Sprawling Ponderosa Pine forests, Native Americans, jagged rock formations, casinos, saloons, gold mines, buffalo, bears, and massive stone sentinels – no, this isn’t the Wild West of the past, but the Black Hills of South Dakota are the closest experience to it that I’ve ever had.
Growing up being partially raised by my Grandpa, I was engrossed by Westerns. If it involved horses, gunfights, and John Wayne (and others), my Grandpa had it on. I was never a huge fan of the dusty desert westerns with their small range of colors, but loved the ones that took place in the western wilderness among the trees and mountains. In that front room, in a house he built, my Grandpa and I spent countless hours watching these epics, and in doing so, seeds of freedom, possibility, and adventure were planted into deep places of my soul. Little did I know that a work trip to nearby Ellsworth Air Force Base would reawaken those seeds.
I knew little about the region other than the understanding that Mount Rushmore was nearby…somewhere. Perhaps if I had known more, my time in this part of the world and most likely the remainder of my life would be wildly different. My buddy Paul and I had a four-day weekend thanks to a holiday and a base shutdown, and instead of staying nearby and exploring the Black Hills (which we knew nothing about), we took off for Grand Teton and Yellowstone and my obsession with National Parks was birthed. However, if we had known what majesty lived in the mystical hills right next to us, perhaps we wouldn’t have left town. This is certainly one of those great What Ifs of history to me.
Looking at a map, the Black Hills are a massive oddity that gets odder the longer you think about it. With no mountain ranges nearby, it’s almost as if the Hills are an island in the prairie (which you feel even more when you watch the wind play across the top of the long glass as though they are waves). Little of the Hills are void of thick evergreen tree cover, so it’s quite the striking contrast to the flat lands at its base and carries with it a sense of a journey into a different land when you enter into it and immediately start to climb.
Since the Black Hills is such a large area and chock full of fascinating places to explore, I’ve broken this guide up into various subsections that highlight all the areas that I’ve been to and believe should absolutely be on your list of places to visit as you roam the Black Hills.
Rapid City
Rapid City likes to bill itself as “The Gateway to the Black Hills” and for good reason! This city is perfectly situated at the Eastern edge of the Black Hills and is where most everyone begins their journey and spends their nights. I loved this City, especially their small but packed downtown. Food and drink wise, there are many great restaurants (Que Pasa Cantina, Tally’s Silver Spoon, and Kathmandu Bistro were all excellent) and breweries (Firehouse Brewing Company and Pour 54 Taphouse were favorites).
If you’re looking for a cool place to stay, the list simply says Hotel Alex Johnson. I wouldn’t even consider anything else. This century old hotel has hosted US Presidents, dignitaries, and has even been featured on ghost shows for cable networks due to its supposedly haunted areas. Plus, the rooftop bar is excellent and gives you fantastic views of the whole city. Not only all of that, but the place just looks cool on the inside and puts you within walking distance of everything you need while in Rapid City.
One last thing about Rapid City that I certainly didn’t know about before I arrived is that the city is host to life-sized bronze statues of every US President. Good, bad, beloved, or hated, every US President can be found roaming the streets, ready to be posed with and they never say no to a selfie request. The artists who make them always seem to capture what made that President unique and I loved finding them all.
Sturgis
As you approach the Hills from the East on Interstate 90, the road takes a sharp detour around to the North through, what I found to be, the sleepy little town of Sturgis. Now, I’m sure few would ever describe Sturgis as sleepy, but if, like me, you visit this town during the vast majority of the year that is not Sturgis Bike Week, the town feels like a ghost town. Massive bars that feel more like small arenas found in cities line the main street, but they all feel so wildly out of place when you’re the only vehicle in the town. Seeing as though I’m not a Harley owner, I don’t ever expect to find myself in this place during its peak season. There is an excellent coffee place though in Sturgis Coffee (and where I got one my favorite t-shirts).
Deadwood
Entering the Black Hills from the northern entrance, you’ll quickly find yourself climbing up into the town of Deadwood. Yes, the Deadwood of HBO and western fame is still a real place, and they very much want your tourism. Once a violent city designed to take the meager earnings of the local gold miners in exchange for liquor, ladies, and gambling, this is now a city designed to take the meager earnings of tourists in exchange for liquor, trinkets, and gambling. Yes (old fashioned looking though modern) saloons and (the smallest and saddest I’ve ever seen) casinos still exist in Deadwood, but the rest of the town is built around western themed t-shirt and beef jerky shops it seems. I did have fun in Deadwood though and learned a lot about its history – worth the stop in your exploration of the Hills.
