Mt. Rushmore Summer 2015 - Page 2

Rick R · 12-29-2014, 08:06 PM

We live in the area and often camp in the southern Black Hills, most recently the weekend of December 12. The game lodge campground in Custer State Park is one of our favorites and on that particular weekend the temperature was 72 degrees. Shhh, promise not to tell anyone, we think it's very special.

aspengirl · 12-29-2014, 08:09 PM

Rick R - We love the Game Lodge Campground, too! Your photos are beautiful!!

dutch · 12-30-2014, 06:37 AM

Sorry WFD, I will do that.

Toby · 12-30-2014, 07:22 AM

We were up there a few years ago to visit and stayed at the KOA at Mt. Rushmore. I was not that impressed actually. I hope to return very soon and will definitely try a different CG (one listed here).

Yesterday I saw a really good documentary on Custer and now I really want to make it back up there.

Just thought I'd say that...

rapiniii · 12-30-2014, 08:35 AM

Another great campground near Rapid City.
Hart Ranch Camping Resort
If you have time, visit the wild Mustang Sanctuary and the Mammoth site near Hot Springs

whj77372 · 12-31-2014, 12:06 PM

Thank you Rick R for the great pictures. It is not anywhere near 72 degrees in the Houston Texas area. SW SD is a great place to visit, usually in the summer.
My only thought on the first poster is that 500 miles a day is a lot for this
old man! Good Luck and Happy New Year.

shadows4 · 01-12-2015, 08:42 PM

Another good campground is Beaver Lake Campground, Custer, SD. Max the owner in on RV.Net quite a bit. He treated us like family and even had us come to a BBQ he had for his employees for the 4th of July. We were there two years ago. Make sure to try the purple pie place. Don't remember the name but it is in Custer and the building is purple. Some of the best pie the wife and I have ever had!!!.
Also there is a Minute man missile silo near the Badlands that we toured, really cool!! South of Mount Rushmore is an active dinosour dig plus many cool caves to tour. Just be sure to take a jacket on the cave tours. Good luck, John

oconomowoc · 01-20-2015, 06:17 AM

We stayed at Horse thief last year and it was great! Make sure you take the gravel roads through Custer park, you can sneak up on some sleeping Buffalo. They are really big when you get up close and you can hear them snore when they breathe. The wild donkeys are great also. You'll have a great time

ernest917 · 01-20-2015, 07:54 PM

We stayed at the KOA there..... Probably one of the BEST commercial CG's we've ever stayed in... Especially if you have children... Tons of things for them to do... Highly recommend that you take advantage of their Mt. Rushmore shuttle service - that way you don't have to deal with the traffic and there is tons of that, especially if you go to a night presentation....

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bensinc · 02-12-2015, 06:23 PM

An older thread, but I just found it!

We went last July and stayed at Blue Bell in Custer State Park in our a-frame. It was one of the nicest state parks we've ever been to, and I'd highly recommend Blue Bell. We went through the other campgrounds in Custer, and they all looked really nice.

It's a nice campground, but also has a lodge with a great restaurant, and a nice camp store. It's actually the equestrian area too, and you can do some horseback riding if you want.

There is a lot to do in the Black Hills area. Here are some things we enjoyed:

Downtown Rapid City has some fun restaurants and shops.

There's a museum at Ellsworth Air Force Base. It's small, but fun to see and doesn't take much time.

You can get a tour of a Minuteman missile launch control facility, check the NPS.gov site.

The little towns like Custer, Hill City, etc. can be fun.

Bear Country USA

Mt. Rushmore

Crazy Horse is neat, but I might just see it from the road and not spend all day there.

In Custer State Park there are a some great roads to drive, though maybe not with a trailer! Iron Mountain Road and the Needles Highway.

There is a "wildlife loop" drive in Custer, with lots to see.

Deadwood is fun, but more fun without kids!

Do some planning though, because it's a lot of driving to get around! It's a big place, but the windy slow roads are the real problem.

driftinby · 03-05-2015, 01:32 PM

Any opinions on Sheridan Lake CG? We just bought a Grey Wolf 26DBH and decided to join my dad at Sturgis this Summer but at this point all of Custer is booked as well all the commercial CG's however, we're not too fond of these kind of CG's anyway.

