Custer State Park

Custer State Park is located outside of the town of Custer, South Dakota about 20 miles from Mount Rushmore.

Custer State Park is the crown jewel of the South Dakota State Park system. There are 7 different campground areas.

Custer State Park has it all-

• scenic drives
• wildlife
• a theatre playhouse
• a visitor’s centre
• lakes, fishing areas
• tours
• interpretive programs
• restaurants,
• lodges
• overlooks
• horseback riding
• safari’s

…you name it Custer State Park probably has it.

We have been here three times, and each time I have failed to allow the amount of time necessary to adequately see everything.

Site Review:

We have camped at the Grace Coolidge campground twice and once at the Bluebell campground. We have visited the Sylvan Lake campground area as well.

Comfort Stations all have flush toilets and hot showers.

There are 2 sanitation dump stations that service the entire park. One dump station is located near the junction of Highway 16A and the wildlife loop not far from the State Game Campground and the other is at the Bluebell Campground. The one at the Bluebell Campground is fairly new and is not shown yet on some of the online park maps. Just saw it last week though, it is there and it is operational. Both dump stations are large and manageable even for the bigger rigs.

Grace Coolidge Campground: 

This is a small campground on the side of the main road that travels through the park. The sites have paved asphalt pads and fire rings. They are level and don’t require much adjustment.

You have to drive at Custer. It is unavoidable if you want to enjoy what’s offered here. When we visited Custer State Park for the first time in our motorhome, we did not have a tow vehicle. We had to unplug every time we ventured out.

 At Grace Coolidge campground there is a multi-use paved bike path. It runs parallel to the main road for 2-3 miles and you can access a few of the features of the park on foot or by bike. It takes you as far as:

• the Visitor Centre (approximately 2.5 miles)
• The State Game Lodge- where you can arrange for Buffalo Safari tours.
• The Peter Norbeck Educational Centre.
•  The Grace Coolidge store: where you can buy souvenirs, snacks, and campfire wood. 

Grace Coolidge Campground is probably the most central location to enjoy many aspects of Custer State Park without driving. (The same would also be true if you camped at the State Game campground).

I would urge you to not limit yourself, as there is so much to see. To not drive and thus not visit other areas would be missing out on a lot of activities that Custer State Park has to offer.

Bluebell Campground:

Bluebell is a larger campground. It has paved sites that are fairly level, and fire rings, in a nicely treed area.

Bluebell’s main feature is the horses. Various tours can be arranged.  

Bluebell also has:

• A store where you can buy souvenirs, camping items, firewood and gasoline.
• A lodge with a bar and a restaurant across the road from the campground. We enjoyed a nice meal there one night and found the prices reasonable. The menu features many buffalo meal selections.
• At the Bluebell Lodge, you can arrange Chuckwagon Cookout tours. A Chuckwagon Cookout tour is a hay wagon ride through a restricted backcountry area of Custer State Park. Your destination is a mountain meadow canyon that is set up for an old-fashioned cookout. Everyone gets a cowboy hat and a bandana. There is sing-along western entertainment.
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Sylvan Lake Campground:

Sylvan Lake campground is a good distance from the rest of the park amenities.

Access to Sylvan Lake :

• Via the Needles Highway, a very twisty, winding road with numerous blind curves and an assortment of ups and downs. You will encounter 2 small tunnels on this route- the maximum width is 10 ft. and the height is 11ft. (Know the dimensions of your vehicle beforehand- they are not kidding, the openings of these tunnels are very tight)
• You can also access from the northern entrance of the park by arriving from the Keystone area. There are also narrow tunnels this way as well. Any RVs would be prohibited access.
• The third way is to come up Highway 89 from the town of Custer. The road is not as narrow, it is less twisty and there are no tunnels. RV access is allowed.

On our second visit to Custer, we had a tow vehicle and we drove it to the Sylvan Lake area taking the Needles Highway. It was very picturesque with its rock spire formations and vast views from multiple lookouts along the way.

 Sylvan Lake campground:

The campground at Sylvan Lake is treed with many private sites. The sites did not appear to be particularly level, but all had fire rings. The campground does not access Sylvan Lake directly.

Sylvan Lake is one of the park’s prime features. Swimming, fishing, canoeing, and kayaking; are all activities that can be enjoyed on the lake. Equipment is available to rent for various rates and durations. There is a very nice hiking trail that circles the lake. It is about a mile long.

