Our third morning in the Black Hills began with a hike. This was to be our main hike of this portion of the trip. It turned out to be a great one. We began in Custer State Park just a few miles from our cabin. The trailhead was at Sylvan Lake, which was used for the final scenes in the movie National Treasure 2 - Book of Secrets. The movie made it appear to be a massive lake located on top of Mount Rushmore, but in reality it is several miles away. It is a beautiful place with giant boulders lying all around the lake. There are several trails that go around the water and plenty of areas to do some bouldering and fishing. We did not go around the lake, but rather started there and then began to climb up to Black Elk Peak, the highest point in South Dakota at 7,244 feet. As you climb the initial slopes, you quickly move away from the lake and onto a ridge that reveals views of the peak and an old fire lookout tower that stands at the top.
Sylvan Lake
Black Elk Peak and its fire tower in the distance as we climb.
About halfway up the 3.5-mile climb you leave Custer State Park and enter into the Black Elk Wilderness of the Black Hills National Forest. The climb gets a bit steeper with more rocks near the top, but the views keep getting better so you don't really notice how hard you are working. In the distance you can see the Cathedral Spires rock formations within Custer State Park. We ran into a local from Rapid City who pointed out a large rectangular mountain top in the distance. She said that was the back of Mount Rushmore. As we climbed higher you could see the shimmering of the cars in the parking lot on the other side of the mountain. After surveying all the mountain tops in the area, that peak was really the only one in the area big enough to carve faces that large. It is really the perfect size and shape for what it was used for.
Cathedral Spires in the distance
There are several small tunnels and overhangs through the rocks near the peak. Stairs were built in by those tending the fire tower in the 1930s.
View from near the top of Black Elk Peak.
Black Elk Peak is a sacred area to the Sioux. We saw many cloths tied around the peak similar to what we saw at Devils Tower.
View to the northeast from Black Elk Peak. The rectangular rock in the middle of the picture is the back of Mount Rushmore. The shiny spot to the right is cars in the parking lot.
Looking northwest off Black Elk Peak.
We finally made it to the fire tower at the very top of the peak. The tower is made from rock that came from the bottom of the mountain so it blends in perfectly with the landscape. The Civilian Conservation Corps built this tower in the 1930s, hauling those rocks almost four miles up to the summit. There is a small pond of captured water at the top of the mountain. Around the pond are a few structures used by those that tended the tower as they watched for forest fires. The peak was originally known as Harney Peak, but was renamed in 2016 in honor of a Sioux holy man who had a spiritual vision there.
One of the structures around the pond, which is green and scummy now. I doubt you would want to drink that water anymore.
Chipmunks were all over the peak. This little guy was not very scared of us.
Looking south from Black Elk Peak. The pointy rocks on the left are the Cathedral Spires. The blocky rock to their right is Little Devils Tower.
The fire lookout tower atop Black Elk Peak.
Inside the tower
Looking down onto the peak from the tower.
Lots of shiny rocks on the Black Elk Peak Trail.
We began our descent after spending about an hour at the summit. We came down Trail 4 which runs next to the Cathedral Spires. There is a trail that goes through the spires, but we did not have the legs to add that portion on if we also wanted to reach the top of Little Devils Tower. We had great views of the spires and then made the turn for another half mile of climbing to the top of Little Devils Tower. The last few hundred meters were scrambling over boulders and up rock slopes. It was well worth the effort with more spectacular views. Dark clouds were starting to roll in and provided an ominous backdrop for Black Elk Peak and the fire tower.
Cathedral Spire from Trail 4
A beautiful stretch of the trail through a mossy forest.
The Cathedral Spires with a portion of the trail visible between the two rock formations.
View south from Little Devils Tower.
Cathedral Spires from the top of Little Devils Tower.
Black Elk Peak and the fire tower from Little Devils Tower.
Heading back down from Little Devils Tower.
A line of quartz running diagonal across this portion of the mountain.
Lower down Trail 4 as we enter back into Custer State Park.
Yellow-Bellied Marmot near Sylvan Lake.
We ended the hike just after lunch. We clocked 8.6 miles with nearly 2,100 feet of climbing. It wasn't the most difficult hike we have ever done, which was nice as we had more on the list to do today. The storm clouds stayed to the north and we continued on with our plans for the day, the next of which was to drive through Custer State Park on Hwy 87 from Sylvan Lake east. This road is also know as Needles Highway and you quickly find out why. There are numerous tall rock formations along the roadside and two single-lane tunnels. The first tunnel is called Needles Eye Tunnel and you can easily see why.
Rock formations along Needles Highway.
The Needles Eye Tunnel.
Heading into Needles Eye Tunnel.
The other side of the tunnel.
It is a beautiful drive, but a bit nerve-racking at times with all the traffic going both directions. It really isn't wide enough for two-way traffic through most of the road. Of course, I immediately wanted to ride this road, but it was super busy at this time of day. It is mostly descending from Sylvan Lake so I would definitely have to ride it this direction to keep from getting run over.
Nearby is Hwy 16A, another scenic road that leaves Custer State Park and heads north toward Mount Rushmore. This road is also called Iron Mountain Road. It starts out with some rolling hills with distant views of Mount Rushmore. We saw a bison in the road as soon as we turned onto it.
Custer State Park traffic
The road then heads over Iron Mountain with the road twisting its way to the summit. There are several hairpins near the top and one tunnel. The tunnel was designed in such a way that it frames a view of Mount Rushmore as you enter. Very cool!
Entering the tunnel on Iron Mountain.
Mount Rushmore through the tunnel.
Mount Rushmore from the top of Iron Mountain.
