Cyclists set out on a three-day inaugural ride on the George S. Mickelson
Trail, following the historic Deadwood to Edgemont Burlington Northern rail line. Among
the riders were the widow of the South Dakota governor for whom the trail is named, Linda
Mickelson; two of their sons, Mark and David Mickelson and their wives; South Dakota's
current first lady, Mary Dean Janklow, and several of the first "rails to
trails" boosters, including Sturgis businessman Guy Edwards; Darrel Kenops, former
Black Hills National Forest Supervisor now assigned to the Willamette Forest in Oregon;
Dave and Julie Snyder, Pierre, ride coordinators. (above)
In 1991 South Dakota's Governor George Mickelson, center, cut the ribbon to
open the first six miles of the Black Hills Recreational Trail, renamed the George S.
Mickelson Trail after the governor's death in a tragic plane crash in 1993. Flanking the
governor are National Guard Adj. Maj. Gen. Harold Sykora, far left; Guy Edwards and
National Guard Chief Warrant Officer Dick Lee, Spearfish.(above)
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Following the yellow crushed limestone road
through the heart of the Black Hills, more than 200 cyclists made a three-day inaugural
ride on the George S. Mickelson Trail the last weekend in September. Meandering up and
down hills, along creeks, across railroad trestles, through grassy meadows and heavily
timbered pine forests, the 107-mile recreation trail winds through some of the most
beautiful scenery in the Black Hills, along the historic Deadwood to Edgemont Burlington
Northern rail line.
Fifteen years in the making, the trail project hit some major detours along the way,
including a lawsuit from adjacent property owners who attempted to block transfer of the
abandoned railroad right-of-way to the state.
Burlington Northern abandoned its line in 1983 and began to dismantle trestles two
years later. Local cyclists, spearheaded by Sturgis businessman Guy Edwards, organized a
Black Hills Rails to Trails Association, set out to save the trestles and gain support for
a recreational trail.
After his election in 1986, Governor Mickelson pledged his backing of the project and
officiated at the 1991opening of the first six miles of the route then known as the Black
Hills Burlington Northern Heritage Trail. It was renamed after Mickelson's death in a 1993
plane crash.
The non-motorized trail is managed by the South Dakota Division of Parks and Recreation
for hikers, bikers, horseback riders and cross-country skiers. Snowmobiles will be
permitted only on the 20-mile segment from Deadwood to Dumont.
Required for users 16 and older, trail passes sell for $2 per day, $6 per season, at
self-service stations at trailheads and state park offices, but trail use is free for
pedestrian traffic and within city limits of Deadwood, Lead, Rochford, Hill City, Custer
and Pringle.
The trail is closed from dusk to dawn. Camping is allowed on U. S. Forest Service lands
along the trail, but prohibited on the right-of-way and at trailheads.
For more information about the George S. Mickelson Trail contact the Black Hills Trails
Office, HC 37, Box 604, Lead, SD 57754-9801, telephone 605-584-3896. |
South Dakota National Guardsmen have been working on the
Mickelson Trail since 1991, building bridges, installing culverts, grading and grooming
the crushed limestone trail. Members of the 109th Engineer Group and 842nd Engineer
Company installed the last two bridges east of Rochford in time for the September
dedication. (above)
In Good Company is one of two Jon Crane water color
images commemorating the completion of the George S. Mickelson Trail. The Hill City artist
has donated reproduction rights of this summer scene and a companion winter image, A
Gift of Solitude, to the South Dakota Parks and Wildlife Foundation, with proceeds
dedicated to trail enhancement and interpretive signs. (above) |
