Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 70 – East of Gillette Prairie (11-24-13)

Start (9:39 AM, 40°F), intersection of Slate Creek Road (County Road No. 309) & USFS Road No. 424, about 5 miles SE of Deerfield Reservoir

Oh no, not again!  Ugh, seriously?  What a chow hound!  What was that icky red thing over there anyway?  Some disgusting carcass no doubt.  SPHP called a couple times before Big Sid came running.

No wonder you’re Big Sid, you’ll eat anything no matter how dreadful it is!

Sidney didn’t feel the least bit ashamed of himself.  If anything, he took pride in his new found wilderness survival skills.  On Expedition No. 69, he’d done the same thing.  He’d suddenly disappeared, and after a short search SPHP had found him chomping away on an absolutely vile, sickly green, huge mucous-covered sac or organ he’d found in the woods.

What had it been that time?  Maybe a deer liver or stomach.  Whatever it was, Lupe had the good sense to show no interest.  To SPHP the mere sight of it had been revolting.  Yet there was Sidney, gulping it down with evident delight.  An hour later, he puked it all up again.  Charming.  At least he hadn’t waited until he’d been returned home.  The neighbors would have loved that.

Lupe wasn’t even 0.5 mile from the G6 yet when Sidney discovered this latest delicacy.  Big Sid was only on his 4th expedition with Lupe.  If he was going to be a regular, he was going to have to give up this nauseous-treat-in-the-woods routine.  Other than that, Sidney had been doing fine on these expeditions and getting lots of needed exercise.

Onward!  Lupe, Sidney and SPHP continued NW up USFS Road No. 424.  The road turned N and climbed up to a minor pass.  Staying on the road any further meant losing elevation, so everyone left it heading WNW.  Snow was on the ground, but didn’t amount to much.  Lupe was still gaining elevation.  Before long, she was out of the trees and cresting a big, barren ridge.  She had reached the E edge of Gillette Prairie.

Lupe reaches the E edge of Gillette Prairie, several square miles of rolling grasslands within the Black Hills. Photo looks W.
Looking NW toward high country of the limestone plateau from the E edge of Gillette Prairie.
This was Sidney’s 4th expedition with Lupe. He was supposed to be getting exercise so he could slim down, not finding disgusting things to eat in the forest, which he seemed to have a talent for. Photo looks W across Gillette Prairie.
Loop on the barren ridge E of Gillette Prairie Photo looks E.

No definite plan existed for Expedition No. 70, though SPHP thought it might be fun for Lupe to go clear around Gillette Prairie.  W of Gillette Prairie were high ridges, part of the limestone plateau country.  The ridges were some of the highest ground in the Black Hills.  From Green Mountain (7,167 ft.) Lupe ought to have some fabulous views.

Going directly across Gillette Prairie wasn’t an option.  Nearly all the open ground was privately owned ranchland, but it was all surrounded by Black Hills National Forest.

The highest part of the ridge Lupe was on was off to the NW.  That might be the best way to go.  Lupe and Sidney kept climbing along the ridge.  The high point was back in the forest, but Lupe had enough of a view to see South Slate Creek valley ahead.  Lupe would have to lose elevation crossing it.

Losing some elevation wasn’t a big deal.  Lupe and Sidney proceeded on down toward the valley.  Lupe was half way down or more when she came to a fence.  The fence ran N/S.  A house could now be seen on the NW side of the valley.  That meant the land beyond the fence was likely private property.  Continuing NW apparently wasn’t an option, at least not here.  Lupe would have to follow the fence N for a while.

No problem, except where was Sidney?  He was missing again!  Lupe never wanders off for more than a few minutes.  She was here, but Sidney was nowhere in sight.  Where had he disappeared to this time?  What had he gotten into now?  SPHP quickly scanned the forest for movement.  Nothing.  Oh, brother – not good!

