Mount Rushmore

[VinceB]

We will be out there July 9th for our first trip. We are staying at the KOA in Rapid City as our home base. It looks like there is plenty to do in the area. We have never been there and are really looking forward to the trip.

[geekgurl64]

We are going to be at the KOA in Hill City the first week of August. Thanks all for the info.

[JCZhome]

We'll be at Lake Park Campground and Cottages in Rapid City.....for the summer.

[Scott and Jan]

Try doing Rushmore in the evening, to be there for the lighting of the faces. Very moving singing our National Anthem as the faces get brighter and brighter. Then the flag folding ceremony by our current and veteran military that are in the crowd that day. Being there for all that made it more special for us. Reflecting on how far this country has fallen from where these four men brought it to be.

[geekgurl64]

Thank you for the info!! I will make sure we hit Mt Rushmore in the evening.

[lorend]

We go to the Black Hills every 5 years for a family reunion. We love Hill City. Small, quiet, and very close the Mt. Rushmore. We love to stay at Black Hills Trailside Park Resort. Nothing fancy, but quiet, and has a neat little stream flowing through that kids can play in a fish from.

Hi Curtis, Came across this old post from several years ago and thought you would be the one to reach out to for info. Our backgrounds are similar in that we both drive for a living, not so much for me anymore, now being retired. We are planning on going from Rapid City to Mt Rushmore and then to Custer State Park and I can not find the info I am looking for on roads. I know that 16A coming out of Keystone is a no-go for a 31 ft, 12'6' high 5er. Can I take 40 east to 233 and then drive 16A all the way to Custer City? Or better to stay on 40 to Hermosa and then on 36 to 16A. Or should I just think it is crazy to go from Rushmore to Custer. Do you have any suggestions? Thanks for any help you may be able to give. I still have not made it to your favorite restaurant in Parker. Had some friends that tried it on your recommendation and they really enjoyed it.

[Jomani]

Reading through this old thread brought back some great memories.

I first visited the Black Hills in 1972 when our family traveled across the US and Canada in a 1968 Winnebago travel trailer. My favorite stop was Crazy Horse. We were fortunate enough to meet Korczak Ziolkowski - original sculptor. When we stood behind a scale model sculpture in the parking lot, we could (with a little imagination) make out parts of the sculpture that was slowly developing in the mountain. Ziolkowski was proud to report that they had just finally blasted the hole under the arm through the mountain. When my wife and I traveled there from California in 2012 - 40 years later. Crazy Horse (at least the face) was clearly visible and the original gift shop where I met Korczak Ziolkowski had long ago been replaced by a visitor center and restaurant.

In 1972, if memory serves me correctly, access to Mt. Rushmore was much easier. Nighttime lighting was terrible. In 2012, we sat through the lighting ceremony - much more memorable than my visit as a kid.

In 1972, we left Rapid City exactly one week before the big flood. 50 years later, I still have vivid memories of that trip. My wife an I are planning to go back next year.

[D2Reid]

I know that 16A coming out of Keystone is a no-go for a 31 ft, 12'6' high 5er. Can I take 40 east to 233 and then drive 16A all the way to Custer City? Or better to stay on 40 to Hermosa and then on 36 to 16A. Or should I just think it is crazy to go from Rushmore to Custer. Do you have any suggestions?

Lorend, I voluntered at the Custer State Park Visitor Center last summer, your questions came up quite frequently. Traveling south on 16A into Keystone is a good road, no problems towing. As you mentioned, 16A just south of Keystone is the "Iron Mountain Road", aka, the pigtail highway. The three tunnels were designed such that Mt. Rushmore is framed in each of them.

If you are just wanting to get to Custer, SD and bypass the state park, you can take 244 westbound out of Keystone to join 385, good road all the way. I might mention there is a steep little hill on 244 a mile east of Mt. Rushmore.

A little known cutoff road from Keystone to Custer State park is Playhouse Road, come east out of Keystone on 40, take Playhouse road south, it will join 16A for a short bit, then Playhouse road splits off again to go south until it meets 87, Needles Highway. This section does not have any tunnels on it. But it does have several hairpin turns. I have seen folks tow 5th wheels on it, but they are using both lanes on those tight turns. Unless I was going to one of the RV parks by the intesection of 16A and playhouse road I would avoid towing it, more trouble than it's worth, but a beautiful drive.

Easiest towing for the stops you mentioned in the order you mentioned them is 16A into Keystone, then 40 east to 79, south on 79 a short distance to pick up 36 westbound into Custer State Park where it turns into 16A again, then 16A westbound to Custer.

