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Cool trail

Admittedly, there are drawbacks to biking the Northern Hills portion of the Mickelson Trail during the second week of October — particularly when it is 50 degrees outside and snow is in the forecast.

But for those willing to brave the elements, color will trump every drawback.

It starts with the trees. There are bursts of yellow, orange and red — like a forest fire without all the smoke and destruction — intermingled with the evergreen of the pine and spruce. The aspen don’t quake as much as they do shimmer. Their orange-yellow leaves become sheer gold coins, flickering in the sunlight. The sky is a blue that would rival anything produced by Crayola. (Although October Azure Sky would be a great name for a crayon.)

The other senses will also be rewarded for enduring the weather. The higher the sun rises, warming the sap in the veins of the pine and spruce, the more pronounced the sharp pine perfume becomes.

And even the wind cannot drown out the pervasive silence. The trees make whirring noises as they sway back and forth in the breeze, and the aspen leaves clack slightly as they glance off against each other. But the silence — the sound of the lack of mechanical engines and electronic white noise — cannot be stopped.

For Mike Randall, who has lived in Deadwood since last fall, the trail that snakes through town is a perfect place for his daily run. Randall says that he usually runs six miles, five days a week, sometimes running four, sometimes, eight. He started running last spring and plans continue as long as the weather permits.

“I love it,” Randall said. “I’ll run until it gets icy and (there is) too much snow.”

The route north from the Dumont trailhead to the end of the road in Deadwood stretches a little more than 16 miles. With a couple of exceptions near Dumont and the Sugerloaf trailhead, the path is nearly all downhill, and pedaling is often optional. Most of the trailheads have information posted on the history of the area. As the trail moves away from the highway, the views of the surrounding landscape become more impressive, particularly near Sugarloaf.

One of the more interesting aspects of the trail is the portion between Sugarloaf and Deadwood, where the changes in the Lead area — brought about by the closing of Homestake gold mine — are most visible. Although there are no trees on the hills, there is an abundance of grass where once there was only naked rock.

And if the wind is a reminder of winter’s impending arrival, then the hills surrounding Lead serve as a reminder that, come spring, the grass will grow again, and cool green will greet the rider as the earth reawakens.

Published Online: March 13th, 2007