact with as many of the chasers as possible, but it was impossible to respond to more than a fraction.

AA0Q hard at it shortly after “activating” Silver Mountain. Photo looks SE.

Dusty relaxes nearby while Joe works the Ham radio. Response from the chasers, as usual, was initially overwhelming.

Atmospheric conditions were changing rapidly. Joe and the chasers often exchanged signal strength information, which varied wildly over the span of only a few minutes. Of course, part of the variation was due to the different locations of the chasers. Successful contacts were made with operators in Arizona, California, Pennsylvania, the Carolinas and several other states.

With chasers lined up in droves trying to get through, each contact had to be brief.

This photo shows the overall setup. The rocky summit ridge wasn’t the best for comfort, but AA0Q managed pretty well. Photo looks NNE.

AA0Q’s portable radio in use on Silver Mountain.

For the first 10 or 15 minutes, conditions gradually improved. Signals were getting a little stronger on average, despite bouncing around. Later on, conditions deteriorated. At times the “bands” were down for a minute or two. AA0Q got a chance to shift to a more comfortable position.

As time went by, the bands went down intermittently, giving Joe a chance to shift to a more comfortable position. Photo looks SSW.

By 11:30 AM, 35 minutes after Joe started transmitting, it was over. The bands were consistently weak. The chasers had either made contact with AA0Q, or given up by now. Even when conditions improved momentarily, no one was left still trying to make contact. Evidently it was time to take down the antenna and put the radio away.

Joe at the top of Silver Mountain shortly before taking the antenna down. Photo looks NNE.

Silver Mountain was the 3rd Black Hills peak AA0Q has activated. In July, 2016, Lupe and SPHP had accompanied Joe & Dusty to Custer Peak and Boulder Hill.

AA0Q had made 27 contacts in 35 minutes, so Joe was pleased with the overall results. Despite spotty atmospheric conditions, Silver Mountain had been a successful Summits on the Air outing. There always seem to be way more chasers than it’s possible to make contact with right after activating a peak, but Joe had done all he could.

Lupe got a pat from AA0Q for her guide services.

Lupe earns a pat from AA0Q for her Black Hills peak guide services. Photo looks NE.

Once the radio equipment was put away, it was time for a final look around at the views, followed by a short exploration of Silver Mountain’s summit area. Of course, the most impressive view was toward Black Elk Peak (7,231 ft.), the highest mountain in South Dakota.

**Black Elk Peak (7,231 ft.)** (R of Center) from Silver Mountain. Hwy 16 is seen below. Photo looks SW.

Silver Mountain’s summit area features two ridges running roughly N/S. The E ridge where Joe had set up the radio equipment is the highest. However, only a short distance to the W is an even rockier and more interesting ridge. The W ridge is only slightly lower than the E one.

The slightly lower, but more dramatic W ridge. Photo looks NW.

Between the two ridges, at the base of the E one, is one of many Dingo outposts Lupe has discovered scattered throughout the Black Hills.

Joe inspects Lupe’s Silver Mountain Dingo outpost. Joe was pretty certain it didn’t meet current building codes, but adventurous American Dingoes don’t give two hoots about that. Boulder Hill is in view beyond it. Photo looks NNE.

Joe was intrigued by the W ridge. He got up on top for a few minutes for a look around. Lupe and Dusty stayed below.

Joe got up on the W ridge for a look around. Slightly lower, Lupe is partially hidden among the small trees on the L, while Dusty sniffs around in the foreground. Photo looks W.

With Silver Mountain’s summit area explored, everyone headed back to the G6. There was still tons of time left in the day. Joe wanted to go climb Boulder Hill (5,331 ft.) again. Everyone piled into the G6. Joe drove 0.5 mile N to the start of the access road only 0.25 mile SW of the summit.

An easy trek along the access road led to a scenic path that winds up the large rock formation at the top of the mountain. Soon Lupe was at the summit with a great view looking back at Silver Mountain (5,405 ft.).

Silver Mountain (Center) from Boulder Hill. Photo looks SSW.

Joe has liked Boulder Hill ever since first climbing it with Lupe, Dusty and SPHP exactly one year ago on 4-22-16. In fact, he liked it so much that first time, everyone had come back to make a second ascent the very next day! On the 4th of July, Joe had even done a Summits on the Air activation of Boulder Hill.

Today’s Expedition No. 201 was Joe and Dusty’s 4th time up on Boulder Hill with Lupe and SPHP. Good times!

Joe on Boulder Hill near the area where he’d done a Summits on the Air activation of the peak on 7-4-16. Back then his antenna had been propped up in the big pine tree seen directly beyond him. Photo looks NW.

Joe & Dusty together with Lupe on top of Boulder Hill for the 4th time. The first time up for Joe and Dusty had been exactly one year ago! Photo looks SE.

No Summits on the Air activation of Boulder Hill was planned for today. This was a pleasure excursion, just to see the views.

Silver Mountain with a little help from the telephoto lens. The more dramatic, rocky W ridge is seen to the R of the true summit. Photo looks SSW.

After lingering at the top of the mountain for 15 minutes, everyone started back down. Time to head back to Lupe’s grandma’s house for food, fun and games. Lupe and Dusty looked forward to an afternoon of squeaker ball, tennis ball and flying disc action in grandma’s front yard. (End 2:00 PM, 62°F)