There are several beautiful hiking, biking, horseback riding trails along U.S. 14A (the Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway [1]).
For interesting geology and water features, try the Devil’s Bathtub Trail. To get to the trailhead from Spearfish [2], take U.S. 14A south about eight miles to Cleopatra Place. Take a left on Cleopatra and look to your left for the small parking area that marks the trailhead. The hike is about 0.75 mile in length and follows Cleopatra Creek. There are several stream crossings so be prepared to get wet. It is an easy relatively flat hike that ends at two pools of blue-green water carved into the rock. The trail is hard-packed dirt, well worn and easy to follow.
At one time, it was possible to slide down in the stream right into the pool, but a large boulder fell into the chute, blocking the slide. The pool is still a nice place to dangle your feet for a bit—but just a short bit, because the stream water is very cold. It should take about 1–1.5 hours to do the hike round-trip.
Near Savoy, about 13 miles south of Spearfish on the scenic byway, there are several great trails to choose from. There are two different waterfalls to visit in this area and since both are short and easy hikes, it’s worthwhile to do them both. The trailhead for Spearfish Canyon Falls is off of the Latchstring Restaurant parking lot. The hike is about 0.75 mile and is rated easy.
When you’ve reached the falls, just turn around and return to the parking lot along the route that you took into the canyon. Or you could continue on; the trail becomes strenuous, winding up the canyon wall at a fairly steep incline and returning to the Latchstring parking lot. Just about all of the plant communities in the hills meet here. At the rim, 80 feet above the creekbed, see the towering spruce trees of the Northern Coniferous Forest, some over 120 feet tall.
As you travel down the gently sloping trail, keep a watchful eye out for Oreo helix, a miniature snail. There are thousands of these located here near Spearfish Falls [3].
As the trail descends, the vegetation changes first to the ponderosa pine forest that blankets most of the hills, then to the aspen and birch of the Eastern Deciduous Forest. Since birds are very particular about the environmental niches that they occupy, a wide variety of birds make their home in the multi-faceted habitat here, including mountain bluebirds, grosbeaks, warblers, goldfinches, and even golden eagles.
At the bottom of the trail, continue over the bridge that crosses Spearfish Creek to the point where Little Spearfish Creek cascades into Spearfish Creek. From a nearby clearing you’ll see the falls from the bottom. The trail begins to climb here, 400 feet up to a beautiful bridge that crosses a 120-foot gorge over Spearfish Creek. On the other side of the gorge the trail winds another 400 feet to an arched bridge crossing Little Spearfish Creek. You have arrived at the top of Spearfish Falls. At this point you can continue along the trail to finish a strenuous loop that winds back at the Latchstring via a steep incline, or return the way you came.
The Roughlock Falls Trail is located behind the Spearfish Canyon Lodge [4] at the end of the parking lot. The wheelchair-accessible trail is a two-mile round-trip along the Little Spearfish Creek. The packed dirt trail starts off in a forested area paralleling the creek. In this region, ponderosa pine, spruce, aspen, and oak trees line the trail. There are several wooden benches tucked along the trail for rest stops. The path opens onto a marshy area with willow and high grasses. Look for blue heron in this area.
At the end of the trail, wooden bridges allow close access to the falls. Little Spearfish Creek cascades over large boulders on its way to join Spearfish Creek a couple of miles down the canyon. At the end of the trail, a wooden bridge crosses over the stream and inclines slowly to a parking lot and picnic area. Walk down the road back to the lodge or turn around and return along the trail.
Also near the lodge is the trailhead for the strenuous 76 Trail, the only formal hiking trail to climb to the top of the rim of Spearfish Canyon [1]. The trail is only 0.75 mile in length, but it climbs more than 1,000 feet from start to finish. There are benches tucked into the side of the trail for catching your wind. The panoramic view from ridge at the top of the canyon makes the effort well worthwhile.
Links:
[1] http://www.moon.com/destinations/mt-rushmore-the-black-hills/the-northern-hills/spearfish/spearfish-canyon-scenic-byway
[2] http://www.moon.com/destinations/mt-rushmore-the-black-hills/the-northern-hills/spearfish
[3] http://www.moon.com/destinations/mt-rushmore-the-black-hills/the-northern-hills/spearfish/spearfish-canyon-scenic-byway/natural-features
[4] http://www.moon.com/destinations/mt-rushmore-the-black-hills/the-northern-hills/spearfish/spearfish-canyon-scenic-byway/accommodations-and-food