Wildlife Loop Road - Custer State Park

Custer State Park is located adjacent to and north of Wind Cave National Park. A series of three roads form a 31.2-mile loop through the southern hills and prairie of the state park. Entering the park from the south on SD-87, we drove north 4.9 miles to Wildlife Loop Road and the entrance fee station to the state park. Turning right, we drove 18.1 miles on Wildlife Loop Road, also known as Custer State Park Road 1, to its terminus at US-16A. Along the way, we passed the single paved runway of Custer State Park Airport at about 15 miles. After turning left onto US-16A and crossing Grace Coolidge Creek, we turned right into the parking lot for the Custer State Park Visitor Center. The park rangers and volunteers were very knowledgeable and helpful.

Leaving the visitor center, we continued west on US16A to the junction with SD-87 in 7.5 miles. Along the way, we passed Game Lodge, Coolidge General Store, Grace Coolidge Campground, Legion Lake, and Legion Lodge.

We turned south onto SD-87 and drove 10.5 miles back to Wind Cave National Park, passing Blue Bell Lodge & Resort and the entrance fee station along the way. 

As for wildlife viewing, we saw bison, wild donkeys, deer, antelope, and several bird species.

We spent most of a day driving the loop during our May 2021 trip to the Dakotas, Wyoming, and Montana. You can read about our August 2017 visit to Custer State Park by clicking on the highlighted posts of Legion Lake, Needles Highway, scenic SD-87, and Wildlife Loop Road.

Wild donkeys

French Creek

Legion Lake

Lenker Rock at Legion Lake

Wildfire aftermath

More fire damage

Antelope

White-tail deer

An entry fee of $20 per vehicle is valid for seven consecutive days at Custer State Park. Entrance is free on Mother's Day and Father's Day. 

The Custer State Park website is https://gfp.sd.gov/parks/detail/custer-state-park/.

Needles Highway - Custer State Park

While on our August 2017 trip to the Dakotas, we drove the 14-mile Needles Highway in Custer State Park, South Dakota. Driving from south to north, we started where South Dakota route 87 heads north at the eastern end of its joint route with US highway 16A about ½ mile northeast of Legion Lake. The northern end of the highway is at its junction with US-16 and US-385 10.5 miles north of Custer.

With a route personally marked by Peter Norbeck, the ninth governor of South Dakota, the Needles Highway was completed in 1922. The road is named for the many granite spires that rise above the landscape and resemble giant needles. It was designed as and has always been a highway for sightseers and not necessarily for through traffic. The route has three one-lane tunnels and several hair-pin curves, so there are restrictions on over-sized vehicles. The route is closed in the winter.

Iron Creek Tunnel

Distant vistas courtesy of forest fires

Granite outcrop

Roadside rock outcrops and boulders

Distant peak

Boulder atop a rock outcrop

A tree seemingly growing out of rock

More evidence of wildfires

Granite outcrop

Some of the "needles" for which the road is named

Near vertical "layers"

Afternoon clouds forming

A granite dome

More outcrops

Open forest is a result of past wildfires

One of the few paved pullouts along the route

A broader view of the Black Hills

More spires

Mount Rushmore may have once looked like this

Closely packed spires

Cathedral Spires

Needles Eye Tunnel

Expansive view of the Black Hills from near the tunnel

One more view of Needles Eye Tunnel

Hood Tunnel

Instead of collecting an entry fee, Custer State Park sells an entrance license that is required for all park visitors. Only people traveling non-stop on U.S. Highway 16A are exempt from this requirement. Entrance licenses are valid at all South Dakota state parks. A Temporary Vehicle License valid for seven consecutive days including the day it was issued is $20 per vehicle or $10 per motorcycle. An Annual Park Entrance License is $30.

The park website is http://gfp.sd.gov/state-parks/directory/custer/.

Wildlife Loop Road - Custer State Park

Founded in 1912 and now containing over 71,000 acres of the Black Hills, Custer State Park is both the first and the largest state park in South Dakota. It is located immediately north of Wind Cave National Park. Wildlife fences keep the herds of wild animals from crossing into the adjacent park and forest lands.

We entered Custer State Park on SD-87 from Wind Cave National Park and paid our entrance fee five miles north at the fee station located at the southern end of Wildlife Loop Road. From there, we drove another 5.6 miles north on SD-87 before turning east on US-16A and driving 7.5 miles. We then turned south onto Wildlife Loop Road and drove 18.1 miles back to where we paid our entrance fee. We then headed south on SD-87 back to Wind Cave National Park. This post just covers the Wildlife Loop Road in the park. We visited the park in August 2017.

Wildlife Loop Road

Mount Coolidge (6023')

Pronghorn (Antilocapra americana)

Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus)

Bison (Bison bison)

Instead of collecting an entry fee, Custer State Park sells an entrance license that is required for all park visitors. Only people traveling non-stop on U.S. Highway 16A are exempt from this requirement. Entrance licenses are valid at all South Dakota state parks. A Temporary Vehicle License valid for seven consecutive days including the day it was issued is $20 per vehicle or $10 per motorcycle. An Annual Park Entrance License is $30.

The park website is http://gfp.sd.gov/state-parks/directory/custer/.