The Black Hills area roughly describes an oval—120 miles [193.1 kilometers] north to south and 50 miles [80.5 kilometers] west to east—with the highest, and oldest, rocks in the center. This splendid wilderness of rocky, pine-clad slopes and rolling grasslands, whose gateway is Rapid City, lies largely within Black Hills National Forest.
To the Indians the Paha Sapa, or Black Hills, were a sacred place. An 1874 expedition led by Lt. Col. George A. Custer sent word of gold in the hills, and the rush was on. By the 1840s trappers and traders had infiltrated the region, and the discovery of gold brought a wave of white settlers. Remnants of that brief, intense Wild West of the late 19th century still survive. Today, though altered, the Black Hills continue to give of their richness and beauty. The wooded mountains, robust waterfalls, and swift streams, present a stark contrast to the desolate, rugged landscape of the Badlands.
Mount Rushmore National Monument was carved by sculptor Gutzon Borglum in 7 years, and more than 300 workers toiled 14 years to transform a Black Hills mountain into the 60-foot-tall [18.3-meter-tall] granite faces of four American Presidents. The inspiring monument was finished on the eve of America’s entry into World War II.
The Badlands National Park extends for a hundred miles [160.9 kilometers] through the dry plains of South Dakota—a huge natural barrier ridging the landscape, sculptured into fantastic pinnacles and tortuous gullies by the forces of water. Those who pass through the upper prarier to the south, however, can’t miss it; it rises above them like a city skyline in ruins, petrified.
Another popular attraction in the area includes Devils Tower National Monument, the first national monument established by Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. This 865-foot [263.7-meter] column of hardened magma serves as a mecca for technical rock-climbers.
The best times to visit are fall and spring. Summer temperatures commonly exceed 100°F [37.8°C], and winter winds are frigid and storms common.
Rapid City Convention & Visitors Bureau
P.O. Box 747
Rapid City, SD 57709
Phone: +1 605 343 1744 OR 800 487 3223
Fax: +1 605 348 9217
Black Hills, Badlands, and Lakes Association
900 Jackson Blvd.
Rapid City, SD 57702
Phone: +1 605 341 1462
Ffax: +1 605 341 4614
