Ghost towns

[YOURDRUNKDAD]

Would anyone be game fore a weekend of exploring ghost towns? It is somthing I did in Utah and would love to continue here.

[Hank]

Lonesome Dave has a cool thread somewhere here about that.  Can't remember the town name.   I'd love to do it, but won't be back in the hills until the fall rally

[Bogus Jim]

I think we should be able to get a few riders interested in something like this? I don't have a very good knowledge of Black Hills history but Lonesome Dave seems to know a lot about ghost towns, caves, mines, fire lookouts, etc.

There's an abandoned WWII munitions depot south of Edgemont, I suppose that qualifies as a ghost town. A lot of historical information at this link.

http://www.bhodian.com/welcome.html

[greatbuffalo]

This is an idea of something we could do for the Fall rally. The other ride I've been playing with for some time is the Custer Expedition trail.

[YOURDRUNKDAD]

I need to get a dang GPS so I can find these places better. If you want to plan a ghost town ride for the fall rally I would be more than happy to scope the trails with you.

[greatbuffalo]

I'll have to see if I can put something together and then pass it by some of the others that know the area better and see how best to get to these places making fun. There is always a few ways to get somewhere, the easy way, the scenic way, the hard way, the fun way, and the Oh My God!!! I have get up there!? way.

I just happen to have my Black Hills Ghost Towns book with me and it a quiet night. By the way, the authors of this book, Watson Parker and High Lambert, both died early this year. Those two guys had so much local knowledge it was insane. I had the pleasure of working on a Passport Through Time project with Hugh Lambert a few years back.

A lot of these "ghost towns" that are in this book no longer exist, you can't find a dang thing. Other still have a couple of building and some old machinery parts. Many still have hidden open pits and mine shafts. What I find interesting is to look at an area and try to think, how can so many people have lived here a hundred years ago and not leave a trace. Its pretty remarkable.

[YOURDRUNKDAD]

I am the same way. I love history. When I was a youngin my mother would take my brothers and I to ghosst towns in Utah and we would dig for old bottles and jars. She collected that sort of thing back then. Hell I even found a full REALLY OLD small fire place that would have been used to cook on or heat a small house. It is amaizing the things you can find and like you said imaging the past.

Almost forgot, I found this. Don't know if it will help you at all.

http://freepages.history.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~gtusa/usa/sd/blackhills.htm