Best Tent Camping near Wind Cave National Park

Nice camp ground, well maintained, clean, quite, nice showers and bathrooms. Staff were wonderful and helpful, very nice and family oriented. We stayed in a tent site. Water was close by and we did not need electric. They run a little coffee shop too and it was amazing, the kids loved the smoothies that they made. Pool was cold, but clean and looked inviting, but it was the end of may so that is normal. Laundry room was clean and easy access. They have everything you might need in the main office. Close location to get to anything. Loved Custer state park, visited spearfish canyon, bear mountain look out, wind cave national park, so many things to see. We would definitely stay again. And 25$ a night was a good price.

This campground is EXCELLENT! We spent a week in our RV and enjoyed watching the sunset in the hammock after a day of venturing out in the Black Hills. We went to Custer State Park, Mount Rushmore, Wind Cave National Park, Spearfish Canyon, Badlands National Park, Wall (for Wall Drug), and several other adventures. We hiked around lakes and had picnics by the water, drove through canyons and small towns trying different local fare and ended the night by our fire pit. The owners brought us firewood and were so accommodating to everyone. They enjoy working on their property and this is very well-groomed. I can’t say anything bad about it. Although I didn’t stay in the tent campground, you can walk out the back of it and take your dog down some of the trails. LOVED this campground !

Overall the campground was great. Showers, washing machines, places for kids to play, pool area, kind neighbors. We did run into a couple problems when it came to tent camping here. The bathroom closest to us had 2 toilets and 2 showers which were nearly always full and we had to walk across the campground to another bathroom. Another thing, some of the tent sites are slanted. The blood was either rushing to my head or I was sliding down the bottom of the tent. It is a little bit awkward and not ideal. Having a campfire was a nice plus though (they even had water to put it out with).

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! :)

Very friendly staff. All the amenities needed. Clean bathrooms and showers. Ample laundry facilities! Don’t forget your roll of quarters! (They have change too) We tent camped in 106 (closest to bathhouse so you can hear air hand dryer but quickest bathroom access). All the tent sites appeared to be very nice. They are drive up! Surrounded by mountains and deer walk right through campground. Location was perfect and within miles of all attractions! We saw some of the other campgrounds in the area and are more than pleased we chose this one! RV sites in the front appeared a little more crowded than those towards the back. Also, had some small cabins and there was ample room for the tent in front of it. We would choose this campground at our next visit! Kids loved the on-site “gold mining” activity!