Custer
Smackdab in the middle of the Black Hills is the town of Custer. While Rapid City may be where you end your days, Custer provides a great place to restock and find a good meal during your day. There are plenty of guides and gift shops in Custer, but there was one standout restaurant that I don’t want you to miss: Skogen Kitchen (I highly recommend getting reservations).
Crazy Horse Memorial
I’m not going to lie about it, this place kinda feels like a massive ongoing grift (an opinion held by many), but wow is the concept of it cool. The Memorial’s own website claims that “Crazy Horse is the world’s largest mountain carving” (true!) and that “it is considered The Eighth Wonder of the World in progress” (debatable). Designed to rival Mount Rushmore and honor the native people of the area, Crazy Horse is massively ambitious and is taking a massively large amount of time to complete. Construction started in 1948 and the artist estimated that it would take 30 years to complete, however as of 2024 there is no timeline for completion of the carving and it looks like it has a very long way to go. Stopping at the Visitor’s Center is well worth your time though as they provide so much information and opportunities to learn about the native people and learn more about the plans for the statue (which again, are beyond ambitious). Will any of us live long enough to see its completion? Perhaps a better question is whether it will be complete before our sun goes supernova.
Mount Rushmore
What else is there to say about this monument that you can’t already gather from every photo that you’ve ever seen? That there is an even cooler view that you can see from the back side! Following the road past the entrance to the parking lot at the base of Mount Rushmore allows you to reach a smaller parking lot that provides this very cool and closer profile view of Washington looking out. In fact, the entire South Dakota Highway 244 is an excellent drive on warm days as you’ll spot plenty of wildlife, and human rock climbers scaling the formations that line this ribbon of road.
Mount Rushmore certainly should be on your list to visit when you journey into the Black Hills. It’s an engineering marvel and is certainly well done, but do make sure you learn some of its history prior to being blasted and carved as this was a sacred and important place to the native Sioux people. After learning about the Six Grandfathers, I’ve had a hard time being impressed by what is now known as Mount Rushmore.
Custer State Park
As someone who frequents and loves the vast grandeur of this nation’s National Parks (even the not-so-vast ones like you, Gateway Arch), let me just tell you that Custer State Park rivals many of them. In fact, this beautiful piece of wild wonder is on many people’s short list of places that they could see becoming the next National Park. From the sprawling grasslands in the southern part of the Park with its herd of Bison (I legit typed Buffalo first despite knowing that that is not what they are – I may never get that out of my system), to the other-worldly rock formations, overlooks, and tunnels of Needles Highway, I feel as though this place needs its own article. On my list of Top 10 drives I’ve been on in my life, Needles Highway with my buddy Paul is high up there. I dare say that this Park alone is reason to schedule a trip to the Black Hills, and should be first on your list of places to visit while there.
Wind Cave National Park
The Black Hills also does contain a full on legit National Park that has one of the subterrainian wonders of the world: Wind Cave. Unfortunately for me, when we visited all tickets for access to the cave were sold out and we were only able to see the above ground prairie with its Prairie Dogs and Bison. Visiting the cave will be a must for me next time I’m in the Black Hills.
The Black Hills were such an unknown to me prior to visiting, and discovering it felt as though I had found this treasure chest of beauty and adventure. I’m so grateful that my job ended up sending me to South Dakota and introducing me to this very special place. I will say that so many have known that this place is special, for what in truth is thousands of years. These Hills were originally promised to the native people in multiple treaties from the US government, only to ignore them once gold was discovered here. The US Supreme Court even upheld that the government did indeed break the treaty, but did not order anyone off of the land. This has been an ongoing sadness for the native people for so long. Mentioning this is not intended at all to discourage you from visiting the Black Hills, quite the opposite actually, but I do hope that it adds a bit of reverence to the place and that you do what you can to honor the native people and their heritage that you will encounter in the Hills.
There is such an opportunity to experience deep touches to your spirit here in the Black Hills. Every tree, rock, and blade of grass feels imbued with ancient magic and just being there enlivens that kid-heart inside of you to see the world differently. To see adventure, to see the past in the now, and to see how worthy the world is to explore. May we all get to experience such places in our lives, and may we all ensure we take the opportunity when it presents itself.