Cement ridge is awesome going up there and looking out... Make sure it is a clear day though... Deadwood you can't beat for the night life.... amazing is the only thing and that doesn't describe it enuff... yeah be prepared for cold temps and hot temps... When we were out there it was the coldest i seen it the high of the day was 15 below and the cold was like 28 below... That Sunday it warmed up to like 20.... Great time... I reclutched my F7 and have the EFI but make sure you have all the jets and stuff set up... Check out Buckhorn Bar it is some good times... takes you into a biker type atmosphere... there is a lot of awesome things to look at and see and it is hard to get lost... If you take the High Line it is awesome... There are some cliffs there you can jump off about 15 feet or so and land in nice powder... (if snow permits)... You can wind back on the High lines and get some nice powder that has been untouched but be prepared to get stuck... Anyone hear of any snow as of yet out there... Getting worried about the no snow and we are heading out there around the 3rd of Jan.... :div20: :celebrating:

Hey Bear, just looked at the weather forecast. Calling for 80% chance for snow on sunday night in the lead deadwood area. later in the week they are suppose to have 50% chance up there again. Keeping my fingers crossed for you guys as I will be stuck here in the middle of the sand box till the first week of febuary it sounds like. just hope that we will have snow when we get home so we can ride till the 1st of april like last year. if you think it is bad to sit and look at your sled at home and not have snow, try and imagine what we are thinking when we know there will be snow to ride on and we cant ever get close to our sleds! my dad took mine down already and had them tuned up so they are ready to go along with all the new parts i ordered are sitting in the garage waiting for me to get back. this is enough to make a grown man want to cry!!! good luck and hope we will get a chance to ride with you guys when we get home.

Yeah it is bad enuff staring at the sleds in the garage and not being able to ride but never seeing them with snow on the ground back home would be terrible... Feels like we are in a damn desert here witht he temps and everything warm and there is never any snow or nothing.... It is a shame... Hopefully everyone keeps their fingers crossed on the snow and they get dumped on both days it is forecasted for... Who knows it would be nice that is for sure... Looking at another Firecat but an F5 to purchase this time so that the ole lady could ride with.... So if this trip doesn't pan out hopefully will have that one fixed and ready to go later in the year and meet up with you guys.... If anyone hears anything on this storm please toss the comments in so that we know what is going on... Thanks :div20:

Looks like is may finally be coming. A little pre Christmas ride??? My shopping is done.

...WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM WEDNESDAY MORNING
THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING...

A WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM WEDNESDAY MORNING
THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING.

THE EXACT TRACK AND STRENGTH OF THE STORM REMAINS UNCERTAIN. THE
LATEST GUIDANCE INDICATES THAT THE HEAVIEST SNOW COULD FALL ACROSS
SOUTHERN SOUTH DAKOTA...SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 90. SNOW ACCUMULATIONS
OF 6 OR MORE INCHES ARE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. SNOWFALL TOTALS
IN EXCESS OF A FOOT COULD BE POSSIBLE ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL SOUTH
DAKOTA.

A WINTER STORM WATCH MEANS HEAVY SNOW...STRONG WINDS...FREEZING
PRECIPITATION...AND COLD TEMPERATURES ARE POSSIBLE...BUT THE
TIMING OR TRACK OF THE STORM IS STILL UNCERTAIN. STAY TUNED TO
NOAA WEATHER RADIO...LOCAL RADIO OR TELEVISION...OR CABLE TV FOR
UPDATES ON THIS POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS STORM. TAKE TIME TO PREPARE
FOR SEVERE WINTER CONDITIONS BEFORE THE STORM DEVELOPS.

:banana: :fluffy: :fluffy: :fluffy:

That sounds like good news to everyone i am sure.... About damn time someplace would get some snow... Any chance that that is suppose to hit the hills at all??? It would be great if it did... A nice foot would be great out there give it a chance to get the ground and everything cold so that if there is more precip coming that it would make some nice snow.... They are saying stuff for around Fargo hear but i won't beleive it till i see it but that one sounds like a good promising deal.... My brother lives down in Mitchell so if they get any snow south i am rolling out over christmas and bumming a spot to stay at his house so that i can get a few miles in. He is the pres of the snowmobile club down there so he is itching to go as well... Keep me posted on what the good word is... Thanks :fluffy: :fluffy: :linemup:

Don't get to excited. looks like they changed the forcast and downgraded it big time for the hills.

Enough to piss a normal fella off.

Had not heard about the stuff coming for Fargo. Is it Too Tall trying to get everyones hopes up?

