Custer State Park: Day One

This is the final segment of my Archived entry for August the 22nd 2009.  

My mom and I departed Crazy Horse just before five.  The sun was still shining bright, amidst a cloudless sky.  From Crazy Horse we headed south about ten minutes before reaching the charming town of Custer, a gateway town to Custer State Park.  The town of Custer is filled with quality restaurants, shops and museums.  Several chain hotels are also in the area for those who don't wish to stay right in the park.  I highly recommend lodging at Custer or Custer S.P. for the whole of your Black Hills stay as the lodging is quality and affordable.  Custer and Custer SP are convenient to all area attractions including Mt. Rushmore, Wind Cave, Hot Springs, Jewel Cave and a day trip to the Badlands.

The town has a population of approximately 1800 people.  It was founded in 1875 after Lt. Colonel George Armstrong Custer's Calvary found trace amounts of gold in the region in 1874 (gold was never abundant in the region however and mining did not yield much profit except in the Deadwood area, north by some fifty miles).

Right outside of town you'll find the entrance to Custer State Park, one of the oldest and best State Parks in America!  A $12 admission fee (good for the week) will gain access to a wide variety of outdoor activities.  It encompasses over 71,000 acres and is filled with wildlife, lakes, mountains history and historical hotels and lodges and campgrounds fit for any budget.  Custer was begun in 1919 and has played hosts to Presidents and Dignitaries.  

It's use of forestry and parkland management is the best in the National and State Park System!  Frankly I'd never heard much of Custer S.P. prior to this trip, but during my three week stay in it's vicinity I fell in love with the land, and the Park's Tourism operations.  Custer is a must vacation for any family!

That being said we came into the park not sure what to expect.  We couldn't afford another night in a motel and kind of splurged on our tourism at Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse (worth the money).  Camping seemed a viable option, however we weren't sure we'd be able to find a camping spot so late in the day.  Luckily Center Lake Campground had lots of spaces available.  So my mom and I drove the Oldsmobile ten or so miles through immaculate greenery, and mountain valleys.  Along the way we passed two lakes: Stockade Lake and Legion Lake.  The latter is the site of a campground and cabin rentals.  Legion also has a store and excellent restaurant.

Center Lake is a first come first serve (no reservations) campground.  It is very large and very peaceful.  We found a spot in the upper loop perfect for setting up camp.  I will admit we are not the most prepared campers.  We have no tent and very little in terms of cooking supplies.  Still our learning curve is quick and our fortitude great.

We picked up conversations with a neighboring camping couple from Texas who gave us the scoop on where the showers were, places to eat and grocery shop and fun things to do in the area.  They also informed us how to pay for the campsite.  

My mom and I unloaded a few items in an effort to reserve our campsite before returning to Custer to purchase some food supplies at the in-town grocery store: The Dakota Mart.  The store isn't super large, but offers a decent selection of food (although they have no deli meat), wine (very key in camping :) and camping supplies such as flashlights and wood for the fire.  

My mom loaded up on food such as chips and salsa, marshmellows, chocolate, juice, cereal, milk ice, etc...we really can't store refrigerated food well, so it looks like we'll do our best to ice down the food and make trips into town when we need to.

After shopping, we headed back into the park.  Hungry for a sit down meal, my mom and I opted to split a steak at The Legion Lake Lodge.  For dessert we indulged in Land O'Lakes Ice Cream - seriously some of the best ice-cream I've EVER had!  

After dinner my mom and I headed back to our campsite and relaxed a bit before night fall.  It starts getting dark around nine and is pitch black by ten.  It is so peaceful, to go to sleep with millions of stars visible overhead and the occasional sound of the wind.  

Here are a few Custer SP links:

Custer - The Town

Custer State Park

Future Archived entries regarding Custer will focus on our adventures in the area and also profile activities and lodging options within the vicinity!