Feeding Feral Burros, Custer State Park, & Sylvan Lake, SD

Have you ever been to a place that gave you the “Best Day Ever!” feeling? Custer State Park was that place for our whole family. We saw lots of different kinds of wild animals, drove through amazing places, and hiked incredible trails.

Custer State Park is in the Black Hills, on the western side of South Dakota. It is over 71,000 acres of natural paradise. We paid $25 for our vehicle to spend the day. You can find more information about the entrance fees here: https://gfp.sd.gov/parks/detail/custer-state-park/

The first thing we did was find a Visitor Center. The Peter Norbeck Outdoor Education Center seemed like a great place to start and is even on the National Register of Historic Places. It was a very neat place to explore. We enjoyed seeing the live snakes, kid-friendly exhibits, and Juliana had a blast climbing in the prairie dog burrow. We looked into the Junior Naturalist Program (similar to the Junior Ranger program at national parks), but the requirements were a bit much for us to do in the day we had, so we decided to just wing it and see the park on our own.

Where to next? Wildlife Loop Road. The Ranger at the gate had mentioned there might be some bison in the area, so we decided to check it out. She was so right! It was absolutely incredible!!! There had to be over one hundred just in the group we found. These bison were not shy, and they were all over the place. There were bison rolling in the dirt and walking on the road. The cows were resting on the ground or nursing their calves. The calves were adorable and it was fun to watch them play around and head-butt the grown bison.

Please note that we did NOT get out of the car near the bison, nor did we attempt to touch them. It is not safe to do so. They are wild animals and can get aggressive. The pictures and videos we took were from the safety of our vehicle.

Some cool history that we learned: The 1300+ bison in the park today started with just 36 bison that were purchased back in 1914. They obviously thrive at Custer State Park, and around 400 calves are born there each year.

After we drove past the bison, we saw some beautiful antelope. Although they were not as close to the road as the bison, we were able to watch them feed and frolic.

Further on down the road, we saw some prairie dogs! They were so cute and fun to watch. It’s so neat to see them pop in and out of their holes. My favorite is when they stand up straight. The prairie dogs at Custer S.P. looked like they were pretty well fed and were a bit chunkier than the ones we saw in other areas of South Dakota.

Then we saw what became our favorite part of the day, the burros. These begging burros are descendants from the pack animals that were used to transport people to Black Elk Peak from Sylvan Lake. When they were no longer needed, they were released into Custer State Park. They now roam free and are feral.

While staying at the hotel, some other guests mentioned feeding the burros, but I wasn’t sure if it was allowed. I did ask the park ranger if we could feed them some apples, and she said we could. They are very friendly and enjoyed the apples we brought. They really love carrots, too. We were so excited to see the burros, especially the calf born in the spring. Patches was an adorable foal that was just the sweetest thing.

All of the burros had such unique personalities. I had one that stuck its head in my window and didn’t want to leave. It kept nuzzling me and licking my hands. Juliana loved Patches because it was more timid. Some of the burros were a bit aggressive in their hunt for food. Luke had fun watching the burros lick the side of the car, and Joe had one by him that smiled for the camera with him. They were all so fun! It was amazing!

It took a lot to get us to leave the burros, but it was time to move on. As we drove through more winding roads, we came to a picnic area called Hole In Wall. It really is exactly as described! We did some exploring in the hole/cave and it was larger that it looked from the outside. The trail was also a nice place to hike, so we took a break from the car and enjoyed the area.

Not long after we were back on the road, we saw some bighorn sheep. We found 2 adults and a lamb (baby). They were not easy to see, but if you look closely in the photos below, there is a a ewe (female) with smaller horns and a white and brown coat perched on a rock. To the right of it, there is the side of another bighorn that is mostly brown with some white in between 2 trees. Nestled between the trees at the bottom is a lamb laying down.

Wildlife Loop Road was probably one of the best roads for animal watching that we have been on. The drive is also full of hills and trees. It’s a gorgeous park that is definitely worth seeing.

Did you know that Sylvan Lake is part of Custer State Park? Even though it’s not in the main portion of the park, a beautiful drive on Needles Highway will take you to a gorgeous lake with amazing views. The drive itself is an incredible experience. On hairpin curves, we saw towering granite needles all around us. The photo on the below right is when we were driving through Needles Eye Tunnel. This is the most narrow of the tunnels and is 8′ wide and 9’9″ tall.

Sylvan Lake was absolutely stunning. The view of the lake from the shore with the Harney Peak Granite igneous rocks was unbelievable. We all enjoyed the hike through the rocks, and climbed out to explore. There are a few different trails you can hike around Sylvan Lake, so there’s plenty of opportunity to enjoy the unique outcroppings and the beauty of the area.

If Custer State Park is on your travel bucket list, here are some things to remember:

The entrance fee for Custer State Park is $25/vehicle and is good for up to 7 days. More entrance fee info here: https://gfp.sd.gov/parks/detail/custer-state-park/
The entrance fee also covers admission to Sylvan Lake.
The park rangers are helpful and can guide you to the best places to view the wildlife.
Wildlife Loop Road was amazing to view the wild animals when we were there.
Do not pet or feed the bison. They are wild and can be dangerous. Stay safe. We stayed in the car and were still able to get a chance to see them up close.
Bring carrots or apples for the burros. Be patient and expect a bit of a traffic jam near them. It’s worth the wait.😊
Binoculars are very helpful for viewing the animals. Not all of them will come near the road and prefer to stay away from people.
If time allows, the drive on Needles Highway to Sylvan Lake is worth it.

If you would like to see our full Custer State Park Vlog, including videos of the bison, burros, and beauty of the park, please either click the photo below or the link here: Exploring Custer State Park & Sylvan Lake, South Dakota

We hope you enjoyed traveling along with us!

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We’ve also shared videos on our YouTube channel to complement this post and bring the experience to life.

Thanks so much for traveling with us, and stay tuned for more adventures with Traveling with the Trapps.

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