Rapid Canyon, near Dark Canyon Photo by V
After lunch we drive up Rapid Canyon to Lockhart Inn. We go up the mountainside to see the moss sculpturing by Mr. Lockhart called “A Miner’s Dream.” Then we start the ascent up the Canyon on foot. This is a climb that will pay one well. From Rapid Canyon we turn into Dark Canyon ascending by rock ledge paths and canyon floor through beautiful formations of nature’s handiwork. One cannot imagine the thrill, not only of the scenery but also the thrill of accomplishment, a hundred per cent pleasant that goes with this trip. Some of the sidelights of the trip are “Sitting Bull’s Kitchen,” “Victoria Falls,” (a beautiful waterfall), “Jungle of the Gods,” “Bridge of the Gods,” (a natural bridge formerly over the canyon but now fallen in), and “Bear Cave.” The picturesque grandeur of the panorama, the stupendous rocks, the great precipices, the straight tall trees, the swift, cold, clear streams and many other awe inspiring and pleasant experiences stamp themselves indelibly upon our minds. The experiences include climbing precipitous places, jumping and climbing over rocks, looking down over precipices hundreds of feet below, continually discovering something new to enjoy. The effect is invigorating, exhilarating, satisfying. The path is not dangerous at any place, though filled with thrills, especially on the paths built on ledges around the mountain. These are the rambles that mean most to vacationists, and unfortunately they are too often left out because of the time needed and the effort necessary to make them.
Rim Rock Highway in the Black HillsRise Studio, Rapid City, S. D.
CHAPTER V
Cement Plant
Monday morning we strike camp at 9:00 a. m. We drive into Rapid City, get our snapshots of the Badlands which had been finished there, again shop a bit, and drive out to the cement plant.
First, however, a word about Rapid City. It is a thriving little city on the eastern entrance to the Hills. The streets have a modern air to them, with occasional reminders of the days of the “West.” During the tourist season the city fairly teems with life. Prices are reasonable and the people are courteous. The city resembles those farther east for the most part, not being without the familiar Woolworth and Penny stores. But the relics of cowboy days are still in evidence, and specimens of fish and game, alive or mounted, are shown with no little pride.
The high school, where President Coolidge had his summer Capitol in 1927, is a place worth stopping to see.
The State cement plant is run by the State of South Dakota. It employs about 150 people. The plant consists of the quarries, the sheds for raw rock, chutes, power house, crushers, the hydrating and baking plant, the furnaces, the drying tanks, the sacking department, and the offices. Each of the buildings is very large. The raw rock shed holds thousands of tons of rock. Each of the ten storage or drying tanks holds 15,000 barrels of cement. The plant can turn out twenty car loads a day, with eight hundred to a thousand sacks to each car.