Kurt Vonnegut wrote in his novel Cat's Cradle: "Americans are forever searching for love in forms it never takes, in places it can never be. It must have something to do with the vanished frontier."
Since reading this passage I've come back to the idea several times and meditated upon it. The romantic notion of the American Frontier has surely inspired dozens of western-themed novels and films, and though it has undoubtedly shrunken in size, has the frontier really vanished?
I've lived in the Black Hills all my life and I'm still constantly in awe at the myriad of interesting places hidden away in the pines. Abandoned mines, waterfalls and ghost towns are strewn throughout, waiting to be rediscovered by the intrepid adventurer. Despite an abundance of travel books and hiking maps many of my favorite places are learned of by word-of-mouth and such is the case with the Bob Ingersoll Mine near Keystone.
Born and raised in the Black Hills, Shawn attends Black Hills State University in Spearfish. He is always on the lookout for interesting locations and activities in the Black Hills and can often be found hiking, camping, swimming, fishing and skiing. While Shawn enjoys traveling all over he is never gone from home for too long as the beauty and serenity of the Black Hills proves to be too alluring.