That usually figures!!! We can hope for the best and prepare for the worst i guess... Damn the luck anyways... It would be nice to get some snow around here somewhere... I would like to go out to the Mountains but i don't think the ole Firekitty would handle the deep stuff to well... Usually find myself stuck enuff in the hills in the off trail stuff and out there i would get burried out of site...

Hopefully St. Nick brings us a bunch of snow along with him from the north pole... it would be a good deal that is for sure.. I bet those businesses will be hurting out in the hills if they don't get any snow at all this year...

Where do you guys all stay when you hit up the hills??? I know White Tail Court was nice when i stayed there it is right on the trail and Steve is a good guy for sure... :banghead: :banghead: :linemup:

We have stayed at Recreational Springs 3 times in one of the cabins, once in Deadwood at the Super 8 and the last time in a cabin on the top of Terry Peak. All were good in their own way. We are considering Trails Head, and one of the rental cabins accross the road from Rec Springs.

Most of the cabins go in the $250 - $300 range for the night. we had 12 people in our cabin, so cost was nominal and we could cook our own meals. Only thing I didn't like was having to drive up and down Terry Peak to go riding. But it worked.

We are staying in the Super 8 this time in Deadwood... last year we stayed in Sturgis and i wouldn't recommend this unless it is a last resort... It was a nice place but you had to drive up and down all the time and trailer... I am not a huge fan of this but if you have the set up it is nice... We had a sled in the back of my avalanche and two on the trailer for us and it was just a damn hassle most of the time and tore off my damn plastic deal on the tailgate.... Was not impressed... But at White Tail Court it was me my brother and two other guys and it was a hondo a night and we had our own hot tub, nice room with a kitchenette and nice bathroom and we were right on the trail... Out of all of them i think this was great we could leave the sleds parked at our back door by the deck and then in the morning head out... Just curious on the different places to stay and peoples input...

The snow forecast looks to have disapted over the day and looks like it won't be as much as expected... That sucks.... :fluffy: :div20: :burp:

The Super 8 is great. Nice people, parking lot accross from the hotel and right on the trail, so you can leave your sleds off the trailer. The trolly comes by about every hour, so you have transportaion to downtown and not have to worry about a DWI, if you partake in that. Just make sure if you are out late that you catch the last trolly back home. There is a cab service if you miss it. The only drawback to the Super 8 is that if there is no snow in the northern part of the trail system, your toast. Last couple of years it has been like that.

The trolly deal will be really nice.... I will take advantage of that that is for sure... That is one of the good things about the hills is the night life long with the good sledding... This year we are a little more prepared with a nice 4 place and a nice 2 place for all of our sleds... it will still be a pain in the arse if we have to load and unload all the time but not nearly as bad as it was last year...

Looks as though that one storm might miss the hills all together now... I hope that it rears its head towards there but i don't know if it will or not.... I look on the weather channel website is there any others that are better for forecasts and maps???? :beerchug: :fluffy: :fluffy:

Hey Bear, you said you were looking at an F5 for the wife. Did you find one or are you still looking? I was on the local Honda dealers site tonight and seen he has a 03 F5 Firecat. Their site is www.ricehondasuzuki.com don' know if this would interest you or not but figured if you were looking you might be interested in this one if you are headed to the hills anyway. Just figured I would let you know about it...

Thanks Bad Ram.... Yeah i am looking for something around that CC for her... She is a first timer and i want something with the power valves for sure... I want to have it agressive enuff for me to ride every once in a while but not a monster so that she will be scared of it... Figured the F5 would be the best fit... Just kind of looking around i don't need nothing flashy so far just kind of snoopin if i find something i like i will toss the cash down on it if not no biggie... Just took a trip over to Bismark today and they don't have diddle dee shit for snow at all.... I hope that some places get hit here soon so that i won't have to travel thousands of miles to get good snow... Head about the guy from Jamestown that got killed out there... He was good friends with the parts man from Dales... It is a shame that someone has to get killed doing something so fun... Just need to be careful and aware of what is going down... Hopefully everyone is safe around the holiday season... Bad timing for any misshap...

Anyone hear of any snow in the hills... if so shoot me a post... Thanks guys Have a Merry Christmas :celebrating: :beerchug:

Looks like the hills got pony fucked again out of any snow.... that is to bad those businesses need the snow to stay open and it is a great place to go and ride... I liked meating the new people from around the areas and seeing what they are all riding bs'ing like usual.... Looks like our trip to the hills will be perty well cancelled unless it is a miracle and they start to get a ton of snow... Thinking about getting rooms in Sheridan and then starting out in the Big Horns... Does anyone know where the trail head is from Sheridan...

