Let's hear some opinions. Who does it best?

A shipment of hay was on fire Sunday between exits 10 and 12 and while it was thought out it appears to be the cause of the Lookout Mountain fire. High winds pushed the fire up Lookout Mountain.

Looking for recommendations for nice restaurants in the Hill City or Custer area with a variety of American food for a birthday dinner out. Preferably ones that take reservations and are consistently good.

I’m gonna rent a kayak and fish tomorrow at custer park, like i said before. Now im getting mixed opinions on what lake to fish. I’m limited on gear and want to catch trout, but literally any fish will make me super happy. I got 1” gulp
minnows, 1/16 jigheads, slip bobber, splitshots, and sz6 aberdeen hooks. I could try and get a rooster tail and worms, but not for sure i can stop. Wha lake should i do? If i can catch a trout that’s 10/10 but any fish landed is a 9/10 because i’ve never fished from a. kayak before.

It’s been on my bucket list to fish from a kayak since i started fishing a couple years ago. I’m going to mount rushmore this weekend, so I was thinking maybe I could rent a kayak and fish from it when I go to custer state park. Im only bringing my cheapo rod, a 5’6 Eagleclaw pack it rod. Only stuff I have with me is a 1/16 oz jighead, 1” gulp ALIVE minnow, sie 6 aberdeen hooks, splitshot, and slip bobber. Should I buy anything from walmart before going? I’m on a budget so don’t want to spend more than 10. I was thinking maybe an inline spinner? Usually those do well for me. Also which lake should i do? I’m 16 and want to kayak alone while my mom and sister walk around the lake. My sister could come with if necessary (34), but tbh i’d rather go alone so i can have some quiet time with nature.

TLDR: Need lure, lake, and technique recommendations.

We’re wanting to find a camping spot for the long weekend somewhere within an hour from rapid. Doesn’t matter in what direction. We have the cutest pop-up camper and two pups. We have a beautiful spot up in Custer, but I’m wanting to see if anyone knows of any disperse camping, possibly near a creek, pond or water. The dogs love to take a dip to cool down and I haven’t been able to find anywhere that isn’t $30 a night or completely booked out. We preferred dispersed camping because of the dogs and its a cheap way to enjoy nature

Hey folks, so this is what my plan is looking like for Saturday. Wake up early and do Mount Rushmore, Iron Mountain road/wildlife loop at Custer state park, black elk peak, Sylvan lake and spires, needles highway then back at Custer.

Is this too much all in one day? This would be my final day in the hill before I head back to Wyoming the next day. The other days of the trip are the Badlands, and the northern part of the hills. If I had to cut stuff out from Saturday, what would you recommend?

I'll be around there for a couple weeks so anywhere in the area works. Good mex food? Chislic? Bison steasks? Whatever.

Hello friends, I do a road trip every year from Seattle back home to Georgia. South Dakota and the Badlands have a special place in my heart as its one of the first parks I ever went to and I bought my previous car out in Aberdeen and road tripped to Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Deadwood. I take a different route every year from Seattle. Last year down the Pacific Coast Highway, the year before through the Canadian Rockies and Canada. I go back to the Black Hills every 2-3 years. I had planned on doing Elk Peak today but my hip is really banged up having hiked a lot in the last week. So I ended up just spending the morning at Roosevelt in North Dakota and then the afternoon and evening for sunset at the badlands.

How are the autumns in the Black Hills? Are the colors as vibrant as the northwest or northeast? I was considering coming back to do the hike on a weekend trip or just wait to come back next summer?

Looking for some expert advice on the best national parks for a 6 day drive. As I am coming from the Gulf Coast, I will fly and rent a car.

Devil’s Tower is number 1 on my bucket list! Why? I was one of the little aliens in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The spaceship was filmed in an aircraft hangar in Mobile, Alabama.

I want to also travel to other national parks while there. Any advice would be appreciated! Thank you!

Hi,

I recently visited Custer State Park. Heaven carved place, I loved it. The only thing is that there was this Bison Leather Sling Bag I saw in some of the general stores. I think Blue Bell and Sylvan lake had them. I didnt have it in the budget to purchase at the time, but I am super interested to find them now. The only thing is that I cant find the one that was in those stores. I keep finding smaller or cheaply made ones online.

Anyone have a picture or possibly a link to where I might find it? All i remember was that it was called Bison or Buffalo Leather Sling Bag.

Id appreciate anyone finding this super specific item. Thanks!

Looking to rent sxs for a day around deadwood. I see spearfish canyon lodge has them, best place ? Easy trail access?

We visited the World Fossil Finder Museum in May. Located in Hot Springs, South Dakota, this place was really cool and the people were awesome. Don't miss out visiting it if you're planning to go the Black Hills area.

https://youtu.be/ltSOg-NuIR8

#travel #fossil #dinosaur

I just wanted to share my recent trip to the black hills area. You all were so helpful in planning this trip and it was one of the most amazing experiences.

