At 109 miles long, the Mickelson Trail follows the historic Deadwood to Edgemont Burlington Norther rail line, which winds through the heart of South Dakota's Black Hills. Shown is the Black Hills Lime Company at about the trail's 30-mile marker.

Nearby is the George S. Mickelson Horseback Riding Trail, located off of Route 16 just before you arrive at the TC Ranch Horse Camp in Black Hills National Forest, South Dakota.

After you make the turn off Route 16, you’ll cross an old railroad bed. There, you’ll see a small sign that tells you it’s the Mickelson Trail, good for horseback riding. The sign’s size has nothing to do with the trail’s length; if it did, you’d need a billboard.

Historic Rail-to-Trail
At 109 miles long, the Mickelson Trail follows the historic Deadwood to Edgemont Burlington Northern rail line, which winds through the heart of South Dakota’s Black Hills.

The rail line was abandoned in 1983, and over the next few years became what it is today: one of the most beautiful horse, hiking, buggy, and biking trails in the state. More than 100 converted railroad bridges and four hard rock tunnels enhance your ride. With 14 trailheads along the way, it’s easy to access.

Riding the Mickelson
Kathy and I figured it was time we rode the Mickelson from end to end. Of course, we did it in pieces. Mileage between trailheads varies; the longest is 16 miles. It took some thinking to figure out how to ride from one trailhead to the next, then get back to the trailer without backtracking.

We started our just-over-10-mile ride between the Minnekahta and the Pringle trailheads. We parked our rig where the Mickelson crosses County Route 316, just south of Pringle. From there, we’d ride back north to a point where the TC crossed the trail, between Pringle and the Harbach. As long as we rode back to the TC from our starting point, we could pick the mileage we wanted to ride. From the TC, we could get a ride back to our rig.

This stretch was well worth our first effort, taking us past the Lein Quarry trail stop — the remains of the old Black Hills Lime Company. The trail winds around at its normal 3 percent grade when necessary. To make a level railroad bed through this country, workers had to build bridges and cut the hillside. Old telegraph poles still line the way.

Although the trail runs through private property almost the whole way, you can still see and photograph many sights, so carry a good camera. Every historic spot has at least a bench to set on to rest, plus an informational marker. Every major trailhead has water, shelter, parking, and toilets. But carry lots of drinking water, too.

Pushing Northward
As we came into Pringle, we saw our first real trailhead setup: a small, shed-type building to rest in, water, and a toilet. The sign said, "Pringle Trail Head MP 32.1." By subtracting the mileage back to our starting point, we knew we had less than 30 miles to the southern end of the trail — and we could ride it at a later date. So we pushed northward toward the TC.

At times, the trail took us along the main road, which turned out to be lucky for us. Back at the TC, Kathy found that her halter and lead rope had dropped off the back of her saddle. As we headed back by truck to pick up our rig, I spotted Kathy’s gear. If she’d lost it anywhere else, we wouldn’t have seen it.

The trail north of Pringle takes you past the White Elephant Mine trailhead (parking only) and gives you a view of the famous White Elephant across the road. This is a nice day’s ride from the TC.