Mount Rushmore National Memorial
Visitors can't help but be impressed by the sheer scale and massive physical effort of the team behind Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota…
Getty Images/Flickr RF
Black Hills
They call the Black Hills an evergreen island in a sea of high-prairie grassland. This stunning region on the Wyoming–South Dakota border lures scores of visitors with its winding canyons and wildly eroded 7000ft peaks. The region's name – the 'Black' comes from the dark ponderosa-pine-covered slopes – was conferred by the Lakota Sioux. In the 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty, they were assured that the hills would be theirs for eternity, but the discovery of gold changed that and the Sioux were shoved out to low-value flatlands only six years later. The 1990 film Dances with Wolves covers some of this period.
You'll need several days to explore the bucolic back-road drives, caves, bison herds, forests, Deadwood, and Mt Rushmore and Crazy Horse monuments, and to experience the abundant outdoor activities (cycling, rock climbing, boating, hiking, downhill skiing, gold-panning etc). Like fool's gold, gaudy tourist traps lurk in corners.
Explore Black Hills
- Mount Rushmore National Memorial
Visitors can't help but be impressed by the sheer scale and massive physical effort of the team behind Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota…
- Custer State Park
Mt Rushmore may lure travelers to the Black Hills, but it's nearby Custer State Park that often creates the most lasting memories. Not only does it boast…
- SStatues of Presidents
From a shifty-eyed Nixon in repose to a triumphant Harry Truman, lifelike statues dot corners throughout the center of Rapid City. Collect all 42. Maps…
- KKidney Springs
The best water you'll drink in the Black Hills flows freely from this spring right in the center of town. It's not cold, but it's also not so hot you'll…
- MMt Moriah Cemetery
Calamity Jane (born Martha Jane Burke; 1852–1903) and Wild Bill Hickok (1837–76) rest side by side up on Boot Hill at this very steep cemetery. Pick up…
- Crazy Horse Memorial
The world's largest monument is this 563ft-tall work-in-progress (with a lot of work to go). When finished it will depict the Sioux leader astride his…
- WWind Cave National Park
This park, protecting 44 sq miles of grassland and forest, sits just south of Custer State Park. The central draw is, of course, the cave, which contains…
- SSanford Lab Homestake Visitor Center
Gape at the 1250ft-deep Homestake Gold Mine to see what open-pit mining can do to a mountain. Nearby are the mine's shafts, which plunge more than 1.5…
- JJewel Cave National Monument
If you visit only one Black Hills cave, this would be a good choice. It's 13 miles west of Custer and is so named because calcite crystals line much of…
Latest Stories from Black Hills
Top attractions
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Black Hills.
See
Mount Rushmore National Memorial
Visitors can't help but be impressed by the sheer scale and massive physical effort of the team behind Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota…
See
Custer State Park
Mt Rushmore may lure travelers to the Black Hills, but it's nearby Custer State Park that often creates the most lasting memories. Not only does it boast…
See
Statues of Presidents
From a shifty-eyed Nixon in repose to a triumphant Harry Truman, lifelike statues dot corners throughout the center of Rapid City. Collect all 42. Maps…
See
Kidney Springs
The best water you'll drink in the Black Hills flows freely from this spring right in the center of town. It's not cold, but it's also not so hot you'll…
See
Mt Moriah Cemetery
Calamity Jane (born Martha Jane Burke; 1852–1903) and Wild Bill Hickok (1837–76) rest side by side up on Boot Hill at this very steep cemetery. Pick up…
See
Crazy Horse Memorial
The world's largest monument is this 563ft-tall work-in-progress (with a lot of work to go). When finished it will depict the Sioux leader astride his…
See
Wind Cave National Park
This park, protecting 44 sq miles of grassland and forest, sits just south of Custer State Park. The central draw is, of course, the cave, which contains…
See
Sanford Lab Homestake Visitor Center
Gape at the 1250ft-deep Homestake Gold Mine to see what open-pit mining can do to a mountain. Nearby are the mine's shafts, which plunge more than 1.5…
See
Jewel Cave National Monument
If you visit only one Black Hills cave, this would be a good choice. It's 13 miles west of Custer and is so named because calcite crystals line much of…
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