Best RV Parks & Resorts near Sturgis, SD

Long term stay. Great rates. All staff very courteous. All facilities clean and well maintained. Level gravel pull through sites of varying sizes. Each site has grass area except on the new end. It is very close to the highway, so there is a lot of road noise. Other than that our stay here has been excellent. Good cell reception. Standard campground wifi, but good reception. Haven't used cable. Nice enclosed dog exercise area. Playground for kiddies. It is off season, so pool, tennis court and some other facilities closed right now. We will be leaving the end of November, but after having been at several campgrounds over the past 2 years, this will be our go to place in the Rapid City area from now on.

Nice area easy to access, better road coming in from Peacefull Pines Rd right off I90 which turns into Deadwood Ave with no potholes. Pet Friendly. Courteous Staff are helpfull. Relatively new management with lots of improvements in process. Discounts for long term.  Starlink Wifi. Clean spacious bathrooms. Good water pressure. Some cabins with AC and full mini frig and microwave, no water in cabins but several water posts nearby. Cabins are 1 room and really comfortable Queen beds.  Picnic table outside with covered porch, some with swing bench or chair.  

There is a kids park with some climbing structures a swing and grassy area,

We appreciated the pre arrival phone call to confirm we were still coming and letting us know our site was open whenever we wanted to arrive. Check in was very easy and informative concerning what to do in the area. We then proceeded to FHUs pull-through site 9. Utilities were conveniently located to include outstanding water pressure so use a reducer. Since we were only staying here two days, we decided to opt for the$2.00 a day additional charge for cable versus putting out our satellite dish. We received over 60 channels that worked great. Campground WiFi was satisfactory and we got 2 to 3 bars on Verizon. Along with the owners/camp hosts being very friendly, the office had a great store that carries not only RV supplies but other novelty items and they do propane tank fills. The campground sites were very well laid out. We visited at the end of the season, so a lot of their sites were already closed up in preparation for shutting down for the year. The back in and upper level pull-through sites had more spacing between sites versus the lower level pull-throughs where we stayed. The park was far enough from I-90 so there was basically no road noise. The fenced in dog park was a nice addition. Being only 30 minutes from Devil's Tower, this campground was very convenient to see local sights. Also take a tour of Sundance, this is where The Sundance Kid got his name and he had been jailed in the old courthouse. This park is a winner whether you need a nice overnight stop or a place to hang out for a while. We would definitely camp here again.

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!

Campground Review:

The Stockade Lake North Campground is located just inside the west entrance to Custer State Park in Custer, South Dakota. This prime camping location is 15 minutes from Mount Rushmore, Wind Cave National Park, and just minutes from historic Custer, the Gordon Stockade, and a scenic jaunt to the State Park Wildlife Loop.

The sites at this campground are reservation-only, even on same-day arrival. In order to secure a campground, campers need to call the reservation number. However, once the reservation is made, campers can proceed to their campsite without having to worry about checking in with on-site staff, and no hassle with hanging a tag on the campsite post.

The campground is open for camping from the beginning of May to late September, weather permitting. There are 42 campsites available, many with electricity and several pull-through sites, but no full hook-ups. There are both vault and flush toilets, a shower house, and drinking water available. There is also a nice little playground in the center of the campground and an adjoining amphitheater where they may show informational films in the summer. Campsites here are well-spread among the trees, offering relative privacy and quiet space, with enough room to hang a hammock or two!

The campground is just a quick walk up from Stockade Lake, where you can fish, swim, put your boat in, view wildlife, and enjoy the small beach and playground. Across the small highway is Bismark Lake, in Black Hills National Forest, which is stocked for fishing, and provided us with a delicious fried trout meal our second night! There is also a pair of osprey that are seen frequently between the two lakes, and are a joy to watch as they fish and soar over the lakes.

We stayed on opening weekend in our small RV with electric on site 32E, and the campground was relatively empty. Our site was a bit unlevel, but very scenic and shady. Only one other site was close to ours, and luckily, no one was in it over that weekend. Sites are all gravel, and each one has an aluminum picnic table and fire ring. Most of the sites appear wide enough to accommodate slide-outs on RV units. Although there are long sites available, we did watch two large rigs struggle to back in their vehicles due to the narrow, curved campground roads. When viewing the reservation map, those sites that appear distanced from others truly are - try to reserve those if you can. Another pro tip: If you need to buy firewood, there is a Lutheran church just west of the state park entrance that offers wood for a donation, and supports their youth programs.