Any help is appreciated... Thanks :celebrating:

You have to go about 10 miles W of Sheridan and then head up the hill. It's something like 20 miles up to where you can unload. But it takes a while, tons of switchbacks. Arrowhead Lodge or Bear Lodge Resort would be the places to unload. They have fuel and everything else.

www.bearlodgeresort.com

Thanks Cat Attack... I have looked at the Bear lodge web page and sent them an e-mail about the rooms and everything... They said that they have some available for the days that we are looking at so if we can't find any rooms in Sheridan for a decent price we might just hit that up there... I am not sure it sounds like a guy can get a room in town for around 60 or so i have e-mailed the bear lodge back but i think their rooms are a lil more expensive but would be worth it if the road up to the trail head is full of twists and turns and crap....

Thanks for the Info it has helped me out quite a bit as we are desperately looking for a place to go and ride and this seems like the closest and we would have the best fun out there.... Does anyone know if their trail system is marked well or is it kind of barren between signs and maps... I know the hills are marked excellent it is almost impossible to get lost out there just trying to get a feel for the area before we venture too far off trail... Thanks :beerchug: :celebrating:

The trails up around Bearlodge that I have been on are marked pretty well, not as good as the Hills, but they aren't too bad to follow. They have good maps available at the lodges. They have guides for hire too that can take you to the best pow and riding areas. Not sure what they charge. My understanding is that there are some pretty good riding areas not real far away from the lodge. I'm a lot more familiar with the southern horns cause I grew up riding there. The Horns are definitely more mountain riding than the Hills. They road up from Sherdian isn't a fun drive if conditions are bad.

anyone got a snow report on the Rapid City area

ziltch, zero, nada

Yep, it SUX! There was more snow in November.

Chance for snow this week, with Thurs. being the best. We need a big ol' storm to come through, like what Colorado got.

Bighorns aren't too much better from what I hear.

so I've been hearing that the Black Hills have snow, and it looks like more is on the way, hwat's the closest to Rapid City I can get a good ride in on Saturday

I dont know where you are getting your snow info but I just checked the GF&P's site and they are saying the trails are bare right now. Granted that was last updated the 22 Dec. Terry Peaks web site only shows a trace in the last 72 hours. I hope your info is good as would like to see them start getting some snow soon to get a good base built up. They are forecasting snow for this week but have not seen any yet...

good luck as it would be nice to get started riding if I was home to go...

looks like Rapid City might get around 6-7 inches late this week
around here we should get 2-3 inches.....of rain :banghead:

Yep, storm moving in Thurs, Fri, & Sat. according to the forecast. Hopefully it will dump!

There's an article in today's Rapid City Journal about the lack of snow and it's effect on sledding.

Article

Going to be heading to the hills in feb been a few years since i've been there what allitude do you guys jet for out there??

I have an EFI but my buddies we always jetting for around 5-9 out there and we have had no problems... Just watch the tempurature... I changed my clutching and it worked out well... Depends on what you are doing out there and how crisp they need to run and everything.... 5-9 is the best bet.... :celebrating: :beerchug:

Wooooo Hooooooo! National Weather Service forecast for the upper Hills is saying up to 8 inches possible between tonight and Friday. Then chance for snow continuing through Sat. into Sunday morning. God knows we need it...

I'm lookin for a place to ride this Saturday and Rapid City looks good National Weather service says 3-6 inches by Friday and up to 6 inches more by Saturday afternoon and John Dee shows 8-12 inches by Saturday morning, does anyone know of any good trails near Rapid City

That was what i thought but just wanted to make sure thanks alot.

Good trails near Rapid City? Why yes there are. That would be the Black Hills trail system.

Click on this, then follow the trail maps link:

Black Hills trail conditions and map

If this storm is a good one, you might be able to ride Sat. up there.

since you're from Rapid City do you think you could give me a snow report tomorrow morning sometime , then I should be making reservations at some hotel in Kennebec and riding all day Saturday :beerchug: :beerchug:

Sure thing. Not snowing here yet as of about 10 pm, but the forecast still looks good. I'll let you know, but you might also want to call Trailshead or Rec Springs to get the best info on conditions higher up. Rec Springs is easy to trailer to from Rapid, just take the interstate to Sturgis and then go up Boulder canyon to Deadwood/Lead. Rec Springs is a little way on up the hill past Lead. See the links I posted on page 3 of this thread. Also, the Terry Peak web site has new snow updates:

Terry Peak

Rapid City isn't lookin so hot anymore, do you know of any good trails near White River

Looks like Deadwood got some snow by the web cam....But like Snow Blind says check with Rec Springs or Trails head .....There can be tons of Snow where the trails are and none in Deadwood........So the Snow you see in Deadwood could be a good sign...
http://www.sdpb.org/dakotacast/webcam/deadwood.asp

Here is another real good sign that there is Snow in them there hills.....

