Sheridan Lake - Centennial Trail


I joined a few Facebook groups for Rapid City in hopes to get the inside scoop on things to do and possibly meet other moms in the area. One mom asked for creek hopping spots and the Flume Trailhead was brought up. We followed Apple maps to the trailhead, but it took us on a bit of a goose chase. Google Maps took us to the trailhead, but we ended up hiking the Centennial Trail. We didn't make to the Flume trail because it is pretty far from this location. This was a very family friendly trail and the boys loved throwing rocks into the water. We didn't make it to the creek because apparently we started in the wrong spot to be toting a 2 and 5 year old. They were worn out by the time we made it close to the creek and we had to turn around. They really enjoyed the trail though! We passed some teenagers with towels on the way back and they were headed to do some cliff jumping and said it was only a 20 minute walk. (We had walked 45 minutes and didn't make it to the water, so we must be SLOW!) EZ was with us on this trek, so we alternated carrying the sack of potatoes. I checked back in with a hiking facebook group and they said entering at the Spring Creek Trailhead was a better option to get to the water quicker. We may just have to go back and try that route next time. Apparently there is some really neat history along this trail, so here's to hoping EZ and I can go on a day date to this trail before we leave.



We ended up returning to this trail and hiked a little farther based on what EZ and I knew about the Spring Creek Trail and the Flume Trail. X was able to walk the whole way in, but was carried most of the way out. M made it the whole way, but was pretty tired by the end! We packed snacks and water for plus our walking stick and net, and that sure helped.




Mom notes: This is mostly shaded on the trail, the route to get there takes you a roundabout way because of a neighborhood/permanent campground that sits right on the edge. You do have to go through an "entrance" and get a pass, but day passes are free. This is only during certain seasons.

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