## Overview

 Located 10 miles south of Hill City, South Dakota, Horsethief Lake Campground is a delightful setting for visitors seeking recreation and relaxation in Black Hills National Forest. This campground is 2 miles from Mount Rushmore National Memorial and adjacent to Horsethief Lake. Sites are tucked into a forest of towering ponderosa and lodgepole pine. 
## Recreation

 Black Hills National Forest offers visitors a multitude of recreational opportunites throughout all seasons. Hiking, fishing, horseback riding, mountain biking, and riding off-highway vehicles are popular in summer and early autumn. Winter landscapes are ideal for snowshoeing, skiing and snowmobiling. Hundreds of miles of trails and roads offer a variety of terrain for mountain bikers. Hikers and bikers can access the nearby George S. Mickelson Trail, which traverses over 100 miles through the heart of the Black Hills. The majority of the trail follows an abandoned railroad branch line and includes 4 tunnels, over 100 converted railroad bridges, and 15 established trailheads. The trail surface is packed gravel, traversing mountain, meadow, and forest terrain. The trail is named in honor of the former South Dakota governor who crusaded for the trail. For those seeking higher elevations, a day-long trek to the summit of nearby Black Elk Peak is worth the effort. Black Elk Peak is the highest natural point in the United States east of the Rocky Mountains. Most of the summit is bare granite and offers expansive views of the surrounding area. An old stone tower at the top(Harney Lookout Tower), once used as a fire lookout, is still open to hikers.
## Facilities

 Horsethief Lake Campground has sites able to accommodate tents, trailers, and RVs. There are several tent-only and walk-to tent-only sites. The campground is equipped with picnic tables, campfire rings, vault toilets, and drinking water. Electrical hook-ups are not available. Roads in the campground are paved.
## Natural Features

 Located in western South Dakota and northeastern Wyoming, Black Hills National Forest encompasses nearly 1.25 million acres of rugged rock formations, canyons and gulches, open grassland parks, tumbling streams, deep blue lakes, and unique caves. Derived from the Lakota language, the words \"Paha Sapa,\" meaning \"hills that are black,\" honor the dark, pine-covered hills rising several thousand feet above the surrounding prairie. Wildlife in the area abounds. Bighorn sheep navigate mountainous terrain, while elk, deer and pronghorn gather in forests and prairies. Bald eagles, hawks, osprey, peregrine falcon, and hundreds of other bird species can be found in the forest, especially along streams, lakes and rivers. 
## contact\_info

 For facility specific information, please call (605) 574-4402. 
## Nearby Attractions

 Explore Mount Rushmore National Memorial, host to almost 3 million visitors a year from across the country and around the world. Visitors may want to inquire about any Independence Day Celebrations taking place on the Mountain. Possible day trips include Custer State Park with its many Buffalo and other wildlife, Crazy Horse Monument and Wind Cave National Park as well as Jewel Cave which is the second longest cave in the world at 159.29 miles. It features sparkling calcite crystals and other rare formations, as well as some of the largest concentrations of passageways in the world.. 
## Charges &amp; Cancellations

 No refunds will be given for weather related events.

Horsethief Lake Campground

We visited Horsethief Lake Campground after seeing Mt. Rushmore on an extended road trip back to Maine. It was a beautiful spot overlooking a little lake, set back from the main road. The star gazing above the lake is incredible, no light pollution to be found. It's the closest campground to Mt Rushmore and only has about 40 sites. Because of this I would recommend getting there as early as possible. The price  ($24?) was very reasonable and there were basic ammentities such as a toilet and fresh water. Definitely would recommend this to anyone looking for a basic tent site in close proximity to Mt Rushmore. 

Horsethief Lake Campground 

Horsethief was a nice place to camp. The staff was very friendly! It is a perfect place to camp and be close to all the amazing things to do in the area. There was plenty of space and it had easy access.

