If you read the previous post, you know our first long RV road trip started in the Badlands of South Dakota. Our second stop was in the Black Hills of South Dakota. I must say, we were not prepared for how much there was to do and see in this part of the country. South Dakota hadn’t ever really been on our radar as a travel destination. Our travel plans initially included Mt. Rushmore and Yellowstone. However once we started planning, it quickly became apparent one could spend several days in the Black Hills area around Mt. Rushmore. We ended up with more options of things to do than we knew what to do with. If planning a trip to the area, give yourself time to do more than one thing. We stayed almost a week, and with work and remote school during the day, our free time was easily filled. If our days had also been free, a week would have been a nice fit for all there is to do.
What We Did
On the first evening we drove through Custer State Park and spent time on Lake Sylvan, Iron Mountain Road, and Needles Highway. All are must dos. Lake Sylvan is incredibly scenic. It almost feels like you are in a postcard. The Needles and Iron Mountain passes were very enjoyable. There were scenic overlooks, hairpin turns, and narrow tunnels on the pass.
On the second evening we visited the Crazy Horse Memorial. There we not only learned some interesting historical facts, but we also discovered that Crazy Horse is (or will be) larger by far than it’s neighbor, Mt. Rushmore. There is a somewhat controversial story to the Memorial that you can look up anytime and/or hear about when visiting. We stayed for the late evening light show, which wasn’t the best one we’ve ever seen, but our little enjoyed it and it was something different to do. The best part in our (adult) eyes was seeing the lighted representation of what the completed Memorial will look like. Plan about 2 hours without the light show for a visit. The visit itself is not overly long, but there is a bus shuttle that only takes so many passengers at once and you might experience some wait time.
The third evening we spent time at the RV campground making dinner and roasting marshmallows by the fire. That night a crazy storm blew through and we got quarter size hail in the middle of the night. I thought for sure we would have had more damage to our month-old RV but the damage was actually to the truck bed cover we had just received and installed the day before leaving on this trip. Apparently strong storms are a thing in South Dakota because we had already endured high winds and rain in the Badlands a few days before. Who knew.
The fourth evening we went to Mt. Rushmore National Park. While you can see the Presidents from further away and get the “gist” of it even just by driving by, we did enjoy getting a closer view at the Grand View Terrace and along the Presidential Trail. In fact, one of the best parts of our visit was the walk/hike along the Presidential Trail. It wraps through the surrounding woods of the Black Hills and gives you various vantage points from which to view the Presidents, with informational displays along the way. The visit in total took us about 90 minutes. For us, it fit right into an after work/school evening.
On our final day in the Black Hills we packed it in. We started our morning with a journey out to The Mammoth Site, which has the largest concentration of mammoth fossils in the world and is still an active dig site. It was amazing to see the fossils right in the ground where they were found. We spent about 90 minutes here before heading back toward the Hills. Masks were required inside and social distancing encouraged. (And of course I had hand sanitizer!)
Following our visit to The Mammoth Site we returned to Custer State Park to journey the Wildlife Loop Road. Not only did we see a bison but we, along with a few other cars, got stuck in a bison herd as they were crossing the road.
Our last stop was at Stockade Lake, where the boys threw a line in the water. It was a bit breezy so the water was rippling. On a calmer day you could stay for quite a while, pack a snack or meal, and enjoy the view. I’d make the stop again just for the photos I got of the area while the boys wrestled with their fishing lines.
What We Missed
In non-COVID times, this area offers quite a bit to do. In addition to the wonderful things we did enjoy there are several other attractions in Rapid City, Keystone, Hill City, etc. Hill City offers the 1880 Hill City/Black Hills Central Railroad Train Depot, The Museum @ Hill City Institute, along with close proximity to Custer State Park, Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse, etc. Rapid City offers The Journey Museum and Learning Center, Bear Country USA, the South Dakota Air and Space Museum, Chapel in the Hills, and the Museum of Geology (the list goes on). Keystone serves up close proximity to area sites along with the National Presidents Wax Museum, Big Thunder Gold Mine, and more. Due to the current events we tried to stay outdoors and in open, non-crowded spaces as much as possible and so did not visit most of these, but we were plenty busy. Knowing these are here gives us a good reason to return someday!
Where We Stayed
We stayed at Black Hills Trailside Resort. The pros: Well-kept grounds with kind staff. Each site has a fire pit and table and chairs. Proximity to area attractions made this a good location for us. The cons: While we liked the park overall, and our site most of the time, we were maybe 30 feet away from the highway. Visually the wild brush and a small creek covered this offense, but every morning around 6am the traffic started. Instead of waking up to a babbling brook we had speeding semis or motorcycle motors to contend with. Cell service was pretty good but WIFI was not working the first few days. As a result we ate up more of our own data plans to support work and remote schooling than expected. To their credit, because we had talked to them in advance about getting a site with access to their WIFI and they knew we were using it for work/school, the managers did give us a small credit for the trouble. All in all we’d recommend Trailside so long as you aren’t a light sleeper. Our RV fan was running through the night and we could still hear the AM traffic over it.
Trip Summary
We highly recommend a visit to the Black Hills/Custer State Park area! If you can only spend a day, I’d recommend a quick tour through Mt. Rushmore, a drive by Crazy Horse (you can see it from the road nearby), and a drive either through the Narrows or the Wildlife Loop in Custer State Park. If you have 3 or more days, you can venture out further and take advantage of, or spend more time with, some of the other wonderful sites and things to do. There is ample opportunity to hike, ride bikes or ATVs, or any other outdoor activity you can think of. Note: We have a more extensive post on Custer State Park coming soon.
Not Tomorrow 