USFS · South Dakota, Wyoming

Black Hills National Forest

Black Hills National Forest is located in southwestern South Dakota and northeastern Wyoming, United States. The forest has an area of over 1.25 million acres (5,066 km2) and is managed by the Forest Service. Forest headquarters are located in Custer, South Dakota. There are local ranger district offices in Custer, Rapid City, and Spearfish in South Dakota, and in Sundance, Wyoming.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest1.5 million acresUSFSSDWY44 campgrounds within 10 mi162 Forest Service sites575 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StatesSouth Dakota, Wyoming
Size1.5 million acres (Forest Service administrative boundary (gis_acres))
Forest Service code0203, region 02
Center point44.0067, -103.7941
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 14)

Boundary map

4 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Black Hills National Forest10°20°30°40°50°60°70°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 19.7°F averageFebruary: 20.7°F averageMarch: 28.3°F averageApril: 36.1°F averageMay: 45.1°F averageJune: 55.1°F averageJuly: 61.7°F averageAugust: 59.5°F averageSeptember: 51.3°F averageOctober: 38.8°F averageNovember: 28.2°F averageDecember: 21.3°F averageTemp °F
The line is the average temperature at Rochford 2 WNW, 9 miles from the center point at 5,450 feet, station USC00397227 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

37 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 7 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Bear Gulch
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Bearlodge Campground
Reservable8 sites
FS · Inside
Bearlodge Campground
First-come8 sites
FS · Inside
Beaver Creek Campground
Reservable8 sites
FS · Inside
Beaver Creek Campground
First-come8 sites
FS · Inside
Bismark Lake
Reservable24 sites
FS · Inside
Black Fox Campground
Reservable9 sites
FS · Inside
Black Hills Off-Season Campgrounds
Reservable17 sites
Show 4 more

32 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 162

The Forest Service lists 162 recreation sites in this forest, among them 25 day hikings, 24 trailheads, 22 campgrounds, 21 OHV trails. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 60

The 60 closest to the center point are listed; 102 more are on the Forest Service site.

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 575 named trails in this forest, 1,354 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Snow-1 ↗54.9
Snow-2 ↗45.4
Snow-3 ↗39.9
Centennial on Northern Hills ↗38.1
Centennial on Mystic ↗31.9
Deerfield ↗23
Snow-5 ↗19
Snow-A ↗17.8
Snow-7 ↗16.9
Snow-2k ↗16.7

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas, refreshed September 18, 2026. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 575 trails in Black Hills National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Monument · Adjacent
Jewel Cave National Monument
National Memorial · Adjacent
Mount Rushmore National Memorial
National Park · 3 mi
Wind Cave National Park
National Monument · 5 mi
Devils Tower National Monument
National Register listings within 15 miles · 155 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Black Hills National Forest?

1.5 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Black Hills National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Black Hills National Forest in?

The boundary crosses South Dakota and Wyoming.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Black Hills National Forest?

37 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary, including Bear Gulch, Bearlodge Campground and Bearlodge Campground. 44 in all are within ten miles. Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites; check the forest page for closures.

Source: Where to camp

Where are the trailheads in Black Hills National Forest?

The Forest Service lists 162 recreation sites here, including 25 day hikings, 24 trailheads and 22 campground campgrounds. Each one links to its Forest Service page.

Source: Trailheads and sites

How do I get to Black Hills National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 44.007, -103.794. Jewel Cave National Monument is adjacent. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

How dark is the night sky at Black Hills National Forest?

NASA’s Black Marble night-lights image reads 14 on a 0 to 255 scale at the center point, about as dark as the ground gets.

Source: NASA Black Marble

Which national parks are near Black Hills National Forest?

Jewel Cave National Monument (adjacent), Mount Rushmore National Memorial (adjacent) and Wind Cave National Park (3 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Black Hills National Forest?

155 National Register listings within 15 miles, including Bauer, Maria, Homestead Ranch and Byron, Lewis, House.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons; a state is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area.
  • Description: Black Hills National Forest on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.