South Dakota Active and Adventure Travel Guide

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Midwest Active and Adventure States/Provinces

Active and Adventure Travel Destinations

View of the Needles in Custer State Park, South Dakota

The Needles in Custer State Park, South Dakota (Glen Allison/PhotoDisc/Getty)

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10 Questions | 11 Answers

i am looking for an antique store in moonsocket s.d. they have a catalog to order from and do a lot of woodworking things. or could you tell me how else to find them. jan
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I am planning a trip to South Dakota. Where can I go to find campgrounds close to Mnt.Rushmore
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I am planing a trip with my family next year and want to know when would be the best time to go and when is the off season?
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Photos

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U.S. National Parks: Montana, South Dakota and Wyoming

Feature Articles

Wilderness Therapy
outside
Lose (and find) yourself in the great wide open
GORP - Buffalo Gap National Grasslands - Hiking
gorp
Climb Every Mole Hill
outside
The highest points in heartland states like Kansas and Iowa aren't much to look at, but when you knock off seven of them in a four-day, 3,000-mile blitz . . . well, let's just say the little bastards have a way of kicking back.
A National Park for All Seasons
Spring
GORP - Black Hills National Forest,South Dakota - Hiking Veterans Point
gorp

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Practical Advice

Rising to the Challenge
How do you learn to conquer a snow-covered mountain—and your fears? Simple. Go with Wyoming's Exum Mountain Guides, the leaders in mountaineering training.
How to Build a Snow Cave
outside
Ask ten people how to make a snow cave and you'll get ten different answers. Winter-survival expert Greg Davenport, 49, ends the debate. Here's his definitive guide to making a bomber backcountry bunker.
What Andrew McLean, Ski Mountaineer, Brings
outside
McLean, 47, is one of the world's most accomplished backcountry skiers, with first descents on every continent—and more than 100 total. This spring, he's off to Greenland for a few more. Here's what he's packing.
Playing It Safe
Tout, scam, trickery, pickpockets, or downright theft—any one of 'em can turn a trip of a lifetime into a lifelong lesson. Here's how to avoid bad experiences.
Fix a Busted Tire with a Buck
outside
Flatten your bike tire on a thorn and you can patch the inner tube or swap in a new one—no problem. Damage the tire itself (say, by tearing your sidewall on a sharp rock)—much bigger problem. Here's a quick field solution to keep you on the roll.

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GORPtravel Adventure Trips & Guided Tours

Black Hills Multi-sport
The World Outdoors
from $2398, 6 days
Criss-cross the path of General George Armstrong Custer's 1874 Black Hills Expedition on foot, bicycle and horseback on this Black Hills multi-sport...
Canoeing the Upper Missouri River - Lewis and Clark's Wilderness
Big Wild Adventures
from $2300, 8 days
The upper Missouri - A gentle river, flowing mostly through wilderness, little-changed since Lewis & Clark. ...
Black Hills of South Dakota - Mickelson Trail
Timberline Adventures
from $1795, 6 days
The Black Hills of South Dakota stand as sentinels announcing to westbound travelers that they at last have reached the threshold of the Great...
Dakota Dreamin'
Timberline Adventures
from $3400, 12 days
From the Missouri River, as it carves its course through the center of the Dakotas, effectively dividing east from west, to the badlands and rugged...

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Gear

What You Need: Ski Mountaineering
The gear you need to strap on, pack up, wear, and shed to get up—and back down—a serious mountain.
Gear of the Year
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Wilier Triestina Izoard
Women's Road Biking
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Race Upgrades
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KTM Adventure 990
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Expedition Ready

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Fitness

Four Steps to Peak Agility
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Without agility, working out is just bodybuilding.
Cutting-Edge Sports Gear
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The athletic equipment that made the cut for our second annual celebration of the best in design and technology.
Revolutionary New Gear
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Outside's guide to the best new concepts in gear, garb, human performance, and green.
Are the Mountains Killing Your Brain?
outside
Alarming new science shows that thin air can wreck brain cells—at lower altitudes than you'd think. Here's how to protect yourself.
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Attractions

Mount Rushmore National Memorial

southwestern South Dakota, 100 miles from Badlands National Park
Keystone, South Dakota 57751

Description: Four presidential faces carved from a mountain, considered one of the wonders of the world -- go for the nightly lighting ceremony.... Read More

Expert Rated & Recommended

Angostura Recreation Area

10 miles SE of Hot Springs off US Hwy. 385/18
13157 N. Angostura Rd.
Hot Springs, South Dakota 57747

Description: Angostura Reservoir is a recreation area offering opportunities for boating, fishing, and swimming.... Read More

Expert Rated & Recommended

Crazy Horse Memorial

Black Hills of South Dakota on U.S. Highway 16/385 just 17 miles southwest of Mount Rushmore.
12151 Avenue of the Chiefs
Crazy Horse, South Dakota 57730

Description: In 1948, Sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski began carving Crazy Horse Memorial, when Lakota Chief Henry... Read More

Expert Rated & Recommended