August 13th
07:30-17:05
Rapid City SD to Bald Mountain Wyoming
346 Miles

	When I got to the turn-off there was a small store on the corner. I stopped to get a shot and some gas but there wasn't anyone around. I hopped on the bike and made the right turn into the access road and found a larger store and the biker group stopped there. I greeted them, checked out the store and snagged a couple of hot dogs for lunch. I hopped on the bike again and headed up to the park.
	Again there were hundreds of prarie dogs that people had stopped to take pictures of. I kept going up to the tower and got off to check out the info desk and read about the climbers. I hadn't realized people could not only climb the tower but do it pretty regularly. There's a comment about not doing it in July but a different site had complaints and basically said that it's our right to climb whenever we want.
	On my way out I passed the biker group and waved. I got a wave and two head turns. I guess I pissed them off when I passed them twice ;-)
	I pulled out of the park and headed back to the main road and Sheridan. The ride north was pretty damned hot. I made an attempt to drive basically non-stop to Sheridan, feeling that I was stopping too many times and should consolidate my stops (pee, get soda, get gas). When I pulled into Sheridan I found an A&W and pulled in for a break. The sign at the bank said it was 106 degrees.
	After refreshments I hopped on the bike and headed for Rt 14. I'd been seeing signs for a while saying I should take Rt 16 for a nicer ride, less twistys and a safer ride to Grand Teton's and Yellowstone. Of course I like twistys and wanted to visit The Medicine Wheel so I had to ride on Rt 14.
	I made the left and off I went.
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