Nice campground 

This campground is amazing.  The only drawback is that it does not have flushing toilets or a shower, BUT, the views are beautiful.  The campground is nestled into the forest right next to the lake.  It is only two miles from Mount Rushmore, so if want flushing toilets they are only a short car ride away.  There are spots for camper trailers as well as plenty of tent sites.

Horsethief Lake trail is about 3 miles long and the trailhead is right at camp.  It is an easy hike that puts you right in the middle of the Black Hills.  If you are more adventurous the trail connects to the Centennial Trail which is 111 miles long.

This campground is five stars even though it doesn't have flushing toilets or showers.  This campground used to be first come first served only but it now has some reservable sites on ReserveAmerica.com.

Horsethief Lake is Heaven

If you're touring the Black Hills, and hitting all of the outdoor attractions, Horsethief Lake is perfectly placed to access it all. The sites are basic, but have everything you need -- toilets, firepit, picnic table.

We were traveling with a small trailer and a tent, and there wasn't much room to fit them both on the same site, and had the choice to either pitch the tent on gravel, or on a slope (site #20).  There were lots of trees that worked to hang up the hammock which was a positive. There weren't many available sites to choose from due to the proximity of the campground to Rushmore. 

This campground is one of the closest (if not THE closest to Rushmore), and allows you close access to the park without having to stay in the touristy trap town of Keystone. There isn't any cell access in the campground, but you can drive up to Rushmore for a very clear signal if needed.

If you're spending a lot of time in the Black Hills, there are plenty of National Forest and state park campgrounds to choose from. This one is mostly great as a peaceful place to camp if you're intending to see the area.

Convenient Camping for Rushmore, Crazy Horse & Custer State Park

We 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.

Cute, Quiet, and Close to Everything

This campground is VERY close to Mt. Rushmore and is a perfect location for simple hikes leading up to the big show. The terrain around the park is generally rocky with dramatic changes in elevation, but this campground feels level (for the most part). Our tent was a bit off angle, but we didn't notice it much after such an exhausting day running around and seeing the sites.

We were closer to the loop near the water which I recommend as that view is something to relish. The road heading to MR is close by, so you will get some road noise. Restrooms were meh, but they got the job done.

This place is really meant, in my eyes, for people that want to be close too Rushmore while still getting the thrill of hiking the Black Hills.

Perfect way to visit Mount Rushmore

We had done a little research and this campground appealed to us from Reviews and location. We were greeted pleasantly upon our arrival and were given a site at the front which some may not prefer but the view was beautiful and we were blessed with watching a herd of 10 deer each evening across the street. This campground is family owned and extremely clean and quiet. We enjoyed watching other campers pulling in but thr noise was very minimal. The owners even come out in the evening and build a fire and chat. We were so impressed tbat we extended our stay. Although we didn't use it, there was a nice pool that was heated by an outdoor woodburning stove. They also have laundry facilities. We will definitely return on our next visit! We drove about 10 hours from our home state and were blown away that the couple right next to us was from our same city!!! Put this campground at the top of your list!! Easy access to one of the entrances to Custer State Park as well.

South Dakota Perfection 

Great weekend! 

Nice campground with private access to Horse Thief Lake. $26 / night for tent place. Vault toilets, water, fire pits w/ grill grate, no showers

The walk in tent spots were okay in the bottom loop, but the walk in spots in the top loop were better. Too many RVs for my liking, but that’s a personal thing.

Don’t forget to jump off the cliff!

They sell firewood and ice at the shop.

Lake Access!

Really had a great time here! This was one of the cleanest, easiest, and funnest campgrounds we’ve been too! The kids had plenty of hiking, swimming, and kayaking to do...the rock jumping was awesome! 30 foot jump!!!! Warm water and Mount Rushmore was legit and super close. Going to go back!

What a Pleasant Suprise!

Great site next to the lake with trails down to and around the water all around. Not very secluded, but wasn’t crowded. We had site #32. There were more secluded sites down a short walk from where we were. One bathroom and water spout. There were A LOT of bees. 

Right next to the lake.

