Whether you're a tent camper, an RVer, or just passing through, Black Hills National Forest, SD has a lot to offer. Black Hills National Forest is a great camping destination for everyone. There are tons of nearby hikes, adventurous activities, and sights to see. You're sure to find the perfect campground for your Black Hills National Forest camping trip.
"A perfect location. Plenty of spots on the bumpy main road, use 4wd/high clearance vehicles to go off some of the side routes for more privacy. Nice tree covered spots and very quiet."
"My Son and I stayed here while visiting Mount Rushmore and the surrounding area's other attractions. There's a lot of dispersed spots here but most spots don't have a fire ring that I could see."
"We've been fulltiming since January and this was the first place we actually stayed the whole 14 day limit."
"The forest road is a little rough, be aware if you are driving a car or a vehicle with bad off roaring capabilities."
"We were planning on backcountry camping in the park, but the amount of bugs and the inability to find a flat spot out of the trees pushed us to try and hike back to our car."
"great location just 5 minutes away from Mt. Rushmore. free site but no fire rings. it does have toliets. There is just a parking lot with a large open area to pitch a tent."
"Notes: Don't camp at the first sites you see driving further. There's better ones I assure you. Signs are posted everywhere, stating no campfires allowed."
"The surroundings are beautiful! Very peaceful setting yet not too far from groceries & other supplies. Not far from attractions & restaurants."
"Beautiful place to camp near Pactola lake which is our favorite"
"It is open to vehicles in the summer and equestrian and hike in during the winter. Road is rough but was passable in our truck. We towed in a small teardrop but I wouldn't recommend a large rig."
"We went a bit more off the path by turning right, going up past a water treatment plant and parking near the end of the road. It was secluded and pretty. Lots of coyotes in the area."
"Fr202 turn uphill but not muddy.. on right .. wind n storm but good camping.. quite..not much traffic after dark.."
$20 - $80 / night
"Not an RV location. Fresh water, clean showers, LAUNDRY, coffee. Just a great place."
"We got to our spot just before sunset and only had one neighbor, though we passed a few tenters going up the road. Our spot was nice and a short walk to a vault toilet and trailhead."
"This is not a thru road there is only one entrance off of the CanAm Highway. Roughly about 10 sites depending on set-up. Bathroom close by the entrance/trailhead to Roosevelt Friendship Tower."
"We rode side by sides out on some trail, found a great spot to camp with beautiful views of the plains below and could see the badlands off in the distance. The skies were beautiful at night."
LegendHorsethief Lake Campground in Black Hills National Forest was surprisingly peaceful and serene though it is close to Mount Rushmore. The traffic to and from the monument doesn’t disturb the “atmosphere”.
There’s a trailhead “Black Elk Wilderness” nearby that takes you into the woods. The lake below is a popular fishing spot.
Primitive sites with shade and good size area to set up in. Requisite picnic table and fire pit.
A lot to do in the area or just sit back and enjoy the scenery. There’s an ADA parking pad with cement walk/roll way to enjoy the lake.
LegendThis campground was a relatively small loop with primitive amenities. The host was friendly, but make sure you follow all the rules. His camper is on the right when you enter and that's where you check in. We were able to visit several places while camping here because it is very close to Mount Rushmore, Custer State Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, Wind Cave National Park and the The Black Hills National Forest. The campground offers many trees for shade and for hanging hammocks, a picnic table, firepit with grill, vault toilet (extremely foul odor in the summer), clean water spout, and firewood for sale. We even had access to Grizzly Creek at our site on the left, which was a nice place to cool off in July. We would stay here again, the only negative is that you can hear helicopter tours throughout the day.
RangerSpacious tree covered spots located just west of Custer. Spot 59 faces the Black Hills National Forest and is a great get away. Quiet location away from highway and a great starting point for all Black Hills and Custer adventures.
GuideThis is the only campground in Wind Cave NP and has four loops with just over 60 sites. Loop A is for tents only and is the only loop with designated tent pads. Loop D has group sites that are reservable.
Some sites are in or near trees, but many are in grassy areas with little to no shade.
Each loop has restrooms with flush toilets and running water. There are water faucets for every couple of sites, however at the time there were a few that were not working.
