Logistics Help: RV Trip to Badlands/Mt Rushmore

Sturgis the week after some big Cheyenne, WY fest, too.  Timeframe is around the 1st and 2nd week of August.

So, plan accordingly.

A quick google search indicates that there is a place right in Rapid City to rent an RV:

Cruise America/Black Hills RV Center
13620 S Hwy 16
Rapid City, SD
Phone: (605) 341-0726
www.cruiseamerica.com
[email protected]

That being said...Mt Rushmore, the Badlands, and Crazy Horse are all REALLY REALLY close together and near a bajillion hotels and several campgrounds that have cabins and such.  So, take a look at cost efficiency here.  You could get ONE hotel room or stay at ONE campground that is within a 15-60' drive of all those things.

MOST of the people RV'ing it up in Rapid City drive there from somewhere far away.

I lived in Rapid City for 2.5 years.  There's just a TON to do there.

IF you manage to take your trip during I believe the first weekend of June you can actually hike all the way up to the face of Crazy Horse.  They allow it one day per year...it's a Volksmarch.  Usually the same weekend as the Mickelson Trail Marathon and Half Marathon (looking for a half marathon PR?  The race is entirely downhill).

Other must sees:
Prairie Berry Winery.  FREE TASTING!  And tasty stuff!
Wind Cave National Park
Hike to the top of Harney Peak (if you're into that type of thing).  It's the highest elevation point east of the Rockies
Same state Park as Harney Peak has a really really nice lake.  It's the one that was in National Treasure 2.

If you still need more...
Hill City in general would be a fun half day of hanging out.  There's a train ride you can take there that always looked fun.
Devil's Tower...it's about 1.5 hours away from Rapid in Wyoming.  Where they filmed some space movie...dang, I should know this...my dad LOVES that movie and ever since I took them there they call me every time it's on....the aliens land on top of the darn thing.
Sturgis...NOT during the rally (OMG, avoid Rapid City like the PLAGUE during the rally!) is cute.  Can't remember the name of the nearby "pretty drive canyon", but it's worth a drive around.
Ellsworth AFB!  They have a small museum and base tour if you're into airplanes and silos.
Reptile Gardens.  Never went.  I hate snakes.  But they apparently have a LOT of reptiles
Bear Country.  Drive through zoo.  Again, never made it there but I liked it!
Downtown Rapid City...VERY cute mainstreet...one brewery....and a whole bunch of life size statues of presidents (photo op!!!!)
Centennial Trail...100 miles through the Black Hills....yes, you can do chunks of it.  Lots of trailheads.  It starts at Bear Butte...haha...I always called it Bear Butt! You can read about it HERE.
Dinosaur Ridge.  Drive on up, check out the old skool dinosaurs...and the view! 
Lake Pactola, Sheridan Lake (some good short hikes around there) 

There's tons of other "touristy" type stuff to do.  Mini golf, water parks, blah blah blah.

Are you bringing a bike?  I hope so...Freakin' fantabulous riding out there! 

In general the area is VERY busy during the summer (Memorial Day to Labor Day).  So, definitely get reservations!!!!

That is everything I can think of off the top of my noggin'.  Feel free to ask me questions.  I :heart: Rapid City.  BEST KEPT SECRET OF AMERICA!!!!

Jennifer -

Thanks for the info.  Part of my problem is that being 2/3 of the country away I don't have a perspective on which city is right for getting the RV.  (I have a friend in CA and call him wondering about earthquakes and fires that are either half a state away or in his backyard.)

An RV trip for a couple is definitely not cost effective.  I know that.  If I price things out and its really out of hand, we might do the whole trip in KOA Kabins.  The RV trip sure sounds like fun though.

Stuff to do in SD:
I hope to hit Deadwood again and the Kangaroo farm that's just outside of town (they are super soft)
I hope to trick my wife into reptile gardens.  The alligator feeding show was pretty good, and a little exciting when the alligators got "frisky".  It was also fun to see a randomly arrayed group of alligators slowly point to the guy with the bucket of chicken like rays from the sun.  (BTW, in CO, there is an alligator farm near the Great Sand Dunes N.M.)
Ironmountain road

Thanks for the info, and you will probably here from me now and again.
Bruce

I'm not sure how helpful this is...but my dad and I did a very similar trip to this in summer of '04.  I flew into Denver, he met me there and we drove north.  We stopped at Devil's Tower and then headed east to South Dakota.  (Google says its under 7 hours if you go directly from Denver to Rapid City) 

Another thing to look up is group tours.  Things in South Dakota aren't very far from each other...so instead of renting a car or RV for all of the days...let someone else do the driving.  That way you get to enjoy the scenery - which is very diverse! 

I did a quick google search and found this: 

http://www.travelsd.com/Travel-Professionals/Group-Tours/Itineraries  (travelsd.com is probably also a good resource for the trip :-D)

This one looks like fun:

http://www.travelsd.com/Travel-Professionals/Group-Tours/Itineraries/Group/Two-State-National-Parks-Tour

However, besides derailing your whole idea about RVing it :-D  There are a few other attractions I would suggest.  (1) Wall Drug - it's fun to go through the place...it's GINORMOUS!!  (It's in Wall, SD - just north of the east entrance to the Badlands)  And if you want a treat...we had their fresh donuts - NOM!!  And they have 5 cent cup of coffee too!!  Also...another place that is a little further east than that is the Corn Palace.  (It's in Mitchell, SD - it's a unique place too!  The whole building is decorated with corn and every year they re-do it with a different theme...it's free to walk around, too!)

Update us on the trip...have fun!!

Not a chance on the group tours.  I would think about it for a European country where I didn't speak the language and really wanted to make sure I saw all the highlights, or if I were ancient.

I thought about flying into Denver or Chicago and spending the day driving the RV to SD, but that's 1000 miles, which eats up all the free miles and then some.  If we decide to go the car-camping route, then we will fly into the cheapest and relatively closest airport and use those free miles to travel.  The thing is that the RV has a potty but the cabins typically don't. 

I've been to Wall Drug maybe 3 times.  its worth a stop if you are passing by, but I wouldn't consider it a destination.  I have to get to Corn Palace.  I think I might have to sit down with my wife and go through RoadsideAmerica.com and pick some highlights.

re: Sturgis:  I went through when the rally was over, and the place was EMPTY.  There were motorcycle specific shops that were boarded up - like they do all their business in a week and that's it (I'd believe it)  What else is there?