My partner and I traveled to the Badlands area in July with our teardrop camper.  We were looking for a base campsite for which we could venture out on day trips to Badlands NP, Custer State Park, etc.  Horsethief Lake Campground was perfect!  The campground is located in the Badlands National Forest (make sure you do not mix it up with the RV Private Park Campground of a similar name) and is within a stone's throw to Mount Rushmore. (You get great views of Rushmore from the road.)

  

The lower loop is for RVs and the upper loop is tent camping though we did see tents down on the lower loop.  Our site #17 was ideal.  We were right on the lake with gorgeous views.  We also had access to water spigot which was right across the road. The camp hosts sell ice and firewood.  We did have some foot traffic near our site accessing the trail to the lake from the upper loop but everyone was nice.  Temperatures even in July were nice and cool and there seemed to be a constant breeze. 

  
I will say that the camp host was fairly cranky so check in was a little interesting.  We had read reviews elsewhere about her so we were prepared.  When we checked in, we stopped at the entrance hut and sat for a few minutes but it was unmanned.  During our trip we had experienced a lot of campgrounds doing contactless check in due to COVID precautions.  We thought this may have been the situation.   We saw the camp hosts' spot at the entrance and slowed down to see if anyone was there. It appeared to also be unmanned so we just proceeded to our site (we made advanced reservations).  We were just backing in to the spot when a 4 wheeler came zooming into the site. The camp host began berating us for "blowing through the check in".  We explained that we had sat at the hut (for 3 minutes) and did slow down at the camp host site but thought maybe they were doing contactless check in.  She then acted like we were idiots because there was paperwork to fill out.  We tried to move past that and be polite but we did see her interact with other campers in a similar manner.  This is definitely a negative which could effect your experience.    
  
Other than that minor challenge, I would highly recommend the Horsethief Lake Campground.  The location is convenient, the scenery gorgeous and if you are a lake person, it is a great spot to tube or lounge.

Peaceful campground with gorgeous views - perfect location! 

This is a nice small campground located just behind Mount Rushmore. It is on a very pretty lake and is divided into an RV section and a tent section for camping. There are volt toilets available and the campground has a trail around the lake.

The elevation is about 6000 feet so it can get cold there and you may have some elevation sickness.￼

Close to Mt Rushmore

Horsethief 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. 

Fishing anyoneu

Close to Mt Rushmore on a little reservoir.  Mix of RV and hike in camp sites nestled in the forest.  Fresh water available with bathrooms nearby.   We had a nice site overlooking the lake.  

Horse Thief lake 

We used this as a base camp for exploring the Black Hills. Our experience was mostly good. Our site was closer to our neighbor than we were expecting. The person next to us the first night had their dogs loose wandering and radio playing which was a little annoying. The picture also showed it being better views of the lake. But not a big deal because there were stairs down to the water (just had to make sure long pants for the poison ivy.) There was only a single toilet for our whole section, usually they have the mens and womens side. The hosts were also pretty unpleasant when we talked to them. We had an online reservation and came after 8 pm, which there was a sign that said if you come after 8 pm, just stop back and pay for your site in the morning. Well we had already paid so we were thinking that sign didn’t apply to us, plus we left to start exploring super early before they were open. We’ve stayed at countless FS campgrounds and not interacted with the hosts at all with no issue. We got there the 2nd night right at 8, so the little booth was closed. We slowed down a lot to make sure and then kept going and the guy walked up to us from the camper and acted like we were morons and said that we needed to fill out paperwork. My poor sweet husband was as nice as can be and the guy was still a jerk so that wasn’t a nice way to spend our last night there. Oh well. The campground itself is pretty, lots of shade and sites level &amp; in good condition. I’d return, just to a different site. 

Close to Mount Rushmore

I stayed here for 2 nights. The attendant was very friendly and helpful. He gave me a last minute booking which was very nice of him. And it was the most awesome spot to me in the whole camp!!! By all means do come and visit here. 8 miles from crazy horse memorial and just a little bit up from Mount Rushmore!!! 