Of course, you get another great view of Mount Rushmore from the top of Iron Mountain, then a very interesting descent toward Keystone. On this side of the mountain is a road engineering masterpiece. The road twists its way down the mountain with numerous switchbacks of various tightness, two more tunnels framing Mount Rushmore, split lanes and spiraling wooden bridges known as "pigtail bridges." It was a blast to drive and I could not wait to get on it on my bike!
One of the split lane sections. Here, the two sides of traffic separate and the road rolls through the forest like a ribbon.
Another tunnel framing Mount Rushmore.
When we reached the bottom, the road was wet as the storm we had seen near Black Elk Peak had moved through. We still had plenty of time left in the day so we headed over to Reptile Gardens, a place we had seen the previous day when we got lost. It is just past Keystone before you reach Rapid City. The ground in Keystone was white, not from snow, but from hail that came down in the thunderstorm. I was really glad we were behind this storm and didn't get our van beat up on its first real vacation trip.
Reptile Gardens is the largest reptile zoo in the world, but they are more than just reptiles. They also have some impressive displays of insects, birds, spiders, prairie dogs, orchids and bromeliads.
I think we were the only people there that didn't have kids, but we had a blast! If you have time to stop by I would highly recommend it. The Sky Dome is particularly cool. It is the main building inside the gardens. The center of the dome is an open area filled with plants and animals. There are no cages here. We saw numerous lizards, snakes and turtles as we walked through the tropical plants. There were more orchid varieties in that room than I could have ever dreamed were on this earth. There were also many tropical birds living inside the dome, also flying around freely. It was a very cool area!
Lizard in the Sky Dome
Beautiful bird in the dome.
Tropical plants growing everywhere in the dome.
Turtles in the dome
Another lizard
Snake up in this tree attachment.
One of many beautiful orchids in the Sky Dome.
Around the Sky Dome are numerous displays that house everything from giant alligators and crocodiles to super poisonous snakes and even poison dart frogs. It was the first time I ever saw mambas and an anaconda in real life. The biggest crocodile they have is known as Maniac. He's over 16 feet long and weighs more than 1,350 pounds! There's also a giant tortoise pen that extends to the outside of the dome. A few of the larger ones even roam free in the park during the day and you can go pet them and get up-close pictures of the gentle giants. We happened to be next to the tortoises at the end of the day and they went back to their enclosure on their own as soon as the sun began to go down. Two of the giants were over 100 years old!
Checking out Maniac, the giant 16-foot croc.
Shannon petting a giant tortoise.
My turn
More tortoises in an enclosure.
Video: Tortoises heading for the barn
Gila Monster
Poison Dart Frogs
Anaconda
Green Mambas
Giant sea turtle skeleton inside the Sky Dome.
Reptile Gardens also features several shows you can go watch. We first saw the snake show where numerous snakes were brought out in front of the crowd. They started with some tame boas and pythons, then showed us a rattlesnake, a mangrove snake and even a cobra. The cobra stayed inside a glass box and for good reason. They had a hood over the case until his part in the show. As soon as the hood was removed the snake went cray-cray and just struck the glass over and over until the hood was placed back over the box. Talk about aggressive!
Snake shows are how Reptile Gardens got started. The founder, Earl Brockelsby, started the park in 1937. He worked at a nearby attraction in Rapid City where he would lead groups and leave them astounded at the end of their tour by raising up his hat to reveal a rattlesnake coiled on top of his head. Initially, his main attraction at the park was snake handling, mainly with rattlesnakes. He placed the park atop a hill because in those days cars would often overheat on hills and have to stop at the top to cool down. For 10 cents the travelers could see a snake show while they waited for their car to cool. The Sky Dome was built in 1965 and the park has been expanding since. Ownership remains in the family, now led by Earl's sons and nephew.
The other two shows were alligators and birds. Both were really great. The kids in attendance thoroughly enjoyed the birds. Several were brought up to participate in the show, holding out their hands for birds to come land on. The show included some owls and it was amazing to hear how silent an owl can fly. Macaws also made an appearance. Donations were taken at the end by the birds. You could walk up to the bird and it would take a dollar from you and put it into a bucket. Pretty cool way to get people to donate money!
Bird show with a pigeon landing on this little girl's hand.
Military Macaw taking donations from the kids.
The final things we saw were the prairie dog farms and bald eagle enclosure. The prairie dogs had holes everywhere. There was an area you could walk into and see some of their underground chambers, as well as stick your head up into the middle of the enclosure inside a bubble. I was face to face with a prairie dog! The bald eagle was awesome! They are fierce birds. It's no wonder it was picked as a symbol for freedom and our country. I don't know if I have ever looked into the eyes of something so tough!
Prairie Dogs
Staring down the Prairie Dogs.
Getting stared down by the Bald Eagle.
We basically closed down Reptile Gardens, then started back for Custer. We drove back down Iron Mountain Road, having more fun on the twisty road before turning onto Wildlife Loop Rd in Custer State Park. It was getting dark as we turned onto the road so we didn't see a lot of wildlife, just one group of elk in the distance. This area is known for bison, but there were none out at this time of day. One thing we did learn by driving so late was that after about 6pm the roads are empty. It seems everyone clears out and heads for dinner. We noticed this trend when at Yellowstone as well. Apparently, people don't stay out to see the beautiful sunsets. It was clear that the late afternoon would be the best time for me to get out on the road bike. I had hoped to get on some of the local mountain bike trails like Storm Mountain near Keystone, but so far the rain had kept everything too muddy to ride.
Sunset behind Mount Rushmore in the evening light.
Elk on Wildlife Loop Rd.
Next stop was underground at Wind Cave National Park. More on that in the next post!
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