They have paved the Wildlife Loop in Custer State Park, so if you want to see the Buffalo herd you can take that around the south side of Custer State Park. There is a set of hairpin curves on the SW side of the loop. They are well built but a bit unnerving pulling a 5th wheel.

The Visitor Center at Custer State Park has RV parking. It isn't the greatest but it is doable if it's not too crowded. They also built a new visitor center called the Bison Center on the wild life loop, there is room to park there as well. This new center is dedicated to the history and current status of Buffalo/Bison herds in the US. It also explains how the herd is managed in the park and the purpose of the annual Buffalo Roundup, a big event in that part of the country.

It's possible to take a large vehicle up 89 from Custer to Sylvan Lake. 87 North of Sylvan Lake has an 8' 9" tunnel on it just before the hairpins. 87 south of Sylvan Lake is the iconic Needles Highway with the famous Eye of the Needle rock. I have driven my F450 through the Needles Eye tunnel several times, it's tight but doable.

The roads through the park are slow. We often joked when people asked how far it was from one thing to another, standard answer is 1 hour. But it's only 16 miles, yup, roads are slow. A lot depends on where you are staying, how long you have, and what's important to see.

I don't check the forum often anymore, so if you want more info on the area it's best to pm me. It's very easy to spend 3-4 days in this area, there is a lot to see and do.

Where 16A joins 36 east/west through Custer State Park is a good road, I pulled my 41' 5th wheel accross it with no problems.

[lorend]

Lorend, I voluntered at the Custer State Park Visitor Center last summer, your questions came up quite frequently. Traveling south on 16A into Keystone is a good road, no problems towing. As you mentioned, 16A just south of Keystone is the "Iron Mountain Road", aka, the pigtail highway. The three tunnels were designed such that Mt. Rushmore is framed in each of them.

If you are just wanting to get to Custer, SD and bypass the state park, you can take 244 westbound out of Keystone to join 385, good road all the way. I might mention there is a steep little hill on 244 a mile east of Mt. Rushmore.

A little known cutoff road from Keystone to Custer State park is Playhouse Road, come east out of Keystone on 40, take Playhouse road south, it will join 16A for a short bit, then Playhouse road splits off again to go south until it meets 87, Needles Highway. This section does not have any tunnels on it. But it does have several hairpin turns. I have seen folks tow 5th wheels on it, but they are using both lanes on those tight turns. Unless I was going to one of the RV parks by the intesection of 16A and playhouse road I would avoid towing it, more trouble than it's worth, but a beautiful drive.

Easiest towing for the stops you mentioned in the order you mentioned them is 16A into Keystone, then 40 east to 79, south on 79 a short distance to pick up 36 westbound into Custer State Park where it turns into 16A again, then 16A westbound to Custer.

They have paved the Wildlife Loop in Custer State Park, so if you want to see the Buffalo herd you can take that around the south side of Custer State Park. There is a set of hairpin curves on the SW side of the loop. They are well built but a bit unnerving pulling a 5th wheel.

The Visitor Center at Custer State Park has RV parking. It isn't the greatest but it is doable if it's not too crowded. They also built a new visitor center called the Bison Center on the wild life loop, there is room to park there as well. This new center is dedicated to the history and current status of Buffalo/Bison herds in the US. It also explains how the herd is managed in the park and the purpose of the annual Buffalo Roundup, a big event in that part of the country.

It's possible to take a large vehicle up 89 from Custer to Sylvan Lake. 87 North of Sylvan Lake has an 8' 9" tunnel on it just before the hairpins. 87 south of Sylvan Lake is the iconic Needles Highway with the famous Eye of the Needle rock. I have driven my F450 through the Needles Eye tunnel several times, it's tight but doable.

The roads through the park are slow. We often joked when people asked how far it was from one thing to another, standard answer is 1 hour. But it's only 16 miles, yup, roads are slow. A lot depends on where you are staying, how long you have, and what's important to see.

I don't check the forum often anymore, so if you want more info on the area it's best to pm me. It's very easy to spend 3-4 days in this area, there is a lot to see and do.

Where 16A joins 36 east/west through Custer State Park is a good road, I pulled my 41' 5th wheel accross it with no problems.

Great information about the roads. Have you thought about being a tour guide? lol. This is the kind of info that is hard to find. I really appreciate the input. I think I will have to let my wife read this so that she can have a good understanding of why we will probably drive further to avoid the problems you mentioned.

[GoodScout]

Don't miss the Crazy Horse memorial and museum. It's just down the road and well worth it.