Camping in South Dakota?

[dani3boys]

Has anyone been camping in SD before? We would like to go in early to mid August and see all of the great tourist places like Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse and the Black Hills. Does anyone have a great camp sight they could recommend? Are there any other things that we must see while there? Any ideas would be appreciated!

[Perry]

Has anyone been camping in SD before? We would like to go in early to mid August and see all of the great tourist places like Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse and the Black Hills. Does anyone have a great camp sight they could recommend? Are there any other things that we must see while there? Any ideas would be appreciated!

 

My favorite area is Custer State Park. I would avoid the Black Hills like the plague during the last week of July/ first week of August, because of the Sturgis Rally. Unless you are bikers, of course. :)

[PiCO]

Has anyone been camping in SD before? We would like to go in early to mid August and see all of the great tourist places like Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse and the Black Hills. Does anyone have a great camp sight they could recommend? Are there any other things that we must see while there? Any ideas would be appreciated!

 

I just made reservations in Custer State Park. You can see pictures of campgrounds online, and make reservations at specific campsites. I like campsites with separate tent areas, because I don't like listening to generators all night.

[dirty ethel rackham]

I agree with Perry. You can't go wrong if you camp in Custer State Park and you really don't want to be there during the Rally if you can avoid it (unless you really love the roar of Harley's.)

 

We went there last year. We didn't camp, but I wish we had done the cabin thing. In addition to what you are looking to do, I would recommend hiking in Custer State Park and Wind Cave National Park. We drove a bit further to Devil's Tower and the Badlands. Here is a link to our vacation blog from last year.

[dani3boys]

I didn't think about Sturgis, so I will keep that in mind. It sounds like Custer State Park is the place to camp. Thanks again!

[abreakfromlife]

I think Custer is where we camped, too.....I'm too lazy to look it up right now :tongue_smilie: but is it the place where they have the buffalo roaming throughout it? That's where we stayed....we didn't see any buffalo until right before we left, driving out of the park. It's gorgeous there, and crazy cool turning roads and tunnels. We tent camped right next to a creek...it was awesome. It's so gorgeous out there.

[PiCO]

Has anyone been camping in SD before? We would like to go in early to mid August and see all of the great tourist places like Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse and the Black Hills. Does anyone have a great camp sight they could recommend? Are there any other things that we must see while there? Any ideas would be appreciated!

 

Hi, Danielle-

 

I just got back from my vacation, so I thought I would give you an update. We camped in Custer State Park for two night. I did not see any campsites I would want to avoid there, it was very nice. Our campsite had a heated bathroom with showers. Very nice!

 

I heard a lot of people saying Crazy Horse was not worth the money, because they have not done any work in a long time. I thought it was worth it- make sure you watch the film when you go in. Crazy Horse does not accept any government money- all the work is paid for through donations and admissions fees. The man who started the monument has passed away, but his family is continuing the project (wife and 7 of their 10 kids still work there.)

 

Mount Rushmore is very impressive, but very crowded. Gotta see it though.

 

My kids' favorite thing was Needles Highway. (Mine too I think.) If the Badlands are on your way to/from the Black Hills, I would recommend at least a drive through.

[charmama4]

Hi, Danielle-

 

I just got back from my vacation, so I thought I would give you an update. We camped in Custer State Park for two night. I did not see any campsites I would want to avoid there, it was very nice. Our campsite had a heated bathroom with showers. Very nice!

 

I heard a lot of people saying Crazy Horse was not worth the money, because they have not done any work in a long time. I thought it was worth it- make sure you watch the film when you go in. Crazy Horse does not accept any government money- all the work is paid for through donations and admissions fees. The man who started the monument has passed away, but his family is continuing the project (wife and 7 of their 10 kids still work there.)

 

Mount Rushmore is very impressive, but very crowded. Gotta see it though.

 

My kids' favorite thing was Needles Highway. (Mine too I think.) If the Badlands are on your way to/from the Black Hills, I would recommend at least a drive through.

