Campgrounds near Badlands

its been about 6 years but heart ranch was terrific , a few miles from badlands and a few from rushmore i would go back in a minute.hum now you got me thinking!!!!

Of course he could have meant the Badlands in Attica Indiana. They do have a campground there, or you can camp at Turkey Run. Great place to go visit, been there a couple of times.

rk911 wrote:
assuming you mean the South Dakota badlands there are a couple in Wall, SD. we use and like the Arrow Campground. the other one in town is the Sleepy Hollow Campground. frankly, they're both about the same so you would be fine at either. wall is just outside the NP boundry at the western end of the loop road.

We have stayed at both, and IMHO the Arrow is best avoided. The place is worn out, and we were given a site that was a joke. It was literally too small to put the awning out on a small travel trailer. When I discussed it with the staff, the guy said he was out of room, and offered to let me pull up next to an outbuilding and plug in. I told them I needed my money back, as it was heading out. Suddenly a very nice site became available. A quick check of rvparkreviews.com will confirm that I am not alone on this. The average review for the Arrow is a 5, the average for Sleepyhollow is an 8.

If the OP wants full hook-ups the KOA at Interior is tough to beat. Great staff and it's a beautiful green oasis. For absolute beauty, you can't beat the no hookup sites at the visitors center. I have been there during a full moon, and another time when the town of Interior, off in the distance, was doing fireworks, both were magical evenings in the desert.

desobelman wrote:
I recommend Rafter J Bar Ranch in Hill City. Close to Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse and just a short jaunt to Wall, SD and Badlands.

Very nice park with large, grassy sites and full amneities. Not fancy, but very nice and centrally located.

Happy Trails! :W

Darryl

Wholeheartedly agree that the Rafter J is the best of the best, we have been there at least a dozen times in the last 15 years, and loved it every time. That said, it's 104 miles from the visitors center at Badlands NP, which fails to meet my definition of a "short jaunt". If you take 44 out of Rapid, it's a stunning drive, but short? not so much :)

Oh I used to live in Rapid City SD and I wish I could go back what a beautiful place. I also used to live in Huron SD if you go through I don't know where you are coming from, need to see the abbey in Yankton and the Corn Palace in Mitchell. I thought that was really neat. Wall Drug was cool, it had an 8 foot Bastian Blessings soda fountain.

As said you have the KOA or the park camp and in Wall there are a couple of camps. IMO I would stay in the park or the KOA near the park.

One suggested to stay in the Rapid City or Hill City area IMO that is to far away 74 to 83 miles and maybe 2 to 2.5 hours depending on where in the Black Hills you are staying. (per Google maps)

JimR

We stayed right in the park, had great view for the morning sun and evening sunset. Saw a few animals in the CG at night.

X3 Time your trip so you arrive and drive through the Badlands just before supper time. Drop the toad, drive around and view everything as the sun is going down. Great colors and sunset. Get up the next morning, do some hiking and more driving around as the sun rises. We did it that way unintentionally, but ended up being a great choice. There is no host or gate, it is self serve and cheap.

tohare wrote:
I know you want full hook up..but FYI the national park has great sites, no sewer hook up but power and water. The dump station is easy on your way out. the sites are pull thru, and the scenery is amazing.

x2 Why not be right in the park? Great views where you sit and leave the driving to someone else! We had the great fortune to watch a storm approach and a lovely rainbow right over the rugged scenery.

I recommend Rafter J Bar Ranch in Hill City. Close to Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse and just a short jaunt to Wall, SD and Badlands.

Very nice park with large, grassy sites and full amneities. Not fancy, but very nice and centrally located.

Happy Trails! :W

Darryl