I have had the privilege of calling the Black Hills home since I was 7 years old.  I am nearly 31 now and have lived many other places in the past 10 years, but I will always consider this place one of the few where I truly feel like I belong.  One of the main reasons this place will always be deeply embedded in my soul is because of the aesthetic beauty and ease of isolation that intermingle so easily here.

Even though they are located in the middle of never-ending prairie and wind-blown plains, the Black Hills contain an amazing amount of natural beauty. Whether it is the contrast between the 400 foot granite spires and domes with the green pine and the blue sky, the 200 foot limestone walls of Spearfish Canyon intermixed with a forest of aspen and a meandering creek, or the way the lakes and the rolling hills covered in pine trees meet in perfect symmetry at the waters edge, there are seemingly endless places that allow an individual to feel a sense of awe, which seems to be becoming more of a rarity in our world.  You then add the ease of access and the lack of people, and you begin to see why the Black Hills have been so special to some many people.

For me, I will always come back to the Hills because it is a place where I can hit the reset button on my heart and my soul.  It is here that I easily find places that allow me to gain a healthy perspective on my life and this world, which makes living such a better experience.