Welcome to Custer State Park
Pictures and Information

We followed the scenic winding road in Wind Cave National Park and was heading north. Then we passed over a small bridge and saw a sign that said we were in Custer State Park. But there is also two other signs that said, " Don't approach a buffalo," and " Entering a Fee Area." Hmmm... wonder what that means.

Custer State Park sign

The first animals we saw in Custer State Park were some antelope, a momma and a bambie. We saw that Custer State Park had a fire here, a lot of the pine trees were scorched, and dead.

Park Ranger Office

We ran into a sign that said we needed a "Park License" so we pulled into the drive with the building, but it was closed. We put $10 in an envelope and deposited it anyway, and put the park license on the windowshield.

Discover Custer State Park, scenic drives, historic lodges, wildlife viewing, a 71,000 acre Vacation Paridise, 1500 free roaming buffalo
Lodging and Dining information: 1-888-875-0001; Visitor Center: 605-255-4464
Camping Reservations: 1-800-710-2267

More Pictures of Custer State Park

-A view of Custer State Park from a bridge we crossed over... Custer State Park view
-a sign for Mt Coolidge scenic overlook... Mt Coolidge sign
-Custer State Park Hwy 16 entrance heading west... Hwy 16 entrance heading west

BlueBell Campground Pictures

We went looking for the Blue Bell Campground. They had 1 tent site open.

-Bluebell Campground Office... Bluebell Campground Office
-Bluebell Campground horse stables... horse stables
-All sites reserved unless posted open... all sites reserved sign
-Bluebell Campground restrooms... restrooms
-Bluebell Lodge and Resort... Bluebell Lodge and Resort
-A green and red covered wagon at Bluebell Campground... green and red covered wagon

We left Bluebell, and went looking for Legion Lake Campground. On the way we passed some scenic overlooks and some great views of Custerstate Park. We saw a directions sign where Hwy 16a east seperates from Hwy 16a west.

Legion Lake Campground

When we found Legion Lake Campground, we saw it was small, and had two spots open, but they were more a camper type parking site.

-Legion Lake Campground restrooms... restrooms

Bismark Lake Campground

So we set off to find Stockade Lake and ran into Bismark Lake Campground, which wasn't on our map. Bismark Campground had spots available but the weeds were tall, and it was $19.00 a night.

Stockade Lake and Campground

The Stockade Campground had no vacancy, so we kept traveling west on Alt 16 and ran into Custer Mountain Campground. Wow, is it scenic there, and they had lots of empty spots, and the restrooms were a log cabin style. We paid for 2 nights for $20.00 per night. We may stay even longer. We did however travel to the East Shore of Stockade Lake to go swimming, and drove around the picnic area. There is also a dock for unloading a boat. Along the drive is a memorial monument, as well as the entrance for Stockade South Campground. All of the campgrounds we saw followed the same procedure as " Choose a spot and the attendant will contact you."

-Stockade Lake East Shore swimming area... swimming area... another view
-East Shore Picnic Area sign... picnic area sign
-View of swim area from other side of Stockade Lake... view of swimming area
-Then we saw a Stockade Lake Bridge Plaque... Stockade Lake Bridge Plaque
-a nice scenic view of Stockade Lake... scenic lake view... here's a view from the bridge
-Stockade Lake picnic area, day use only sign... day use only sign
-a memorial to Anna Donna Tallent, first white women to enter the Black Hills at Custer, SD... memorial... closeup
- picture of the stockade at French Creek... stockade at French Creek