Custer State Park in South Dakota
By maezee
@maezee (41988)
United States
July 21, 2021 4:33pm CST
Custer State Park is a state park in South Dakota situated on the west side in the Black Hills National Forest, is a total of 114 square miles, one of the largest state parks in the US. It has beautiful black hills, Needles Highway (14 mile scenic drive up through the hills and through narrow tunnels, very picturesque). It has many hiking trails, lakes, and the very cool scenic drive. The park boasts of having the following types of wildlife: bison, elk, coyotes, mule deer, white tailed deer, mountain goats, prairie dogs, bighorn sheep, otters, pronghorn, cougars, and burros.
I drove through the scenic highway and took one medium hike, about 5 miles, from the Sylvan Lake area. (Sylvan Lake is a nice big lake that I saw many swimming in, BBQ'ing outside of, doing water sports inside - kayaking, paddleboarding, etc). The hike I did was called "Little Devil's Tower" - it was about 5 miles round trip with 700 feet of elevation gain, not sure if that accounts for the last 1/4 mile being "bouldering" - as in, clambering up giant boulders to get to the top to get an amazing view.
Apparently the most popular hike is "Black Elks Peak" hike, which takes 3-4 hours and has an elevation gain of 1100-2200 feet (seems like a large gap, not sure exactly why that is).
Attached is a photo of the "Little Devil's Tower" top of the trail. Beautiful view! Supposedly a smaller version of the "Devil's Tower" popular trail out in Wyoming.
Custer State Park is also situated near A LOT of South Dakota's touristy things - Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse statue, Black Hills National Forest, Wind cave National Park, Deadwood, etc. Lots of different attractions, and I would definitely suggest visiting Custer State Park if you end up in the area. Entrance was $20 for a 7-day passenger vehicle pass.
Have you ever been to this park, and if so, what was your experience?
OR - have you been anywhere cool lately?
And sorry in advance, but I will be revieiwng a few of the stops I made on this last road trip from Minneapolis - South Dakota to North Dakota.
6 people like this
4 responses
@Deepizzaguy (104192)
• Lake Charles, Louisiana
21 Jul 21
I have never been to South Dakota. Thanks for sharing the adventures of Custer State Park.
1 person likes this
@Deepizzaguy (104192)
• Lake Charles, Louisiana
25 Jul 21
@maezee I will do my best to visit Custer State Park which is likely named in memory of George Custer.
@snowy22315 (182204)
• United States
22 Jul 21
I was near that area when we were in A.Dakota. As a matter of fact we stayed in a terrible motel there, but the scenery was gorgeous.
1 person likes this
@kaylachan (71804)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
21 Jul 21
Don't be sorry. Sometimes it's a good way to learn about the world. It's one thing to read a bunch of facts, but you can make it personal.
1 person likes this