Some other trails and hikes can be accessed from the Sylvan Lake area also.

Black Elk Peak:

A popular hike is to  Black Elk Peak (formally known as Harney Peak). At one point in the very early days of the park (the 1920s), burros/donkeys were used to transport guests to this lookout. This practice has been abandoned and the only way to access the area is on foot and a round trip would take approximately 3 hours.

Activities at Custer State Park:

There are many activities to enjoy at Custer State Park including:

• Rock climbing to the summit of Needle Rock if you want.
• A  playhouse where you can attend a play. When we were there they were featuring the Addams Family production. The cost was approximately $34 per adult ticket.

Wildlife Loop:

This scenic drive is not to be missed and is the main reason why I love Custer so much. It is an 18-mile loop of the lower section of the park. We have travelled it in full, and in sections, numerous times during both of our visits and I have never failed to see buffalo (they call them buffalo here instead of bison) and in significant numbers. Often they clog the road. Getting the perfect picture is not a challenge

The Custer State Park buffalo herd numbers around 1400. In September, they have an annual round-up. Thousands of people come to see it and I have no doubt it would be quite spectacular.

Other animals on the wildlife loop that are abundant and routinely spotted are deer, pronghorn, Bighorn Sheep, and prairie dogs.

Begging Burros:

The donkeys at Custer are the descendants of the donkeys that were used to transport guests in the early days to Black Elk Peak. When they abandoned this practice they released the burros into the park. They can be found near the buffalo corral.

Things We Did in the Surrounding Area:

There are tons of different activities and sights to see in the Custer area. A couple we enjoyed were:

Mount Rushmore

 

Mount Rushmore is located in Keystone, South Dakota. It is approximately 20 miles north of Custer State Park.  It costs about $11 to park your vehicle, and admission is free. I found about an hour to be plenty of time to check out the monument and the related exhibits.

Wind Cave National Park

Directly south of Custer State Park is Wind Cave National Park. This is one of the largest caves in North America with approximately 145 charted miles of tunnels.

 See Wind Cave National Park for more information on tours. We took the Natural Entrance Tour and found it to be informative. There are many interesting formations.

During this particular tour, there are about 300 steps (all down) and though the lighting is low, there is a handrail to guide you. You are walking on a concrete path throughout. An elevator takes you back to the top at the end of the tour. The cost for the hour(ish) long tour was $12 per adult.

Mammoth Site in Hot Springs

The Mammoth Site in Hot Springs is about 25 miles from Custer. Approximately 29,000 years ago a natural phenomenon occurred resulting in about 66 mammoths (and other creatures of the period) dying in a sinkhole. The site was discovered in 1974 by a developer. This was a major discovery. To preserve the site, they built a building on top of it. You can tour the area and see the actual dig site- no fake reconstructions here. The dig is ongoing.

The tour starts with an explanatory video and then small groups follow a guide who explains the various points of interest. You are then free to explore independently around the site and in the adjoining museum. You can also talk to the actual scientists excavating. It is quite interesting. The cost is $11 per adult.

Things to Know:

1. There is a $20USD entrance fee into Custer State Park that is good for up to 7 days. You will get a sticker for your vehicle to allow you to come and go freely.
2. DO check out the visitor centre- there is a beautifully done 20-minute film narrated by Kevin Costner summarizing the park. I found it very informative and useful for planning out things to do and see in the park.
3. Bike riding is not a safe option at Custer State Park- except in the campgrounds and on the multi-use path at Grace Coolidge campground. Biking on the roads is dangerous. The roads are narrow and twisty and there is NO shoulder, not to mention, the very real likelihood that you will encounter buffalo. Buffalo can appear docile, but in fact are rather unpredictable and you have no protection on a bicycle. I saw no one on a bicycle on the roads at all. 
4. Pay attention to the vehicle size restrictions located on the map. There is nowhere to turn around if you are too big- particularly on Needles Highway and Iron Mountain Road.
5. All people 16 years and older require a South Dakota Fishing Licence if you intend to fish within the park.

IMO:

Big fan of Custer State Park. It has it all. Not to mention all the activities in the surrounding area. I didn’t even mention the Crazy Horse monument, or Jewel Caves, or the activities in Keystone, or Hot Springs…

I will be back!! It is a fantastic RV Place to Go.