Custer State Park Scenic and Hiking Experience

Custer has been our annual family vacation spot for 13 years. Everything is our favorite! The hikes, the views, the campgrounds, the wildlife! I think Cathedral spires is my all time favorite hike, it’s easily accessible for the whole family, the views are stunning! Blue bell is our favorite campground for peace and relaxation and they just added a beautiful new playground this year. Game lodge is our favorite campground for lots of action nearby, it’s right across from the beautiful visitor center, close access to so many pretty drives and hikes. We always get to blue bell diner once a year, a fun tradition and great food, the best atmosphere. Custer is one of our favorite places in the world! Highly recommend!

Fantastic food in the restaurants. Excellent bison burgers, salads and onion rings. So many lodging options and well maintained roads. The main gift shop had a wonderful variety of items and so many cute tees and sweatshirts. Something for everyone. The buyer for the stores is doing an amazing job. Kayaks and paddles were in good shape and the life vests didn’t smell- much appreciated! I noticed the sand beach for lake swimmers is combed out each morning. Looked beautiful at the start of each morning. Loved seeing the bison, especially the babies! Donkeys were very cute too but I was surprised to see people feeding them.

Absolutely beautiful. There is so much to do and see here. I spent a few days here and enjoyed it. I stayed at the Game Lodge and drove around the whole park and hiked some of the trails. I'll definitely be visiting again. My favorite lake was Sylvan lake and driving through the pinnecles, seeing all the bison, and feeding the begging burros were at the top of my list of favorite things about this park.

My husband and I just returned from our first trip to S Dakota and Custer State Park was a main highlight. Saw lots of buffalo, antelope, donkeys and other wildlife. We were there a week before the park's national buffalo roundup which was why there were a lot of buffalo there, we were told (had started moving them down into the park). We heard from several folks that S Dakota has the most wildlife in the US after Yellowstone. Go there, it's beautiful!

We lucked out and were able to see Buffalo crossing the road. They are amazing animals to see in person. The donkeys were loving meeting each car to see if they could get some food. The ground hogs were super fat, I guess getting ready for winter. This place is beautiful, so take your time and enjoy your surroundings.