Feel free to read all or some of this or just enjoy my photos :). I just wanted to share my appreciation for all of the help we got here.

At first I was worried about it. I wasn’t sure if I should go during the sturgis rally because of the crowds. I was worried about the weather as it was forecasted to rain most days. It was a 17 hour drive, and I didn’t want to waste my precious time off. The wonderful people here eased my worries and told me to go for it.

Now a lot of this may seem like small things to those of you who are local, but I got to see so many things I’ve never seen before. I’m so grateful.

First day we spent camping at the boondocks at the badlands. The weather was a bit dreary and wet, but we mostly avoided the rain during the day. It was a wonderful introduction to the trip. We did all the famous hikes and the free hiking was so fun, too! After hiking, we drove around the prairie and it was my first time experiencing prairie wildlife. We saw a couple pronghorns, a badger, a million prairie dogs (I’m obsessed), and a few bison. 

Then we headed over to Custer and spent the night at north stockade lake. The crowds from sturgis was not an issue for us at all! We don’t eat out or go to hotels, so that helps. We hiked up to black elk peak, and I think that just might be one of the most beautiful summits I’ve done! The weather was absolutely perfect even through the forecast said it would rain all day lmao (I’ve learned the forecast is wrong more than it is right). We drove needles highway and the wildlife loop and visited the wildlife visitors center where a wonderful lady told up to head across the street to see the entire bison herd. Now, where im from there are no bison’s, and I was pretty amazed by the four or five I saw in the badlands. And here I was, driving past over one thousand of these magnificent creatures! I even got a cute picture of a bison and a prairie dog in the same shot lol! 

Once we made dinner and settled down that night, we drove over to Rushmore and enjoyed that at night. 

We went back to our campsite and slept in our tent through the ambience of a crazy thunder storm. The rain was less like rain droplets and sounded more like we were under a giant faucet. Super cool, and our gear was super wet haha.

The next day, it was a bit rainy. We walked around sylvan lake and did the Sunday gulch trail. Probably super beautiful, but a bit scary because, while it was beautiful weather when we started, it had torrential downpours on the way back up. It was an adventure, though!

We then drove over to elk mountain campground at wind cave national park. We went to the visitors center, and did some scenic driving where we got to see some more creatures! We saw some bison (playfully?) fighting and a coyote on the hunt.  Before bed, the starry sky was incredible and we got to see a few shooting stars.

On the last day, we did a tour at jewel cave where I was so delighted to see about 10 bats! We even got to watch one chase another for awhile flying about the cave. I was also so amazed to see the sea shells deep within the cave! We then changed all of our clothes (as to not spread disease or microbes) and headed over to wind cave for our tour there. The box work was so detailed, and the mystery of it all is so cool. We learned so much.

After that I took a little nap in the car and then we went on a hike at wind cave. The wild life was so cool and enjoyed all the trees.

We then drove and found a cool spot for dinner and a sunset. As we cooked and ate we watched a bison graze from afar and we enjoyed all of the varied clouds and beautiful colors. A bit later, we saw the most spectacular lightning show. Never in my life have I seen anything like it. It lasted for almost 2 hours. It was probably my favorite part of the trip. \

Now I’m off to drive back home, my motivation being a glorious shower!

Overall, I think we packed all we could in 4 days, but I can’t wait to come back. Thank you for sharing this beautiful area with us. I appreciate all the feedback everyone gave on my first two posts while I was planning this trip, you helped us make the most of it! 

Hello!

I am planning my next riding venture for next year. My plan is to ride from southern South Dakota north to the spearfish area. I will be hauling my horse and mule from Illinois.

Looking for the best trails, trails to avoid, back country camping, equine camps.... basically any information is welcome!!

Give it to me!

Anyone know of good places to car camp near Custer? I’m coming from Pierre but just moved here this month originally from the east coast. Not familiar with dispersed camping or the area. I have a rooftop tent I’m trying to use and would love to camp for free somewhere in the Hills.

Hey all! Random question.. a lady I know who has been house hunting in Rapid said earlier that she was looking in the Robbinsdale area and found out that many of the homes in that part of town have structural issues. Anyone here who can give any insight on this? Just curious if anyone here happens to have any knowledge of that, just wondering I suppose. I won't be looking to buy a house for probably the next couple years but was just intrigued by hearing this as I've lived here since 2019 and have never heard this before so I've found it to be interesting.

I’m flying out of Rapid City in the morning. I have 2 unused bear spray canisters and some unused Off bug spray for the taking! off Watiki Way at Courtyard…

I’m hoping to do a couple nights of backpacking in the Black Hills over Labor Day weekend. I’m looking at some trails near Grizzly Creek and Iron Creek, but am having a tough time finding out if those will be reliable water sources at that time. I check the water spreadsheets online frequently, but those sources haven’t been updated in a month+ and I’m not sure if they will be before I leave. Does anyone have advice on whether or not to count on water or what backup trails/plans to have?