Shortly before reaching the fence, Lupe had crossed a dirt road.  Loop and SPHP went back to it.  No Sidney in either direction.  No Sidney in any direction.  SPHP started calling for Sidney.  Several minutes went by.  Big Sid did not appear.  Worrisome, very worrisome.

Suddenly finding Sidney was top priority.  The neighbors would be unhappy if SPHP delivered a queasy Sidney home to puke on their carpets, but absolutely and justifiably outraged if SPHP managed to completely lose their precious pooch!

The snow on the ground was insufficient to track him, and his Carolina Dog buddy wasn’t any help.  Lupe didn’t seem the least bit concerned where her friend Sidney was.  Maybe she reasoned that Big Sid had enough reserves to easily last him a month in the wilderness, and he would be fine.  That might be true enough, but “We’ll go back to Gillette Prairie in a month or two to find Sid when he’s all nice and slim and trim.” sure wasn’t going to fly back home.

Gah!  What to do?  Where had he gone?  Back to the red carcass?  Back to the G6?  Following some new wretched scent off into the forest?  SPHP stood on a stump looking for movement, calling and calling for Big Sid.

Finally Big Sid reappeared, trotting happily back along the road from the S without a care in the world.  Sheesh!  He hadn’t been gone all that long, but SPHP was very glad to see him.  At least Sidney finally responded when called, but better keep a closer eye on him from now on.  SPHP was used to letting Lupe roam at will without having to worry she would disappear like that.  Lupe always kept close tabs on SPHP, not the other way around.

OK, back to business.  Lupe, Sidney and SPHP went down to the fence again and began following it N.  Ten minutes later, the fence turned NE.  Following it NE way down South Slate Creek valley meant losing a lot more elevation.  Sigh.  Maybe it was best to simply go S instead?  Perhaps Sidney had the right idea after all?

Fine, let’s try that.  Everyone went S.  It was a fiasco.  The fence went S for a while, a little W of the barren ridge Lupe and Sid had been on before, but eventually turned SE instead of SW.  SPHP finally checked the USFS map and found that Lupe would have to go clear back to the G6, and then even farther S to get around Gillette Prairie this way.  Everything to the W was private property.

No way!  The northern route was better, shorter.

Following the fence S along the E side of the private ranchlands in Gillette Prairie backfired. There was no way W across the private land, and the fence eventually turned SE instead of SW. When SPHP finally checked the map, it was clear that going N was the best way around. All this time, Lupe and Big Sid had the same slightly closer view of Green Mountain (L) on the far side of Gillette Prairie that they’d had before. Photo looks W.

Lupe and Big Sid wound up back on USFS Road No. 424 heading N up to the same minor pass again.   This time they stayed on the road beyond the pass, losing elevation for a while before leaving the road to venture NNW.  They climbed up to a different rocky high point overlooking South Slate Creek valley where they stopped for a Taste of the Wild and water break.

The big useless loop back to the S and E had consumed 1.5 hours of daylight.  Completely circumnavigating Gillette Prairie wasn’t going to be possible now.  Maybe Lupe could still get over to the high country on the NW side, though, before turning back?

Lupe and Sidney continued on.  They went clear down to South Slate Creek, crossed it, and found USFS Road No. 424.1B, a muddy road which led N up a hill on the other side of the valley.  At the top of the hill, another road came in from the W.  Since they had to be N of Gillette Prairie by now, Lupe and Sid turned W and followed it.

When the new road turned SW, Lupe and Sidney left it wandering W on level ground through the forest for a while.  Exploring was fun, but the terrain eventually forced them S back to the road.  Soon afterward, the road intersected USFS Road No. 297, the main N/S gravel road through Gillette Prairie.  A marker said the side road they had been following was No. 297.4D.

Lupe and Sidney were finally getting somewhere!  Another, better road (unmarked, but likely USFS Road No. 656) was on the W side of No. 297.  No fences were over here, so it appeared to be USFS land.  Lupe liked exploring the forest, so everyone left No. 656, but continued paralleling it a little to the N.

