mosquitoes?

Just wondering how much mosquitoe spray to bring out to SD. We%26#39;ll be camping for 5 nights. Are they as bad there as they are in Manitoba?

mosquitoes?

Where in SD?

In the Black Hills, not much. A couple cans of spray for the whole group will be enough for the week.

Eastern SD: Lots.

mosquitoes?

Hi, Sorry after i posted i realized i was%26#39;t too clear. we are going to be camping near hill city and doing all the touristy attractions.

can%26#39;t wait. any good information on what to do would be appreciated. We will have five days to do it in. Starting from hill city which way should we begin?

Never been bothered by mosquitoes in over 30 years of traveling there. You won%26#39;t need much spray. You can spend a day going in each direction. It it beautiful to do the Needles Hwy, Custer State Park (early or later in the day), Iron Mountain Road, the Monuments, Keystone and back through Rapid City (hwy 44 back towards Hill City. One day maybe some caves near Custer. You can take a day trip through Spearfish Canyon and up through Belle Fourche and Alladin to Devil%26#39;s Tower and still have plenty of time left over for a stop in Deadwood on the way back. You can head through Rapid City and take a trip through the badlands stopping in Wall and back through Rapid City. Have a great time.

Coyote,

You received some good suggestions from Lolly. Give us an idea of your interests and make-up of your party (i.e. do you have children or seniors coming?), and we can probably help more.

We didn%26#39;t have much problem with mosquitoes, but watch out for poison ivy! Our daughter got a nasty case of it near the end of our trip.

Thanks Lolly and sirtravelplanner,

We are a party of three. Myself and the hubby ( 40somethings) and our 13 year old daughter.

We love the cultural piece of anything. Really want to see the native american sites, really want to do a chuckwagon dinner/show evening. looking forward to Deadwood ( what time is the shoot out reinactment?)

I%26#39;m trying to get an itinerary together so that we%26#39;re not stuck for things to do.

Thanks for any input.

Tracy

Hi Tracy,

With 5 days, you will definitely have plenty to do. It%26#39;s really surprising to see all the attractions concentrated in a small area. Just to give you an idea, we spent 11 days here and felt we never ran out of things to do.

For your interest in native American history, I%26#39;d definitely include a stop to Crazy Horse. Some people just drive by, but the museum is worth seeing there, as not only does it tell the history of the monument, but there are also some wonderful native American exhibits as well.

Hill City will be a nice base for you..central to all attractions. Here%26#39;s a list of must sees in the area, some of which have already been touched upon on other posts on this thread.

*Mt Rushmore (day and night)

*Crazy Horse (they also have a laser show at night--I haven%26#39;t seen it, but I have heard positive feedback

*Badlands Nat. Park--plus a brief stop at Wall Drug..your 13 y-o will probably like it. It%26#39;s a souvenir paradise. This could be a nice day trip

*Devil%26#39;s Tower/Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway/Deadwood (Also a good daytrip)

*Custer State Park, including Sylvan Lake, Iron Mountain Rd, Needles Hwy %26amp; Wildlife Loop--some people spend only a day here, but some could literally spend days. Lots to see.

*Jewel Cave

*Wind Cave

Your might also enjoy Reptile Gardens %26amp; Bear Country right outside Rapid City on Rt 16. Our daughter enjoyed both, but she was 8 when we visited. I personally enjoyed Reptile Gardens a bit more than Bear Country. They have some very interesting shows and exhibits.

There are many privately owned caves if that is your thing. Panning for gold could be enjoyable. I believe Casa Azul has mentioned a place in Hill City that is good for this. You might want to research some of her posts on here for the name. You also have the Mammoth Site and Wild Horse Sanctuary south of Hill City in Hot Springs.

If you haven%26#39;t done so, be sure to order a South Dakota travel guide (travelsd.com) for a complete list of attractions.

While in Hill City, be sure to check out the Alpine Inn for either lunch or dinner. They only serve filet at dinner, so if that%26#39;s not your taste, try it for lunch for German fare and some other American stand-bys. The desserts are to die for, and the prices are reasonable. The Alpine is closed on Sundays and fills up quickly, so be sure to arrive early (like 5 p.m.) to avoid a long wait.

Please let us know if we can help in any other way.

Have a good trip.

The place we panned for gold was in Hill City, called Wade%26#39;s Gold Mill. My son got lessons and even found a couple flakes of gold!

We enjoyed the tour of Jewel Cave, Wind Cave tour was ok.

Someplace fun and very kitschy is Flintstones Bedrock City in Custer SD.

We were there in mid July and I do not remember mosquitoes. They sell the stuff at stores, so even if you run out, the grocery store will have more.

Have a great trip.

Wow

Thank you all for the great advice. It is all appreciated!

We will be out there mid august and can hardly wait.

I will post a review when i get home!

Thanks again,

Tracy

You are very welcome, Tracy. You have picked a great time to visit. We went about the same time as you two years ago and found crowds to be quite light and temps comfortable. We even had a couple of cool rainy days.

We will look forward to your report when you return.

Casa....Thanks so much for posting Wade%26#39;s Gold Mill in Hill City again!! :)