Each site has a fire ring and picnic table.
There is a shed at the entrance where firewood/kindling are available for a donation.
There were lots of wildlife in/around the campground: mule deer, pronghorn, prairie dogs, and bison.
Just south of the campground is the visitors center where tickets for the cave tours can be purchased.
This campground is centrally located for visiting Jewel Cave, Badlands NP, Mt. Rushmore, and exploring the Black Hills region.
My only complaint is that many of the sites (on loops B-D) are more for RVs just to park and don't have much space for tents. As a result, several sites can only accommodate small tents because there's not much space with a fire ring and picnic table too.
LegendA former individual campground now turned group campsite. Eight individual tent sites (each has a picnic table and fire ring) around a central camping area. Vault toilets and a hand pump for drinking water. There is no electrical hookup.
Vehicles must travel down nine miles of dirt roads to reach the facility. Hill City is the nearest town for additional amenities, and Rapid City is 20 miles away. Nice fishing and kayaking. 3 stars because it's groups only!
GuideOur family stayed in a walk-in primitive tent site located on a woodsy hill at the top of Custer. Campsites have a decent amount of privacy, but you are still aware of your neighbors. Portable toilets were available at the bottom of the hill near the parking lot with shower facilities a short walk away. Showers and laundry facilities were well maintained. Sylvan Lake is beautiful and provides a full day of activities without having to drive anywhere else in the park. Our family enjoyed hiking, paddle boating, and swimming with gorgeous scenery all around.
LegendComanche Park is just outside Custer, South Dakota. It’s open seasonally but it looks like a few spots are before the gate. The campground was pretty empty during the week but the host said it was full on the weekend- consider making a reservation. The sites are large without much vegetation between them. We were far enough apart that it still felt private. A picnic table and fire pit are standard. Vault toilets are spread throughout. There is water available but I would consider your options. The host said they get bottled water when I asked about the quality.
The draw to this campground is that it’s close to Custer State Park. We arrived midday, set up and still had time to drive the wildlife scenic highway and the scenic drive out of Custer towards Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse. We were feet from a bison herd and arms length away from donkeys. Returning in time to make dinner was great. Tomorrow we’ll leave early and do another drive and hike in Custer State Park.
Comanche Park is a good campground to use as a base when you explore the area.
GuideWe arrived at Horse Thief Lake late on a Wednesday afternoon. Actually VERY late. It was around 7:00 pm on June 7, 2017. We were on a road trip and didn't have a firm schedule. We arrived without a reservation and were thrilled that they had three or four walk-ups available.
This campground serves both RVs and tent campers. The walk-up are was beautiful and quiet. We were in site 34, which is the closest to the road that circles through the campground, but it was above our site and we never noticed traffic.
It was early in June so many sites had reservations on them for the weekend, the walk-in area was less than half full. The sites are far enough away from each other that we were not bothered by any other campers.
The site had a great pad and nice wooden picnic table with a great fire ring. The fire ring was great in the morning as it was still pretty cool in early June.
Firewood was sold at the campground by the hosts for $5 a bundle. The hosts were very kind and kept the campground immaculate.
The vault restrooms were very clean, but there were MANY flies by the afternoon outside of the restroom.
We had some HEAVY rains while camping here and the people in the site closest to the lake, and near the top of the hill (amazingly) were flooded out and had to dry everything in the morning and move to another site.
We had no problem with critters bothering our camp. There are no bear boxes and the camp hosts told us they had never heard a report of bears being in their campground.
This was a great base camp for us. It is only 2 miles to Rushmore and we went to Custer's campground (and drove though TONS of animals including buffalo, prong horns and others, the Crazy Horse memorial and the Iron Road.
RangerVery peaceful but small campground. Each campsite has a Ramada, picnic table, grill and fire pit. No water. Pit toilet. Limited cell coverage. Free.
All sites are walk-in tent only.
The only issue we experienced were the horse flies but this would not deter us from staying again.
Tent camping near Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota offers a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in nature while enjoying stunning landscapes and a variety of outdoor activities.
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According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Black Hills National Forest is RD 356 Dispersed Site Black Hills National Forest with a 4.8-star rating from 33 reviews.
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