This ride follows a route from the Horning and Marriot book “Mountain Bikers Guide to the Black Hills.” Summit Ridge sits on the southwest flank of the Black Hills, just off the SD-WY state line, and slightly north of the Pennington/Custer county line. The southwest part of the hills is its emptiest quarter. All my visits to this area were done solo, and I never saw another person on my travels there.
I
drove in the long way from Lead via BHNF 117 and 265, both of which were in
good gravel roads. The ride took an hour and a half, and ended up starting just
a few miles east of Newcastle, WY. It was a pretty drive, and I only saw two
cars after leaving the highway. I parked on road 265 just a few miles north of
the lookout to ride a counterclockwise loop, mostly in Wyoming. The ride
started through a logging area on a rough road. After about ¾ of a mile I got a
flat, but luckily I had a spare tube to fix it. Beyond the state line, I
couldn’t follow the road, but still ended up in a grassy area near the old
buildings described on the guide.
Summit Ridge, WY Mountain Bike Loop.
Despite
this inauspicious start, I was able to follow “an obscure grassy two track”
that led to a better road heading south. The next section was fun, easy riding.
I was surprised at how rugged the area was. I was on the inside edge of the Racetrack
Valley, with the harder central core of the hills to the east, and the valley of
the soft Spearfish Formation to the west.
I
encountered one gate marked “No Trespassing”, but was too far around the loop
to turn back. I next reached the Hoodoos and began the climb back into the main
body of the Black Hills. I ended up pushing my bike up much of this steep
grade. Kudos to the guidebook authors for their stamina! Approaching the state
line was an older logging area, but these logging roads were easier to follow.
I just stayed on the main road, and rode up the main draw to reach the tower. I
got off the guidebook route, but the ride instructions indicated that this area
was complex even for the authors.
The
Summit Ridge Tower is a narrow steel structure barely rising out of the trees.
I was stripped down to shorts and T-shirt by then and the wind was uncomfortably
cool. I could see the tower at Elk Mountain to the south, and had views east
and west across the flanks of the hills. Some of the ruggedest areas seemed to
be around Boles Canyon, part of the route I’d driven to the start.
I
was surprised to find this part of the hills so pretty. Outside of the logging
areas, the woods were open, and there was a lot of relief. There were several
old structures that I passed without exploring to liven up the ride for the
more curious. It was drier than the northern hills, and would be a good option
for fall and spring when other areas were likely to be wet.
The
rest of the ride was an easy 1.6 miles on the BHNF road down to the start. I
saw no people or bike tracks the entire time. The ride measured at 11.1 miles
and took me about three hours, including the time taken to change my flat.
Three hours of riding for three hours of driving isn’t a great tradeoff, so
this was a ride I liked, but never chose to repeat. Maybe a long, narrow BHNF
117-265-264 loop would have been a better option.
Currently
(2023) the former Summit Ridge Lookout Cabin is the only cabin available for
rent by the Black Hills National Forest, though availability is limited. The
primitive cabin is eligible for listing
on the National Register of Historic Places. See: (Link) 
Summit Ridge Fire Tower from BHNF website.
Elk
Mountain Hike, Solo, 10-27-90
After
the bike ride was over I was still feeling ambitious, and knew I wouldn’t be
this close to Elk Mountain and its tower anytime soon. So, I headed south to US
16, found the sliver of BHNF land cutting the road, and parked. My plan was
climbing straight cross country up to the tower, rather than following its long
approach road from the south.
Once
off the road and into the trees I was in for a rude surprise. Almost the entire
slope had been selectively logged, and I was forced to wade through hip deep
slash or walk up old skidder trails. The ascent was steep, covered about 1,000
feet in a mile, and took 48 minutes. The tower is identical to the steel
structure on Summit Ridge, and even has a similar cabin below it. I liked the
view from Elk Mountain better. It extended north to Summit Ridge, south along
Elk Mountain and northeast into the rugged canyons. The light was flat and
accentuated the topography perfectly, but I did not have my camera. From the
tower I walked west to the very slightly higher true summit, which was being
used as a workstation by the loggers. I headed down slightly north of my ascent
route, but left no notes regarding any improvements on that line. Back at the
car, I estimated two hours and 3.5 miles for the trip.
Elk Mountain Fire Tower Hike.
According
to the BHNF, the tower and cabin were built sometime between 1939-1941. It is
one of only five active towers in the forest as of 2023. This area is fire
prone with the Elk Mountain Fire burning 13,000 acres in 2001, and the 2011 WhoopUp Fire burning
another 7500. Besides the usual deer and antelope, there are elk and bighorn
sheep in the area. 
Elk Mountain Tower from BHNF website.
For
more on fire towers in the Black Hills visit: SDPB Fire Towers