 

Crazy Horse was our favorite. If you are able to go, stay in the evening hours, they do a real neat laser show on the sculpture of Crazy Horse. The museum is huge so allow tons of time to look through. If you are active military your admission is free. If not, check with their website to confirm, they also take canned goods for admission. We stayed at Big Pine Campground, google it.

[Blue Hen]

If you are into caves at all stop over at Jewell Cave and Wind Cave for a tour. We did 2 tours at the one and one tour at the other, all in one day. Full day? No. From there we had a quick dinner before going to Mt Rushmore for the evening. It just happened to be July 3rd and we got to see the fireworks over the President's heads. What a day!!!!

 

We camped at either Jewell or Wind Cave campground, whichever one has sites. Nothing to write home about either.

 

We stayed for 3 nights at the Badlands. Hiking, lots of hiking. Most folks wouldn't spend that much time there.

 

Do visit Wall Drug for a milkshake.

 

Carole

[Pixie]

We camped at Custer state park for a week last summer and loved it. One piece of advice in picking the campground inside the park. If you think you will want to attend some of the program put on by the park rangers, especially the kids 'programs, pick a campground close to the main park office. We were at the bluebell campground, which was very nice but it took forever to drive to the park office for the programs.

 

We went to crazy horse (my 11yo absolutely LOVED it), Mt Rushmore (for the July 3rd fireworks), reptile gardens, the Mammoth site and Wind Cave. We also went through the Badlands on our way home. It was our first camping vacation and it was definitely a success.

[dani3boys]

Hi, Danielle-

 

I just got back from my vacation, so I thought I would give you an update. We camped in Custer State Park for two night. I did not see any campsites I would want to avoid there, it was very nice. Our campsite had a heated bathroom with showers. Very nice!

 

I heard a lot of people saying Crazy Horse was not worth the money, because they have not done any work in a long time. I thought it was worth it- make sure you watch the film when you go in. Crazy Horse does not accept any government money- all the work is paid for through donations and admissions fees. The man who started the monument has passed away, but his family is continuing the project (wife and 7 of their 10 kids still work there.)

 

Mount Rushmore is very impressive, but very crowded. Gotta see it though.

 

My kids' favorite thing was Needles Highway. (Mine too I think.) If the Badlands are on your way to/from the Black Hills, I would recommend at least a drive through.

 

 

It's great to hear from someone who has been there recently. The Badlands will be on our way home, so we'll have to check it out. It's great to know that there is so much to do in that area if we are going to travel 600 miles to get there. Thanks again for all of your help!

[Tanya in KS]

This is where stayed. I LOVED it just because of the name. When we went it was August - HOTTEST days of the summer in the country. Our camp ground was very shaded and accomodating. I HIGHLY recommend it

 

We had a BLAST when we went three years ago. The children still talk about it!

[TheCoffeeChick]

Another glowing endorsement for Custer State Park. We just got back from there about 4 weeks ago!! LOVED IT. We stayed at Sylvan Lake Campground. The lake is beautiful. The trails were great. And the little convenience store was nice to have close by too. We used one of the tent only sites with a tent pad. We all had a wonderful time. Wished we would have planned to stay there longer.

 

I also would second the Wind Cave and Jewel Cave tours. My dc loved them. (Plus they are a cool 45-50 degrees even in the heat of summer!) I would also suggest Devil's Tower if you are heading any farther west. Very impressive.

[mcconnellboys]

I was just going to suggest Custer. I LOVE it there! Badlands is also very neat - but would be much hotter at the time of year you're going....

[mom4him]

Has anyone been camping in SD before? We would like to go in early to mid August and see all of the great tourist places like Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse and the Black Hills. Does anyone have a great camp sight they could recommend? Are there any other things that we must see while there? Any ideas would be appreciated!

Well, I am from Sturgis so I will repeat to avoid the first week of Aug. Actually you would be good to avoid the last week of July also as it is already major crazy then.

