South Dakota: Centennial Trail - The Plan & Arrival Day – 6/4/23
Raise your hand if you’ve got a bookmarked list of long hiking trails, the stuff of yearning, sauntering off into the wild with a clear weather forecast, a loaded backpack and a light heart. Many of those adventures are in the “daydreaming-only” category, some are in the “maybe-someday” category, and probably two or three are in the “I-must-do-this” category. The rankings are very scientific: how does hearing the name of that trail make me feel?
The Centennial Trail in South Dakota caught my attention in 2022, in an area of the U.S. that I’ve never visited. It stretches 124 miles between Wind Cave National Park in the south and Bear Butte State Park in the north, traversing Black Hills National Forest, the Black Elk Wilderness, and Custer State Park. Fun fact: the trail passes within one mile of Mount Rushmore National Memorial.
The varied terrain of prairie grasslands and Black Hills High Country intrigued me, and roaming buffalo and prairie dogs sounded pretty cool. As I read more about the history of indigenous peoples in the Black Hills, I felt the pull of the land beyond the CT. I began planning a thru-hike with extra days to explore the southwest corner of South Dakota.
I highly recommend the book Hiking Centennial Trail, 2nd Edition, and the Hiking SD Centennial Trail Facebook page as invaluable resources. *NOTE: There is also a Centennial Trail in Idaho/Washington State – if you want to go, make sure it’s the right one!
A 9-day solo backpacking trip was a stretch for me and I was determined to channel Eleanor Roosevelt to “do one thing every day that scares you.” BUT when my good friend Nancy East expressed interest in joining me, I thanked the universe for giving me an experienced, good-natured, certified search-and-rescue partner for the journey. My hubby Jim was glad too!
The night before our departure, Nancy and I spent a couple of hours making final decisions on gear – what can we do without? We’d each shipped a food resupply box ahead to the midpoint, but otherwise this was a hike with few options for second thoughts.
I carried more than the usual trail jitters with me to the airport. We checked our bags of hiking gear and listened to announcements as our direct flight to Rapid City was delayed (more time to stir up those jitters.)
Well, we arrived in Rapid City but my backpack didn’t come through baggage claim – what? Texts came from the airline that my bag would be on a “future flight.” In fact, it was winging its way to Dallas, TX because who the heck knows why?
I became flustered, and Nancy was very helpful in calmly tracking the bag (new meaning for “search-and-rescue”). Its estimated arrival time to Rapid City: 9:00 pm.
We will not be starting our hike today.
Our shuttle driver, Jon, picked us up at the airport and quickly switched gears to help us out. He and his wife Bridget, owners of Roam'n Around Travel & Outdoor Gear, are the nicest trail angels of the hiking world I have ever met! They shuttle and support hikers all up and down the Centennial Trail. They invited us to stay at their house instead of a hotel (yes!) and took care of us in more amazing ways as we waited for my backpack to show up.
Nancy and I spent an unexpected but delightful day walking around Rapid City, checking out the splash park at Main Street Square and Prairie Edge, a combination art gallery and Native trading post. We found Silver Lining Creamery and Firehouse Brewing Company (did you doubt it?)
We will begin our thru-hike of the Centennial Trail at the southern terminus in Wind Cave National Park tomorrow morning, but we’ve lost our 6-mile “head start” today. Tear up the game plan and begin again!
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