Skip to content
BusinessesGrow
Black Elk Peak, Custer, SD

Photo: Skye Marthaler, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

Sport & OutdoorOutdoor AdventureHistory Buff

Black Elk Peak

Trail 9 from Sylvan Lake, Custer State Park · Custer, SD

Why you should go…

Black Elk Peak, at 7,244 feet the highest point in South Dakota, rises in the Black Elk Wilderness of the Black Hills. Most hikers take Trail 9 from Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park, about 7 miles round trip. At the top stands a stone fire lookout completed by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1938. The peak was renamed in 2016 for Lakota holy man Black Elk, who received his Great Vision here at age nine.

  • #hiking
  • #summit
  • #fire lookout
  • #black hills
  • #wilderness

Good to know

General sport & outdoor guidance

Habits that pay off across this whole category, not rules for this one venue. Always check the official site for the specifics.

  • Weather calls the shots

    Check the forecast the morning of and keep an indoor backup in your pocket for the day it turns.

  • Shoes, water, sun cover

    The three things that decide whether you last the whole outing or cut it short after an hour.

  • Parking and launches fill early

    On a nice weekend, lots and trailheads are often full by mid-morning.

  • Daylight shrinks in shoulder season

    Spring and fall visits need an earlier start than the same trip in July.

What's around here?

The closest stops to Black Elk Peak, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Outdoor Adventure

    Needles Highway

    $25–$50

    Drive 14 winding miles past granite spires, Sylvan Lake and narrow rock tunnels in the Black Hills of Custer State Park.

    1.8 mi awayMore like this

  • Stay
    Family Favorite

    Mount Rushmore KOA Resort at Palmer Gulch

    $50+

    A KOA campground and lodge near Mount Rushmore with cabins, RV sites, pools and Black Hills activities.

    2.7 mi awaySwitch it up: Stay

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Outdoor Adventure

    Black Hills Wilderness Edge

    $50+

    ATV and UTV rental outfitter for guided backcountry trail riding near Keystone, South Dakota.

    4.7 mi awayMore like this

  • Shopping
    Quirky Fun

    Black Hills Glass Blowers

    Free

    Working glass studio near Mount Rushmore where artisans blow and lampwork glass on site.

    4.9 mi awaySwitch it up: Shopping

  • Tours
    Iconic

    1880 Train

    $25–$50

    Ride a vintage steam train on a scenic 20-mile round trip through South Dakota's Black Hills.

    5.0 mi awaySwitch it up: Tours

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Outdoor Adventure

    Rushmore Tramway Adventures

    $25–$50

    Adventure park near Mount Rushmore with a scenic chairlift, alpine slide, zipline course, and aerial ropes park.

    5.5 mi awayMore like this