Custer State Park - Stockade

The Stockade Lake Boat Ramp provides convenient access to Stockade Lake and French Creek within Custer State Park near Custer, South Dakota. Stockade Lake is the largest lake in the park and is notably the only lake in Custer State Park that permits all types of boats, making it an excellent destination for kayakers, canoeists, and motorboaters. The ramp is located just east of Custer on Highway 16A and serves the adjacent Stockade Lake North and South Campgrounds, which offer full camping facilities.

Paddlers can expect a scenic Black Hills setting with multiple recreational opportunities. Beyond paddling, the area features a swimming beach, fishing pier, playground, and a short loop hiking trail connecting to the campground. The historic Gordon Stockade site—where gold was discovered during the Custer Expedition in 1874—is located nearby. For additional amenities and services, Legion Lake Lodge is also within Custer State Park and offers boat rentals, a restaurant, and a convenience shop.

For more information about the access site, camping reservations, or park facilities, contact Custer State Park at 605-394-2693 or visit their office at 13329 US Highway 16A, Custer, SD 57730.

Overview
Located 10 miles south of Hill City, South Dakota, Horsethief Lake Campground is a delightful setting for visitors seeking recreation and relaxation in Black Hills National Forest.

This campground is 2 miles from Mount Rushmore National Memorial and adjacent to Horsethief Lake. Sites are tucked into a forest of towering ponderosa and lodgepole pine.
Recreation
Black Hills National...

Overview
Located 10 miles south of Hill City, South Dakota, Horsethief Lake Campground is a delightful setting for visitors seeking recreation and relaxation in Black Hills National Forest.

This campground is 2 miles from Mount Rushmore National Memorial and adjacent to Horsethief Lake. Sites are tucked into a forest of towering ponderosa and lodgepole pine.
Recreation
Black Hills National Forest offers visitors a multitude of recreational opportunites throughout all seasons. Hiking, fishing, horseback riding, mountain biking, and riding off-highway vehicles are popular in summer and early autumn. Winter landscapes are ideal for snowshoeing, skiing and snowmobiling.

Hundreds of miles of trails and roads offer a variety of terrain for mountain bikers.

Hikers and bikers can access the nearby George S. Mickelson Trail, which traverses over 100 miles through the heart of the Black Hills. The majority of the trail follows an abandoned railroad branch line and includes 4 tunnels, over 100 converted railroad bridges, and 15 established trailheads. The trail surface is packed gravel, traversing mountain, meadow, and forest terrain. The trail is named in honor of the former South Dakota governor who crusaded for the trail.

For those seeking higher elevations, a day-long trek to the summit of nearby Black Elk Peak is worth the effort. Black Elk Peak is the highest natural point in the United
States east of the Rocky Mountains. Most of the summit is bare granite and offers expansive views of the surrounding area. An old stone tower at the top(Harney Lookout Tower), once used as a fire lookout, is still open to hikers.Facilities
Horsethief Lake Campground has sites able to accommodate tents, trailers, and RVs. There are several tent-only and walk-to tent-only sites.

The campground is equipped with picnic tables, campfire rings, vault toilets, and drinking water. Electrical hook-ups are not available.

Roads in the campground are paved.Natural Features
Located in western South Dakota and northeastern Wyoming, Black Hills National Forest encompasses nearly 1.25 million acres of rugged rock formations, canyons and gulches, open grassland parks, tumbling streams, deep blue lakes, and unique caves.

Derived from the Lakota language, the words "Paha Sapa," meaning "hills that are black," honor the dark, pine-covered hills rising several thousand feet above the surrounding prairie.


Wildlife in the area abounds. Bighorn sheep navigate mountainous terrain, while elk, deer and pronghorn gather in forests and prairies. Bald eagles, hawks, osprey, peregrine falcon, and hundreds of other bird species can be found in the forest, especially along streams, lakes and rivers.
Nearby Attractions
Explore Mount Rushmore National Memorial, host to almost 3 million visitors a year from across the country and around the world. Visitors may want to inquire about any Independence Day Celebrations taking place on the Mountain. Possible day trips include Custer State Park with its many Buffalo and other wildlife, Crazy Horse Monument and Wind Cave National Park as well as Jewel Cave which is the second longest cave in the world at 159.29 miles. It features sparkling calcite crystals and other rare formations, as well as some of the largest concentrations of passageways in the world..

Contact Info
For facility specific information, please call (605) 574-4402.Charges & Cancellations
No refunds will be given for weather related events.

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