Incentive money trip-help!

We are using our government incentive money checks to take a US trip. We plan on a week plus a little in the Badlands area the second week of June.

So I need to pull this together fast. We are driving. Two nature lovers/artists/photographers.

Info appreciated esp. local food, accommodations with kitchen, rockhounding info. Also recommendations about Hot Springs area baths/pools.

Welcoming all suggestions!

Thanks!

Incentive money trip-help!

There is plenty you can do. As far as being photographers you absolutely must drive through Spearfish Canyon. It is one of the most beautiful drives. I would also recommend driving HWY 385 from Deadwood through Custer/Hill City area. Spearfish is in the northern hills so if you are there you should stop in Belle Fourche which is the geographic Center of the Nation and has a great new monument and museum. The museum is the Tri-State Museum. Rock hounding I am not too sure about but there is a Paleontologist in Belle Fourche who takes tourists out on dinosaur digs. Devils tower is also about a 45 minute drive and is worthwhile if you haven%26#39;t seen it before.

You really should go see Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse monuments. The drives through the hills are geeat. There are also plenty of great museums in the area: Adams House, Black Hills Museum of Natural History, Journey Museum to name a few.

Incentive money trip-help!

Lots of motels and cabins with kitchen facilities in the Black Hills. Try BlackHillsBadlands.com for searching. Hot Springs has Evans Plunge, a hot spring fed pool/water-park/health club and the Mammoth Site, a working archaeological dig at the site of an ancient tar pit.

Rock-hounding is allowed in the Black Hills National Forest as long as it is just for personal use, not commercial and not huge amounts. Details on Black Hills National Forest website.

I agree with previous advice that you should see Spearfish Canyon.

Lots of other things to see in the Black Hills. Check out www.travelsd.com They have a good travel guide which, I think, you can look at on-line. When you get into South Dakota, look for it in racks of tourist info.

Great ideas so far. Custer State Park will provide lots of photo ops, including Sylvan Lake, the Wildlife Loop, Needles Hwy, %26amp; Iron Mountain Road. You will also find plenty of great shots in the Badlands.

You can easily spend 2 days in Custer depending on your interests.

If you enjoy caves, Wind %26amp; Jewel Caves are must sees, imo. Wind Cave National Park joins the Wildlife Loop in Custer SP.

For dining, I would recommend the Alpine Inn in Hill City. They have German dining at lunch and only filet mignon at dinner time. Dinner time gets crowded, so plan to arrive for an early dinner...around 5. We also enjoyed the Blue Bell Lodge in Custer State Park. The bison burgers/meatloaf was delicious. There are other restaurants I have seen recommended on this site, especially by the local expert, Accomodator. You might want to review other posts. I think a lot of these restaurants are in Rapid City.

Thank you to everyone who responded. Lots of good ideas!

Our current schedule:

1 night De Smet (Laura Ingalls Wilder sites)

2 nights Wall (Badlands)

4 nights undetermined (Keystone? Hot Springs? Custer?)

I know there is so much to see we can%26#39;t do it all in a week. But it will give us an overview of the area.

wanderkat

The most popular places to stay are Keystone, Custer, and Hill City. I would not stay in Hot Springs, as it is not centrally located to the other major Black Hills attractions. It is an easy day trip from any of the three major areas, though. Hot Springs is about 50 miles from Keystone, if I remember correctly.

When we visited,we chose to stay in Keystone. It is rather touristy, but you will probably be too busy to spend too much in town. We stayed at the Roosevelt Inn, which we liked very much. I have a review on this site. Hill City is less touristy and has a main street with various shops. The Holiday Inn Express gets good reviews on this site. Custer might be the best bet for you, as it%26#39;s close to the state park. There are cabins inside the park, and the town of Custer has several hotels/motels, from chains to the ';mom and pop style.

If you have any more questions, please feel free to ask. You will be able to see quite a bit of the area in your time frame.

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