SInce it was the beginning of the camping season, the vault toilets were exceptionally clean and smelled great. We did not use the showers, but they looked to be in great shape.The drinking water was easy to find, and there is even a place to fill the RV tank before heading to your site.

For a video summary of our campground and the backpack, see our YouTube video: https://youtu.be/pElJjB1t4XA.

Product Review:

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, we get products to test from time to time, and since we knew we would be out all day fishing and hiking, we took along the Renogy Solar Backpack (https://www.renogy.com/renogy-solar-backpack). We wanted to be able to keep our electronic devices such as our cameras and phones charged throughout our weekend adventures! This backpack is exciting! It sports a 5.6-watt solar panel and you can connect any usb device with its 5V charging port (maximum 1.2A output).

The weather all weekend was partly cloudy with isolated showers, and yet the backpack was able to charge a battery bank for our electronics 3/4 of the way in about three hours. We believe that if the sun had been out constant all afternoon, we would have easily charged bank one full and a second bank at least half way.

Other highlights of this backpack include the nicely padded strap-side that rests against your back, a slot on the left strap for sunglasses, an expandable water bottle (or other small gear) pocket, and plenty of space inside for jackets and other layers that were shed throughout the day as it got warmer. Thanks to a plethora of inside and outside pockets, we carried water bottles, battery banks, two phones, a tablet, headphones, snacks, a sweatshirt, and a jacket all at the same time with ease and comfort. A smaller laptop would also fit nicely inside the main compartment.

This backpack can be used without the solar panels exposed, with a quick zipper flip-around, and it looks great! IAt only 2.2 lbs, it also carries the inside pack weight very comfortably for a range of sizes, from a 6’ 4” father to 5-foot, 11-year-old son. Both mentioned that they felt the backpack was a nice way to carry their gear for a day of hiking and fishing.

If you have an RPI membership, this place is a no-brainer. It’s a huge and well maintained RV resort with tons of family friendly amenities. Onsite restaurant and convenience store with gas station. Large pool with hot tubs. Tennis, basketball, pickleball, and shuffleboard courts. Mini golf and an activity center that will loan you a variety of sports gear and well as rent bikes and golf carts. A massive dog park. Our kids also attended a 2 day horse camp onsite which was very fun for them and very reasonably priced. The list of activities is endless. Tons of kids biking around and playing, so easy for kids to make friends. They also have cabin rentals and a few tent sites. There’s a weekly rodeo held onsite during peak season. It’s 15 minutes from Rapid City and close to the Black Hills. If you are looking for a base camp to explore this area, Hart Ranch is a great choice.

Unable to reserve online for same night. Called and assured space available never asked name, etc. Luckily the spot was near back of campground with very short walk to stunning view. All sites gravel with picnic tables. Sites are close together but due to early Oct, they tried to park RVs every other space in middle of campground. Many long term residents around outsides of park. 2 small Dog runs in front; grass dog walking area in back. Next to Fort Hays, home of $0.99 cowboy pancake breakfast and Dances with Wolves film set. Convenient as Mt Rushmore is only 20 miles & 36 miles to Crazy Horse Memorial. Extremely clean toilet and bath house!!

This is a no hookups campground, but it’s on the Crazy Horse Memorial Highway…so it’s close to the Crazy Horse Memorial, Mt. Rushmore, Custer National Park and the two little towns of Custer and Hill City. (It is a heavily traveled highway, so if road noise bothers you, ask for a site toward the back of the campground.) Very dark skies here…beautiful star gazing. Lots of bike and ATV trails in The Black Hills and forests.

Hill City has an 1880s steam train you can take to Keystone, and lots of quirky little shops downtown. Custer is genuine South Dakota with Trading Posts, Western Art Galleries, and Buffalo statues all over town. (I’ve no idea how many, I am still trying to figure that out).

The Camp Hosts are super friendly and helpful, and gave us a great deal of local info. They were very knowledgable about the area. There are pit toilets right down the hill from our site. There is a common water spigot beside the pit toilets, but none at sites and no electric.

I reserved the place for two weeks online…it seems most folks stay only a night or two, but we have solar that keeps the lights on and the fridge and freezer running, so we are good. Generator hours are 8am to 8pm. Spacious, fairly level gravel sites with picnic tables, and fire rings. Lots of trees if you want them or few if you have solar (leave a note when you reserve or call and ask the camp host.) There have been sites available (1 or 2 at least) most days but it’s Friday and it’s filling up. Cell phone coverage is pretty impossible without a hotspot or antennae to help pull the signal to your site. There is good connectivity up the road a mile or so, also inHill City and Custer.