Mt Rushmore Need Help!

sundancekid

Member
We are thinking about heading to Mt Rushmore over memorial day weekend(Thank you to all that have served this great nation!)

We are looking for a campsite that is kid friendly close to all the attractions and a bonus would be UTV Friendly as far as close to trails etc, and the double bonus would be great fly fishing close by!!!!!

Anyone out there have any suggestions?:confused:

Thanks for all of the help....:cool:
 
Custer State Park

We stayed at Custer State Park, on our trip to Rushmore. There are lots of places to chose from in that area. KOA has a awesome looking set-up. Our camp was 20 min from Rushmore and 20 min from Crazy Horse. Enjoy your trip!
 

cookie

Administrator
Staff member
sundancekid, we have stay a few times at Rafter J Bar. Have no complaints and it is as close to Mt Rushmore as you are going to get. They have the stream you are looking for, but I don't know about trails. Be sure to see Mt Rushmord during the daytime an do not miss the evening cerimony. One admission fee gets you in day and evening. If your kids are old enought, check out either Jewel Cave or Wind Cave. They each have different features.
Have fun.
Peace
Dave
 

Clark

Member
We stayed at the Rafter J Bar Ranch just a couple of miles outside of Hill City. Close to Rushmore and Custer State Park (don't miss). We stayed in the pull throughs out in the open with all kinds of space around us. You also have back-in in the trees if you wish. I don't think that you will be disappointed if you pick this one.
Clark
 

Earl

Member
Another vote for Rafter J Bar: one of the nicest campgrounds we have ever stayed in. Very kid friendly with choice of spots in the trees or in the open. However the KOA close to Rushmore is the ultimate in kid friendly with pools, horses, video games, stores, playgrounds, you name it. But for us old foggies a bit on the noisy and crowded side.
 

buckeyebob

Well-known member
stated at hart ranch,real nice,however we are coast to coast members ai ten $ a night.also rushmore shadows.
 

mike3fan

Well-known member
We are going for the 4th of July, what are some of the places that you would suggest for sightseeing? We plan to do Mt. Rushmore,Crazyhorse Monument, Devil's Tower, Sturgis and the Peter Norbeck drive thru, anything else?
 

Taz Devil

Well-known member
We were stationed @ Ellsworth for about 8.5 years and did a lot of camping up and around Rushmore. Custer State Park is a very nice park and so is Rafter J. You can go to Bear Country USA, Air Museum @ Ellsworth AFB in Rapid City. I believe they still have a small water slide park. While you are there go to Keystone and Deadwood nice little shops and restaurants. Kevin Costner owns a restaurant there in Deadwood. Don't wait to long making reservations because their tourist season is getting ready to start and the parks fill up pretty quick around the holidays. Have a safe trip. By the way, you'll want to go to Rushmore when it gets dark for the lighting of the faces.

Kevin
 

Niles

Well-known member
I'm trying to remember just where it is, I think on 385 just outside of Hill City there's a Ranger station stop in and get a map. The one that tells you where all the fire trails are, we took the 4x4 and went up on top of few and what a view. Also hit Spearfish Canyon road it's a great trip. Just outside of Hill City there is also an old Gold mine that has a GEO cache, if you like that. Go to saloon No. 10 in Deadwood they do a reenactment of Wild Bill's death, it's ok for kids to go and the history on the walls. Might want to go look at Wild Bill's grave too, along with Calamity Jane's, you can look over the town of Deadwood from the graveyard quite the view there too. You did say you are going to be there 3 months, right!!!:cool: We have been there a lot and always find more to do and explore.
 
We stayed at Palmer Gulch KOA last year for over a week and used it as our base camp to see mostly all of the sites, Rushmore, crazy horse, custer state park, the bad lands, wall drugs, devils tower(had a hard time getting Karen away from this one) needles highway, the 1880's train ride in Hill city, etc. We had a great time, the accommodations were great and we would go back again some day. Enjoy.

Joe&Karen
Happysundanceowner
 

Dutch & Di

Active Member
You might want to check out the Flintstones Campground in Custer. It's not that far from Rushmore and other attractions and is very kid friendly. The town of Custer itself is quite fun. Enjoy your holiday wherever you decide to spend it. Diana
 

jpjulian

Active Member
We are in Custer now and staying at the Beaver Creek CG next door to the KOA. Nice place, good people. Quiet....... Real quiet...... Last time out here we stayed in Custer State Park in the Game Lodge campground. Of the several campgrounds in the park, I think it is the nicest and close to just about everything in the area. Electric only, though. Over the last 2 days we have seen bison, pronghorn, whitetail deer, elk, prairie dogs galore, and a wild turkey. Picked up a real estate brochure.
 
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