Black hills need help with priorities

We are arriving in Hill City this coming Saturday afternoon/evening after visiting the badlands. That evening we are hoping to go to Mt. Rushmore. We are a group of seven, me, my dh, 12 yo, 8 yo, 5 yo, and my in-laws in their late 70s. Sunday morning I have booked the children in the palentoligist program at the mammoth site. The rest of that day I think we are going to check out Custar State park and needles highway. We also have part of Monday in the area before moving on to Cheyenne for Frontier days.

I wanted to go Reptile Gardens but now I%26#39;m thinking we have a lot of great zoos at home and maybe this shouldn%26#39;t be a priority. Other things we are considering is Jewel or wind cave (but concerned about the stairs for my FIL, he had knee replacement surgery earlier this year) or doing the wild mustang santuary? Any thing else that should jump to the top of our agenda.

I%26#39;m thinking we could have easily spent more time in this area but we have a big trip planned and could only alot this much time for here.

Heidi

Black hills need help with priorities

Check out the lunch buffet at State Game Lodge at Custer State Park- it is great. Kids might also like panning for gold. There are several places to do this. Go to the SD travel website and they are listed.

Black hills need help with priorities

Thank you for the tip for lunch at the State game lodge. It looks like a great option.

Heidi

Jewel Cave does have a lot of stairs, the tour takes it slow, but it might be too much for FIL. The tour we took of Wind Cave did not have too many stairs at all. Read the descriptions on www.nps.gov

We had a great few hours gold panning in Hill City at Wade%26#39;s Gold Mill. My son was 9 and loved it.

Have fun.

Hi Heidi,

As Casa said, Jewel Cave does have lots of steps, but they are taken quite slow, and the steps are of good quality. Wind Cave also has steps involved (somewhat less than Jewel) and is more closed in, so if anyone has claustrophobia, that should be a consideration in taking the tour. One of our tour members had to leave..starting having a panic attack. We were fine..didn%26#39;nt mind it all, but everyone has his/her own comfort level. Jewel Cave also has a very short tour (I think it%26#39;s 20 minutes),and I am sure that would be doable for your group.

The Wild Horse Sanctuary is really great, but for a large group like yours, it will be expensive. Tours are about $50 per person. It really is a great tour..the guides are excellent and provide much insight on the area and habits of the horses, but it could break the bank and eat into a lot of your time. Tours take about 2 hours. If that doesn%26#39;t concern you, I%26#39;d recommend taking the tour.

As for Reptile Gardens, I really liked it. Our daughter was 8 when we visited,and it was a family favorite. I would call it ';roadside America'; at its finest! It is a zoo, but the shows are what made it interesting. There%26#39;s a section where you can get up close to tortoise, and a prairie dog town where you can climb up into a glass dome and feel close to these animals. The chicken that plays tic tac toe is hysterical...you can%26#39;t beat that chicken!!! Silly..but pure fun!

All that being said, with your limited time here, you might rather focus on Custer (drive the Wildlife Loop if you can), Rushmore (see it during daylight also if possible) and maybe one of the caves. Besides the Badlands, these are really the must sees of the region.

Have fun planning.

I will be in Hill City and Custer on a Sunday when Alpine Inn is closed. We had wanted to eat there, but this buffet sounds like a good idea for Sunday afternoon! Thanks!! Where is the State Game Lodge?

The State Game Lodge is in Custer State Park, on US16a, toward the eastern side of the park, near the visitors center.