I have lived here most of my life and my most favorite spot is Spearfish canyon. It is beautiful! You can camp in a park in Spearfish, spend time in the Fish Hatchery very close by. Then tour up the canyon. There is Bridle Veil Falls as you drive up the canyon. There is Rough lock Falls at the end and up on off road about a mile. It is paved though. There is a nice walk from Rough Lock Falls down to what is called Latch String Inn. Then another beautiful hike behind Latch String Inn is called the Botonical gardens and you go down to see Spearfish Falls. You can do all of this in one day and the most it costs is your food(Latch String Inn has a nice restaurant if you want. There are picnic tables at Rough Lock Falls) gas and food for the fish and ducks at the hatchery.

Just out of Deadwood is what is called Tatanka. It is a life size sculpture of a buffalo jump. There is a shop and lectures there about some Native American history and the history of Tatanka itself. I really enjoy that.

Devils tower is not far from Spearfish, possibly an hour. There is a path to walk around the tower.

You named Rushmore and Crazy Horse. They are really great. I enjoy Custer park also. There is quite a bit of wild life there and most of the time there will be wild donkeys that will come up to your car and want a snack so beware of open windows. They are fun.

There are other things that are lots of fun if you have the money to spend. Bear Country, Old Mc Donalds Farm, cave, losts of caves, Cosmos(never been there myself), Sylvan Lake has a couple of great highking trails. The hike up Harney Peak takes off from Sylvan lake. It is a hike though.

Outside of Sturgis is Bear Butte. That can be another hike to the top if you want or just go to the base and read the history about it. Just outside of Sturgis is Fort Meade. There is a Museum there. Been a long time since I have gone there so don't know what it is like as late.

In Rapid City there is the Journey Museum. It is pretty cool and not real expensive.

It really depends on your finances. If money isn't a big issue there are a lot of places to go and do. If finances are a bit tight there are still a lot of places to go and to just way different.

If you have any questions about specific things send me a pm.

Hope you have a great time.

[dani3boys]

Well, I am from Sturgis so I will repeat to avoid the first week of Aug. Actually you would be good to avoid the last week of July also as it is already major crazy then.

I have lived here most of my life and my most favorite spot is Spearfish canyon. It is beautiful! You can camp in a park in Spearfish, spend time in the Fish Hatchery very close by. Then tour up the canyon. There is Bridle Veil Falls as you drive up the canyon. There is Rough lock Falls at the end and up on off road about a mile. It is paved though. There is a nice walk from Rough Lock Falls down to what is called Latch String Inn. Then another beautiful hike behind Latch String Inn is called the Botonical gardens and you go down to see Spearfish Falls. You can do all of this in one day and the most it costs is your food(Latch String Inn has a nice restaurant if you want. There are picnic tables at Rough Lock Falls) gas and food for the fish and ducks at the hatchery.

Just out of Deadwood is what is called Tatanka. It is a life size sculpture of a buffalo jump. There is a shop and lectures there about some Native American history and the history of Tatanka itself. I really enjoy that.

Devils tower is not far from Spearfish, possibly an hour. There is a path to walk around the tower.

You named Rushmore and Crazy Horse. They are really great. I enjoy Custer park also. There is quite a bit of wild life there and most of the time there will be wild donkeys that will come up to your car and want a snack so beware of open windows. They are fun.

There are other things that are lots of fun if you have the money to spend. Bear Country, Old Mc Donalds Farm, cave, losts of caves, Cosmos(never been there myself), Sylvan Lake has a couple of great highking trails. The hike up Harney Peak takes off from Sylvan lake. It is a hike though.

Outside of Sturgis is Bear Butte. That can be another hike to the top if you want or just go to the base and read the history about it. Just outside of Sturgis is Fort Meade. There is a Museum there. Been a long time since I have gone there so don't know what it is like as late.

In Rapid City there is the Journey Museum. It is pretty cool and not real expensive.

It really depends on your finances. If money isn't a big issue there are a lot of places to go and do. If finances are a bit tight there are still a lot of places to go and to just way different.

If you have any questions about specific things send me a pm.

Hope you have a great time.

 

Great to hear from someone who has lived in the area. I never knew there was so much to do in the area. Thanks everyone for all of the great ideas. This should help us have a great vacation!