Driving Spearfish Canyon

Is it preferable to drive Spearfish Canyon from north to south or south to north or does it matter?

I will be leaving from and returning to Deadwood.

Driving Spearfish Canyon

I don%26#39;t think it matters.I too also heard some much of Spearfish Canyon i decided to go thru it on way to Yellowstone/Grand Tetons.The drive from Hill city via 385 is a very nice scenic drive especially around the Pactoia Reservoir. IMO Spearfish Canyon is a nice drive but I would not go out of my way to drive it.Which I did on my way to Yellowstone.If you are headed to Yellowstone/Grand Tetons from the Black Hills,with a visit to Devils Tower on the way,

your time will be very limited at Devils Tower due to going thru those small towns before SC.

But if you have the time,do it...

Driving Spearfish Canyon

It doesn%26#39;t really matter. If I were to take the drive, I%26#39;d leave Deadwood on 85. Go to I-90 and exit at Exit 14 (at the town of Spearfish) and head up the canyon. After the canyon you%26#39;ll pass through Lead and go back to Deadwood.

385 is pretty around Pactola Reservoir--the Pactola visitor center is a good quick stop for a view of the lake and historic info about the dam. From Pactola to Deadwood, 385 is nothing special.

Thanks again Accomodator.

OK, after reading this post Joeman#1 has me wondering whether to drive Spearfish Canyon on the way to Yellowstone or not. We will be leaving from Deadwood and going to Cody, WY with a brief stop at Devil%26#39;s Tower. Hoping to arrive in Cody by late afternoon so we have time to enjoy it and go to the rodeo. I was definitely planning to drive thru Spearfish Canyon based on comments in the forums, but it will add 17 miles and probably 30 minutes to the journey. I am the travel planner in the family, but the minute we start heading south from Deadwood instead of north to I-90, my DH will be questioning my choice of routes. I%26#39;d like some opinions from others whether it would be worth the time to take the longer route through Spearfish Canyon or to go the more direct way to shorten the drive.

You can research the canyon at this link:

http://www.spearfishcanyon.com/byway.htm

If you intend to go to the rodeo in Cody that night

I would skip Spearfish Canyon SC.I would spend a little more time at Devils Tower.The part going from Sheridan to Cody via RT 14 over the Bighorn Mountains is very scenic and slow.As for Spearfish Canyon,I remember it was slow going thru them little towns and easy to miss a turn (which I did).With your limited time IMO I would skip SC.But too each it%26#39;s own...

Thanks for the link, Accommodator. Now that I%26#39;ve seen the video I guess I can put the whole family in front of the computer to watch it and then we can take the faster route to Cody! lol Since we will be experiencing the Bighorn mountain scenery later that same day, I%26#39;m a little inclined to bypass the Spearfish Canyon and save that for a future Black Hills trip. Still willing to consider other opinions though.

You can also pull up videos and pictures of Mt. Rushmore, Devils Tower, The Grand Tetons and Yellowstone at home and not need to take the trip at all! ;)

You%26#39;ll have plenty of scenery with whatever you choose to do. Have a good trip.

Right! And you could use Google Earth for the scenic flights-lol.

%26lt;%26lt;A brief visit to Devils Tower%26gt;%26gt;

Driving from Sundance (yes, all about the Sundance Kid) you%26#39;ll see Devils Tower coming closer and closer and there aren%26#39;t scenic pull overs for nothing. It%26#39;s an incredible landmark. And my advice also is to go to the visitor center and also spend some time at the foot of Devils Tower for the Prairie Dogs. I agree with Joeman, spend more time at Devils Tower. A visit always takes longer than planned.

Tet

'; A visit always takes longer than planned';.

How True..

How many times did we say lets stop just for a few minutes...and before you know its over an hr.

Always happens...The draw Of the Golden West and its beautiful parks and monunents..

Devils Tower prime example...