After a lot of circling around, Lupe and Sidney finally started making progress toward Green Mountain.

For a little while, Lupe and Sidney were making great progress toward Green Mountain.  It was too good to last.  No. 656 turned S and led into private property.  A fence, a house and horses were up ahead.  To get around them, Lupe would have to continue W down a thickly forested slope.  How far she would have to go and how much elevation she would have to lose, was unclear.

Once USFS Road No. 656 turned S and entered private property, the jig was up. To continue W off the road down into this thick forest before starting a big climb up Green Mountain was not an option. It was too late in the day for such an adventure. Photo looks NW. Hat Mountain (6,779 ft.) which Lupe and Sidney had climbed on Expedition No. 69 is in view in the distance.

Too much time had been lost earlier.  It was too late in the day for a long off-road, off-trail adventure through thick forest leading to a long climb.  Green Mountain wasn’t happening.  Ahh, well.  So it goes.  No big views today.  Better turn back.

Lupe and Sidney didn’t care.  Going to Green Mountain or back to the G6 was all the same to them.  They were still having a blast exploring.  At least Big Sid hadn’t disappeared again.

Although this was only Big Sid’s 4th expedition with Lupe, he was getting the hang of how things worked. He really enjoyed the long days in the hills, although his owners reported back after each trek that he was totally exhausted and could barely move for days on end afterwards.
Loop and Sidney, neighbors and exploring partners, shortly after starting back for the G6. They got along well on their joint expeditions. Sidney was a welcome addition to the pack!

For a while, the route back was a retracement of Lupe and Big Sid’s earlier travels.  The dogs paralleled No. 656 through the forest back to No. 297, crossed it, and followed No. 297.4D to the junction with No. 424.1B.  They then went S on muddy No. 424.1B down to South Slate Creek.

Going S down muddy USFS Road No. 424.1B into the South Slate Creek valley. Lupe and Sidney had taken their Taste of the Wild and water break earlier in the day up on top of the hill seen ahead. Photo looks S.
Loop checking for squirrels on the way down to South Slate Creek.

Upon reaching South Slate Creek, Loop and Sid made a change in the route back, exploring a road leading E downstream.  The sun was getting low now.  It seemed best to stick to the roads, at least until they were closer to the G6.

Bare aspen trees in South Slate Creek valley.
Down in South Slate Creek valley, the sun was already getting low.
Sidney in the snow in South Slate Creek valley.
Lupe liked the snow.

Lupe and Sidney didn’t have to go too far down South Slate Creek valley before reaching a junction with USFS Road No. 424 again.  They were farther N on it than they’d been before and took it heading S.

No. 424 would have led all the way back to the G6, but upon reaching the minor pass for the 3rd time today, this time from the N, SPHP decided to climb High Point 6624, the hill to the E.  The last rays of sunlight were still glowing faintly on the highest distant peaks when Lupe and Big Sid arrived on top 15 minutes later.  Everything else was in shadow.

The views were beautiful – peaceful, serene.  The Black Hills stretched N to the horizon.  To the E, the prairies of western South Dakota were dimly perceived beyond the hills.

The remaining light faded quickly from even the highest hills.  A slow, steep trek down an ugly S slope covered with deadfall timber and thistles ensued.  Reaching No. 424 again far down in the valley took a while, but the G6 was now close by.  It was nearly dark when Lupe and Sidney jumped in (4:53 PM, 30°F).

A warning light came on when SPHP started the G6.  Yikes!  Not one, but two tires had low air pressure!  Fortunately, enough pressure remained in each to make it home.  Sidney was returned to his owners.  Somehow he managed not to puke up any noxious materials overnight.

Even though Lupe’s adventures East of Gillette Prairie hadn’t led to any great accomplishments, it had still been a lovely day spent exploring the hills.  Both dogs had fun, and various tragedies had been avoided.  Some adventures that’s as good as it gets.  Best to have enough sense to appreciate it!

South Slate Creek valley near sundown.

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