Best RV Parks & Resorts near Lead, SD

Privately owned ranch setting with dispersed tent sites, 4 full RV hook-ups under huge old Willow Trees, 1 one-room camping log cabin for 2-3 people and 1 guestroom for 2 in the owners home.Toilet room with flush toilet and cold water sink, outdoor shower building for camping solar shower bags, hydrants with drinking water and electric outlets.Cabin and house guests may use one of the bathrooms/shower in our home.

Coffee and tea in the mornings is served on our large porch. There you find WiFi and electric outlets for charging your devices.

Free Parking in designated areas close to all the camp sites. Direct access to National Forest all around us.

There is an approved large fire pit for campfires, otherwise no other fires on the ground allowed. We normally have fire wood for sale here.

This is a no-nonsense, FHU RV park, not for long-term, really. It obviously makes its money during Sturgis M/C Rally in early August (a week long party). Rest assured that everything in the Black Hills is booked for that week. If you're not participating in the Rally that weekend, I recommend any other part of the country. 

There is a LOT of tent capacity, and about 40 RV sites. Sites are well-maintained, level, power and water is good, sewer hookups work properly. Laundry is well-cared-for, and clean. Showers are good, Bathrooms are with the showers. No Wifi streaming, Verizon is pretty slow, but acceptable. All RV sites are pull-thru and well-spaced. 

Cash only for Passport America, also accepts Good Sam and military veteran discounts. 

The owner is no-nonsense, but thoroughly likeable, and very flexible. Highway noise is not a problem most of the night, and we weren't bothered by rail noise all night (which is rare in the West). 

Park of gravel/grass mix, no real shade, but these are grasslands at the foot of the Black Hills, so almost no dust and dirt. Road in is well-upkept, but dirt. Do NOT wash your rig - water is scarce in these parts. 

We paid $23/night Passport America for three nights, and $45 for another (military). Otherwise, this is marginally affordable for us.

50amps full hookups are for those who are long term. No shower house. Sites are pull through our 32 ft 5th wheel and 250 had plenty of space in the spot. But sites are close to each other. 30amp I noticed all had full hookups. Sites are level. The place is quite, right off hwy 16, and a great shot of the mountains. It’s a good place to stay if you aren’t spending time at your camp site but visiting around.

I'll definitely be staying at this campground on my next visit to the Black Hills. Very nice for tent camping or boondocking with a small trailer. If you are looking for full RV hookups, they do have them but the RV sites are a bit tighter than I might prefer.

So you're going to Mount Rushmore.... I discovered during my trip to the area June 2015 that hotel rates in the area are very high for what you get & hard to find availability. The solution is to camp! Make the most of your South Dakota vacation by spending it camping. My group tented and had a great time. Keep in mind though for those coming from other areas of the country, South Dakota does experience rain and thunderstorms. Pack and camp accordingly. This campground is nearby many SD attractions, within easy driving distance and minutes of Hill City, Custer, Keystone, Rapid City, Mount Rushmore. There are many options at the campground such as purchasing firewood to renting bikes. Check out KOA's campground map for campground layout. RV hookups, tent sites, heated pools, splash pad, and much more to keep everyone entertained. Remember that this area of South Dakota hosts high volumes of tourists each season, especially summer and during Sturgis Motorcyle Rally. I highly recommend making reservations far in advance!

This is a beautiful Good Sam Campground.

We really loved this campground! It was close to the Black Hills, Custer State Park & Mount Rushmore. Had basketball court, pool, hot tub, laundry & bath house. Full hookups, level concrete pad & just perfect!

I absolutely LOVE the Bulldog Creek Campground!   Nestled against the Black Hills National Forest, it is scenic, relatively quiet, peaceful and entertaining! First, the Rates...$40-50 per night with full, 50a hookups,$30 for 30a full hookup,$10 for tent camping, if you're just going to stay a night or two. If you just want a safe, quiet place to dry camp overnight, it's$20.

Now the really good part; if you want a base camp for a month or more and enjoy exploring the Black Hills, Sturgis and Rapid City, you can get 50a full hookup, pull-through site for just$550 per month plus electric! That's a bargain in this area. I was at the Ellsworth AFB famcamp who had just raised their rates to a whopping$54 per day, with no discounts available for long-term stays.

The campground is just off I-90, but set back farther than most, so not a distraction. There is an active rail line along the highway, but so far, I've not seen more than two trains in a day, and none at night. So even if it's for just a week or two, and not a month.. call Aaron, the owner. I'm sure he'll work the numbers a bit, just to have your business!

And as for entertainment, on my first night here, there was a heard of at least 2 dozen deer grazing through the campground. Several of them came within a few feet of my door as I talked to them! This mornings sunrise, accompanied by a hot cup of coffee, was exceptional. You just have to come visit!