Sheridan has no hookups but we are only planning to stay 4 nights but with potential for 100+ degree weather this time of year, I hope we don't regret not being able to run our AC. If it's anything like our triple digit temps in Colorado, I think we'll be okay.

Would anyone recommend another CG that is NP, SP, USFS or BLM over Sheridan Lake? This is our fist time owning a camper with holding tanks and it appears that Sheridan Lake doesn't have a dump station. What is one to do to empty their tanks before hitting the road in this situation?

Thanks for any info and sorry for reviving an old thread.

CSMRetired · 03-05-2015, 01:38 PM

The only other place I can think of and it doesn't fit in your request, is Hart Ranch. They are fairly close to a lot of things, Rushmore included....they are a membership CG but are open to public camping. Sorry I don't have better info for you.

Ford Idaho · 03-05-2015, 01:51 PM

Spearfish is a city owned with or with out hookups.

City of Spearfish, SD Parks & Recreation - Campground

CSMRetired · 03-05-2015, 01:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ford Idaho

Spearfish is a city owned with or with out hookups.

City of Spearfish, SD Parks & Recreation - Campground

Thing is, if they will be there between late July to mid August......any camping area in or around Sturgis will be a zoo.

Ford Idaho · 03-05-2015, 02:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CSMRetired

Thing is, if they will be there between late July to mid August......any camping area in or around Sturgis will be a zoo.

Was there in June last year and it was getting silly then getting in and out of Deadwood. Lead and Sturgis.

I just posted an option, the city park helps fund things in Spearfish so that is kind of nice.

driftinby · 03-05-2015, 03:01 PM

Thanks for the quick replies... wasn't expecting that. Yeah, my dad is the biker. I have little tolerance for how loud they are and often wonder how it is even legal but to each their own. With it being the 75th anniversary I'm sure the silliness will be on level 11! Therefore, the short 4-night stay and we are keeping our expectations low for a relaxing trip but are really looking forward to spending time with him seeing this amazing part of the country for the first time. We're just 6-hours away so I'm sure we will be back.

With that, the Spearfish city park looks good but too near all the action. I'm optimistic that Sheridan Lake, with 62 available sites now, won't be too bad due to it's distance from Sturgis. I didn't call them specifically, but every other CG within 20 miles and up to $200\night that I called is already fully booked. Again, we're keeping our expectations low and taking lots of ear plugs.

Still would love to hear specifically about Sheridan Lake CG if anyone has any first-hand experience.

glen1971 · 03-06-2015, 07:11 PM

We were there last summer and stayed at Custer Crazy Horse Campground.. It was an alright place to stay and we had a site in the trees for the 4 days we were there... It wasn't packed and it was nice and clean...

IMO, you need to see:
- Crazy Horse Monument. Catch the laser show at night, it's worth it too..
- Mt. Rushmore. Also catch the light show and tribute at night..
- Bear Country USA. Heed their warnings and leave your windows up and coolers at your site...
- Needles Hiway to check out the tunnels.. No trailers allowed.. They were a snug fit but our truck had no issues getting through them..
- Spend some time to sight see as much as you can!!

I'd avoid Wall Drug... I didn't find it worth the hype.. The ice cream was good though..

Blaster 84 · 03-06-2015, 07:41 PM

We are also planning a visit to the Mt Rushmore this year. Hoping to miss a lot of crowds by getting their in late August or early Sept after school is back in session. From there we will go to North Dakota and then east to the UP of Michigan before heading back south. Would appreciate any on our timing.

retired on a mountain · 04-07-2015, 02:19 PM

Don't forget devils tower sturgis and a town of alladen

NoviBill · 05-07-2015, 10:40 AM

We will be in Custer State Park June 22-26 and then head up to Theodore Roosevelt for 3-5 days. Stockade North and South (reserved late so we are changing several times). We will bin a Lexington 255DS (MH) so the Needles are out (I did pull a pop-up through them years ago). Anyone else in Custer the same time?

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