Custer State Park Scenic and Hiking Experience

Disclaimer: I can’t talk about the whole state park because we only came here for the Buffalo Safari tour they offer. My wife and I took our young daughters to check them out. The tour is two hours long, and we saw cows, bulls, calves, and prairie dogs along the way, along with some antelope-like deer. It was completely safe, and we were never in danger from the animals in the park. Our tour guide seemed to be very knowledgeable and experienced around the animals. My wife and I were never worried about our kids' safety. It’s very awe-inspiring to be around these beautiful, majestic creatures that we don’t get to encounter too often. I really enjoyed our time out, and I recommend this place in the park.

This truly must be The shining gem of South Dakota, even compared to the Badlands. This is one of the largest state parks in the country with the largest being in Alaska. If that gives you an idea of scale. And then North and South of this are the protected lands such as the bad Lane, national Forest and windcave national Park. We stayed at legion lake and game Lodge campgrounds. Legion lake was beautiful and then you had the lake right across that. You can go swimming or fishing in. It also had a 1 mile hike around the lake. The campground itself was kind of small, but that's fine. One thing to note is that the stickers that they have you put on the windshield are terrible. Ours was on there for 4 or 5 days and we are unable to get it off. We're going to have to get something to help loosen the adhesive and scrape it off.

This is an amazing park! We started with needles highway, then went to the wildlife Loop, been ended up going on Iron Mountain Road. Talk about breathtaking scenery and beautiful animals! I've never seen so many buffalo/bison in my life! I have never gone through such a tiny space as we did with my car on needles highway. The pigtail bridges were so beautifully made out of wood! This whole adventure was a step back in time!

Custer State Park is about 20 miles from Rapid City. Entry/parking fee is $25 per car but is valid for a week. I drove mainly the Wild Life Loop which is roughly 18 miles where you can see wild animals like deers, bison, prairie dogs. I was told Needle Highway is a very beautiful drive too but did not have time to drive through it. But I drove through Iron Mountain Road from Mount Rushmore to the park which is very beautiful and interesting. Only portion of this road lies within the park.

What an experience! So many Buffalo (Bison), Prairie Dogs, Burros, and much more. The wildlife was incredible. A lot of driving but well worth it. Check out Center Lake. Hidden gem for sure! Camping, swimming and hiking. Head to the top of the Lost Trail for a breathtaking view of the lake. I would also recommend taking the Needles hwy to the top and see Mount Rushmore from 2 miles away! Incredible and not what I expected.