This is definitely a large RV destination resort. Very nice and well kept. Bath houses have private showers with their own toilets and sink. Very clean. This place also has a pool and event center (though closed due to Covid). We stayed over Memorial Day as a last minute choice. Was very nice for an RV resort.

The pricing for this campground is a little steep for what you get. There are vault toilets, but no showers. There is no rv dump, you'll have to drive about 5 miles back to town to dump at an rv resort, which will charge you. The campground is very nice, but the pricing is just too high.

The facilities are clean and well maintained, and the lake is beautiful.

The park is conveniently located between Custer and the Custer State Park. Good sized lots and 50 amp full hook ups.

Several remote electric only sites, and many tent sites.

This was a great overnight stop for us while on our road trip. The owners were super friendly and accommodating.

RV full hook up was convenient and easy to access. Sites were level and easy to pull through. Sites are a little close to each other but there weren’t many other RV’s when we stayed so we had lots of space. Easy to find location as well.

Would stay again.

Big playground at the entrance. Clean bathrooms. Mowed and maintained very well. Full hook ups. Great place.

As a Ranger on The Dyrt, I sometimes receive compensation for reviews like this one. We received a coupon code for The Dyrt's online product store in exchange for trying out the new online camping reservation system to make a reservation for Plenty Star Ranch.

We reserved a campsite for Plenty Star Ranch through The Dyrt, and it was a breeze to go through the process. We were emailed the reservation information, payment was taken via bank card, and it all made the check-in process very fast upon arrival. We needed to change our camping date and all the contact information was in the email, so we called and owner Isa was more than understanding (it was going to storm, then snow, then get really windy for the night we reserved).

This campground is actually a small, working ranch located right next to a bison ranch, which had just had about four bison calves born in the previous week. They were fun to watch run and play in the field next door. Plenty Star Ranch itself allows you to bring your own horses (for a small fee) and there is plenty of room for them to enjoy. There are cabins, campsites, and RV hook-ups, all conveniently located along the rural Highway 385 north of Pringle, SD.

We planned to pitch a tent for the night, but the weather has been pretty harsh in the Black Hills this spring, and temperatures were going to be well below freezing overnight. We are hearty campers and planned to tough it out, but owner Isa insisted that we take one of their two cabins instead and upgraded our stay for no additional cost. My boys (8 and 12) and I stayed in their 3-person cabin which has a queen bed and a pull-out twin. They provided all the linens (though we used our own pillows by choice) and the cabin was nicely heated with electric heat. We definitely stayed much warmer that night than we would have been in a tent! It was super cozy and quiet in the cabin!

The cabin is located about 50 yards from the public bathroom, which is also heated, well-lit, and attached to their garage. Parking is right next to the cabin, making it a breeze to unpack. There is a picnic table on the porch in front of the cabin, where we could cook and eat, as well as a table inside. In the morning I set up my Primus stove and made coffee, which I sat on the porch and enjoyed while watching whitetail deer and Canada geese stroll past. There is a goose nest right on the island in their pond, and I am sure it is neat to watch the goslings grow all summer!

Tent camping sites are located in one of their former pastures, and we saw plenty of level, gravel RV sites with hook-ups around the main living area. There are two shower stalls next to the cabins that are ready for your solar shower bag to be attached (we thought that would be really fun), and in the off-season they allow guests to use their shower inside the main house. We didn't need to take them up on that since we were only staying one night, but they also invited us up in the morning for coffee and cocoa (usually out on the porch, but it was about 35 degrees that next morning- brr!).

Isa and Jack (the owners) are very friendly, and were a lot of fun to chat with, I would definitely return to Plenty Star Ranch for another getaway evening or weekend in the future. They currently have plans to move their smaller 2-person cabin up into the canyon behind the main house and put it completely off-grid. It would be a perfect getaway for a couple, and what a gorgeous setting back in the hills!

If you are looking for a quieter place to camp in the Black Hills, you should definitely consider Plenty Star Ranch, as it is only about 8 minutes south of Custer, but greatly removes you from the hustle and bustle of the tourist towns. It is just minutes from Wind Cave National Park as well, which is a must-do when you are in the area!

One more thing to note: the only cell service in the immediate area of the ranch is AT&T. We knew that going into the weekend, so planned on not having service (we have Verizon), which for us is no big deal - after all, we were camping! :)

This campground is basic. Large pull thru sites full hook up and grass lots. Cabins with elect clean mowed and restrooms

A nice friendly place. We had full hook ups. Campground was quiet but there was a fair amount of road noise but it was quiet during the night.