Horsethief Lake Campground in SD -- Campground & RV Camping
Horsethief Lake Campground in SD
CampgroundUSFS
11 mi from Custer
Official campground & reservations ↗
Road Access
- Road difficulty 1 of 5: an easy drive in.
- Recorded as maintained for passenger-car comfort, paved, pitching to 10%.
Rig fit
- Maximum published vehicle length: 45 ft.
- Longest published RV site: 45 ft.
- Longest published trailer site: 45 ft.
Campground details
Setting
Horsethief Lake Campground sits tucked in a ponderosa and lodgepole pine forest in the Black Hills, two miles from Mount Rushmore National Memorial and adjacent to Horsethief Lake. Located ten miles south of Hill City, South Dakota, the campground features paved roads and offers standard sites for tents, trailers, and RVs, along with several walk-to tent sites. Amenities include picnic tables, campfire rings, vault toilets, and drinking water, with no electric hookups available. Visitors can access the 100-mile George S. Mickelson Trail and nearby hikes up Black Elk Peak.
Getting there: From Hill City, take U.S. Rt. 16/385 south 3 miles to State Rt. 244. Turn left onto Rt. 244. Travel 5.9 miles to campground sign. Turn right at sign into campground.
- Little separation from through roads or other sites here, a 42-site campground with the nearest through road 0.1 miles off.
- The Horse Thief Lake shoreline is 0.1 mi off.
- Elkhorn Mountain stands 1,404 ft above the map pin, 1.7 miles west.
- Estimated night sky: Bortle 2, true dark-sky territory.
Climate averages
October normals 37–57°F, 1.7″ precipitation. Monthly averages, PRISM 1991–2020.
Starlink Radar
Open sky · Terrain & buildings · Tree canopy
Estimated horizon in eight compass directions, using 10 m USGS elevation. Sky clearance 93 of 100.