Best Dispersed Camping near Spearfish, SD

Last mile of gravel going in to site was pretty rough.  Sign indicated that the road would be impassible if wet/raining.  Site was flat and gravel.  Spot for tents just up the hill.  No fire ring, no picnic table, no hook-ups or garbage.  Dispersed camping / boondocking.  No fee.   Fantastic view of the country-side including Devil's Tower.  Site appeared secluded and unused.  Another vehicle with a tent did join us during the night, but there was room for both of us!

There are a few dispersed camping spots along this road which also holds the trailhead for Mt. Roosevelt Friendship Tower. There was one pull through site that has no campfire signs and then two or three other spots. We seemed to be lucky and got the last open spot. We got here around 4 pm. The site we got was beautiful and had a lot of room for us to pitch a tent. Plenty of trees to go pee in but also an open spot where we could stargaze through the tent. There was some traffic on the road, more than you would think for such a windy gravel road. The first part of the road up until the trailhead had quite a bit of washboard which was a little scary on the sharp curves with steep drop offs. Enough Verizon cell service to text and make calls. Enough AT&T service to get WiFi on our SubaruLink. No water that we saw that we could use or filter. Had some people pull into our spot at different times not knowing it was taken. 9:30 pm was the last one.

There were multiple pull off dispersed camping areas all along the Mt. Roosevelt road. The road is easy to drive if coming off the CanAm Hwy side of the mountain. Walking distance to the Roosevelt Friendship Tower hike which is highly recommended. Tons of bees in the wildflowers but they never bothered us. Pack in and pack out! Some traffic driving along the road but never overwhelming and quiet at night. Great base to visit Deadwood, Lead, Spearfish Canyon, and Devils Tower

Literally dozens of good dispersed camp sites along this rough road.  Amazing find so close to Mt Rushmore.  Elevation is about 5500 feet.  I camped in November and the water bottle in my tent froze.  In the morning it was only  a 10 minute drive to the memorial.  With the sun in my eyes it was too late when I saw the deer.  (:-(

Close enough to civilization to be able to get stuff. Removed enough from civilization to feel free from the city. Camping spots are secluded and private. There are no facilities so pack water and toilet paper.

This spot is at the end of a forest road that runs west of Nemo, SD. There are other dispersed camping sites along the way as well. This spot butts up right next to a cliff with the Boxelder Creek running below and gives good views of the Black Hills to the south. No amenities at all here. A high clearance vehicle will most likely be needed to get back to this spot.

Very close to Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Rapid City and Hill City. Lake Sheridan was a great place to go cool off. Very dispersed camping. Pack in Pack out. No cell service. At first we didn’t think there was a spot to pull off and then found a perfect circular area for us in our travel trailer and our friends car camping. No fires allowed when we were there. We stayed 2 nights and planned to sight see so left our stuff and was never bothered.

Thanks to the first reviewer, I was able to find this campsite after showing up to the Black Hills and all campsites were booked.

A great retreat from the tourism, but still close enough to run to store and all attractions. No phone service out here so mark the location. A few campsites along the gravel road, all dispersed.

No fires (reason for the 4 star rating since it got cold at night) but was so secluded we were able to leave our things while we went and climbed and fished.

I absolutely loved camping here. I was in the second site in, and the road was totally fine getting there. All of the big dips and whatnot could be driven around, but I'm not sure about going further in than that. 

The views were incredible, and it was secluded from other sites but not so much so that you're completely isolated if something bad were to happen. I felt very safe here as a female solo camper. I barely had some Verizon service - I could get the occasional text to send through but not much more than that. Also it wasn't buggy at all which was a huge plus!

Camping area near Mount Rushmore. I was able to find a camping area without a problem. The road does have some bumps in it but overall you do not need a four-wheel drive. The spot I camped at I was able to have decent Verizon signal however the area is a bit spotty for Verizon. The area seems to not allow for campfires. Trails nearby. One Trail is gated off and seems to mainly be a horse trail. Some of the camping spots seem to support larger vehicles. Also had a good view.

Of course timing is everything, however in early May, no bugs, No traffic, isolated yet near Mt Rushmore, and the Crazy Horse exhibit.

We stayed in the first lot as you drove in, backed all the way up into a nice secluded spot. No bathrooms, but Wrinkled Rock parking lot had a bathroom just down the road. Amazing free spot so close to the monument.

struck out on any camping close to devils tower, so we ended up coming here. fun little dirt road coming up the mountain to the sight. really only like 2 spots. lower spot is medium sized and we saw someone else there in a jeep. friends and i took the top spot which was big enough for a truck, a large suv, and sedan.

very quiet secluded area. got cold at night in august, but very beautiful views.

in the dark we kept seeing a tuxedo cat randomly watching us, not sure if it’s a stray or an outside cat from one of the nearby farms, didn’t come over when we enticed it and ran when we shone the light but cute little campsite friend i guess.

Super secluded and serene. 4x4 definitely a plus but ground clearance is key

Some motorcyclists made it through using the SW entrance. Definitely need high clearance for the NE part of the road. Got a really nice secluded spot. Had cell service!

Stayed at the first site. Very secluded with maybe 2 other campers in the area. Need 4 wheel drive past first couple sites since roads are rough. Otherwise a great spot to stay. We had a some service on phones with Verizon and T-Mobile.

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. There's only a few spots that a high clearance vehicle might be required but most of the road can be explored without one.

This is a pack in and pack out site with no facilities; no running water, no bathrooms, nothing. Make sure you bring what you need with you.

Weather was great, very mild. Air was fresh and crisp.

We are planning on staying here again in the future because of it's close proximity to everything and my 6 year old loved it!

This was a great spot to spend a night near Devil's Tower. The road getting there was rough but we were the only ones there. We even had a few free range horses and a donkey pass by in the evening.