Ever since discovering the Black Hills and the Centennial Trail on our annual road trip to Minnesota, this has been a bucket list trail to complete. Over numerous summers of exploring the trail and running the Black Hills 50, I have covered over 100 of the 125 miles through various runs, but I was excited about the idea of putting it all together. I really wanted to do the run in the fall for the colors and cooler temps (the colors were amazing, the temps were FAR from being cool).
Arrived in S. Dakota on Wednesday, October 1st mid day and used the rest of the day to drive the route and leave a few food/water stashes for myself. I left small drops at Legion Lake road crossing (mile 21-ish), Samelius TH (mile 41-ish), and Elk Creek TH (which I had being almost mile 99). I meant to leave one more stash between Samelius Creek and Elk Creek, and totally spaced it.
My dad and I camped at Blue Bell CG about 30 min from the Norbeck TH. Due to the Government shutdown, I was concerned if I would even be allowed in Wind Cave NP, but it ended up not being a problem. My dad dropped me off the next morning, and I started the trail at 6:37 on October 2nd. I had an amazing time for the first 40 or so miles, but then running out of water between Samelius and Flume TH set off my stomach, which unfortunately, I could never really recover. It ended up not mattering that much that I had no food drop for over 50 miles because I could not eat or keep down the food. Highs in the 80s on day one, and 90s in Sturgis on day two, coupled with dried up water sources made for a very challenging last 85 miles.
Highlights of my journey included seeing a huge male elk with antlers in the first mile, a shooting star at night, feeling totally comfortable on the trail in the dark (I had been worried about this part), and having my dad waiting for me on the top of Bear Butte Friday night. He sat up there for hours waiting for me to finish, and that is not an easy trail to navigate back down in the dark, especially when you are 75 years old- shout out to my awesome dad. Lows were definitely my stomach and not being able to eat the last 24 hours. My pace went from a respectable run/hike, to more like a crawl. I also got lost twice on the ATV roads at night and had to turn around and climb back up descents I had just gone down. In addition, I really struggled to stay awake at night due to no calories. This resulted in a ridiculous number of 1-3 minute dirt naps, or at one of my bigger lows, laying down in a bathroom full of bugs. One buffalo in the early miles was right on the trail and the only way to safely get around him was to down climb off a small cliff, which was the only time I felt nervous on the trail.
Overall, an amazing adventure. I feel like there are many more hours to take off this time, especially with cooler temperatures. Early June when there are more creeks flowing and longer daylight hours might be a better month to attempt the trail self/unsupported. The trail is fairly easy to navigate, although I relied on GAIA multiple times during the trail. I would not have been able to find my way the entire time without it, especially at night. I had considered putting the route on my watch as well so I did not need to stop and pull out my phone so often, but was worried about draining my watch battery. I do think this could have saved quite a bit of time as well. I had planned to catch a shuttle with Jon from Roam'n'Around shuttle, and he is so valuable in trail beta and water sources. My dad last minute decided to join me to explore the Black Hills while I did the trail, but if anyone ever needs a shuttle, Jon is a fantastic resource.