I copied this

Location:

US-85 between mile 0 and 16.29

Report:

Road conditions as of 6:41 AM CST on Friday, December 29: mostly snow covered; scattered packed snow; scattered ice; slippery; snowfall; reduced speed. Actual road conditions may vary from this report. Motorists are cautioned to be alert to changing conditions.

Weather:

The forecast until 1:00 PM CST on Friday, December 29: Skies will be overcast. Visibility will be two miles changing to five miles. There will be occasional light snow changing to scattered very light snow. Winds will be 7 mph gusting to 20 from the north-northeast changing to 11 mph gusting to 20 from the north-northwest. Temperatures will be 14 to 24 increasing to 18 to 28.

Here is another Web Cam at Spearfish Canyon Lodge

http://www.spfcanyon.com/main.html#

As soon as the sun comes up, I will be looking at all the web cams I can fnd out there. If it looks like they have something to ride on, I am seriously considering heading out there. We are to have a family gathering on Saturday, drive out Saturday night, ride all day Sunday and part on Monday, be back in time for work on Tuesday. OR make a 3 day weekend out of it the following weekend.

We got a very light dusting here in Fargo. Enough to make the roads slippery.

Hey Sam those Cams that I posted above are the only ones I know of out there....If you know of any near the trails I would Appriciate a link to them.....

We will head out there Thursday if they get some good Snow

Called Bob at Trailshead ....1/2 an inch is all they got

Terry Peak website is saying 1/2 inch as well. I would estimate that it is about the same here in Rapid. More is supposed to be coming but I don't know if it is gonna be enough. We need to at least get enough to give the groomers something to work with.

Someone do a snow dance, sacrifice a live chicken, run through the streets wearing only snow boots and a thong, screaming "LET IT SNOW"....
Whatever you have to do to make the snow gods smile upon us! :fluffy:

I-90 is close so we're goin to Ironwood, Michigan now

Just checked the Black Hills report ,Looks like they are getting some snow Finally................http://www.sdgfp.info/Parks/Recreation/Snowmobiling/trailconHills.asp

Hope they get everything that is forecasted and it stays cold. Might just be something to ride on after all when we get home next month!!!

Any update on conditions for the hills?

This site was just updated today, also they are forecasted to have snow flurries on Thurs, Fri, Sat and Sunday.

http://www.sdgfp.info/Parks/Recreation/Sno...ailconHills.asp

We went out to the Horns over the 3-7th and we had a blast out there. On the way out there wasn't hardly any snow there and then on thursday they got snow along with the horns. Up in the Horns we got about 8 inches or so and when we came back we stopped in deadwood for a while to gamble and grab a bite and they had about 2 inches or so in deadwood so i would assume up higher they got more snow. Probably not enuff to ride on yet but there is snow out there. I am hoping that they have snow might be going out for marti gras or else prez weekend.... Let me know if anyone is going out there during them times and we could meet up and have a beer... :celebrating: :linemup:

Hey Bear,
Sounds like I will be back in country before then, if you guys are planning on coming down let me know. As soon as I am back home I can get you the no BS snow reports for you and we can hook up for a ride in the Hills if things look good. By the look of things on the SDGFP site the snow is finally coming and with this weeks forecast it looks like good news. Will let you know when we are back in SD and hope to run into you guys if you come down mid Feb....

I actually went to the hills on Saturday with the neighbor to check things out. We put in at Trailshead. There was enough snow to ride but they hadn't started grooming yet. We rode most of the day but it was nothing like last year by any means. According to the trail reports they have recieved enough to groom and the end of the week looks fairly promising. I will head up again on Saturday with the neighbor. Some areas were really thin but we had a good time until my buddy got stopped by the snow police and got a $94 ticket for having an expired sled registration, after which we found out that Trailshead sales temporary registrations. While we were taking a break I realized I had lost my wallet on the trail. Thank god we were able to find it and I graciously paid for my buddy's temp. registration so we could ride rest of the day.

Hey Joe if you think about it take a few pictures for posting

A little update for everyone......snowing like crazy so far today but the wind is really whipping it around. I will try and remember to take a camera with this weekend and get some pics to post. We are going Saturday and possible Monday also. NOAA says 1-3 today and 1-2 more tonight.