Day 2: Spearfish

 Today was great start to our first full day in South Dakota. We spent together with our former neighbors, the Doerges, in Spearfish. They moved from Adel last fall and we have missed spending time with them! They were great guides through Spearfish Canyon. We had a wonderful picnic before hiking through the canyon. Below are some of the pictures from today:

The Girls and I at Pactola Dam. What a breathtaking view. There were lots of boaters out on the lake.....making a boat our next purchase after a camper. :-)

Lexi could have stayed there all day

"Come on, Dad. I'll show you the way." -Bren

I made them take a picture by the sign so I wouldn't forget the name. 

Soaking our feet in the river at Spearfish Canyon. It was VERY COLD, but that didn't stop the girls from getting in.

Chris being a guy and climbing on the rocks.

Waterfalls!

Bren and I at Roughlock Falls. Little history lesson for you: Roughlock Falls got its name from when wagons would come down the steep hills, they would "lock" the wheels and let the horses drag them down to reduce the risk of going too fast. This technique was called roughlocking. Pretty Interesting.

Family Pic!

More waterfalls. It was so beautiful. I've never seen a waterfall before. Roughlock Falls is where the last scene in "Dancing with Wolves" was shot.

The canyon was unlike anything I had ever seen before. It was so amazing to see so many trees growing out of rocks. It felt almost surreal driving through. We saw a few areas that were destroyed due to recent fires or by bug infestation. It was crazy to see this at one minute and barren land the next.

Brenna hitching a ride with Daddy. She was a trooper and walked alot of the way before really needing some help from dad.

Spearfish falls. Absolutely amazing. There was a well needed mist that hit you when you stood next to this one.

chris and I--taken by Bren. She did okay, but almost missed the falls. :-)

Playing in the creek. The girls' favorite part. Tim and Jane, the Doerges' grandkids, tried to teach Lexi to skip a rock. Let's just say that she needs a little more practice.

The final picture at Spearfish Canyon.

 After the canyon, we headed to Spearfish to visit Joe and Carol's new house. Quite different from their old house in Adel, but just perfect for a newly retired couple. They invited Chris and I to come stay with them whenever we want. I think Chris might take them up on that since the live 15 minutes away from Sturgis. :-)

Our final stop of the day was at the DC Fish Hatchery in Spearfish. They had 3 different tanks to hold the 3 sizes of trout they were "growing". The girls had a great time feeding the fish. What a great way to end the day.

Day 2 is wrapping up. Thanks to the Doerges's for a great day! It was great to see a familiar face on vacation. It was voted on at supper that tomorrow was going to included "Bear City" (Bear Country in Lexi terms.)

Until Then,
Jacque