Blackhills, SD

[dontaknow]

We went to the Blackhills in South Dakota for our first extended trip.  We camped at a NFS campground at Deerfield Reservoir.  It is fairly far away from the main tourist attractions so the campground was only 25% full.  We also stayed at a delightful free NFS campground in NW South Dakota on the way home to western North Dakota. 

We visited Mt Rushmore, Jewel Cave NP, Crazy Horse, hiked the flume trail, and climbed up bear butte.  If you plan to go to jewel cave, get there early.  The cave tour tickets were sold out by 11.

On previous weekend trips (1000 miles total) we towed the 14DB without a WDH and trailer sway was never an issue even in 40+ mph wind gusts.  However when the trailer was fully loaded and the fresh water tank half full, the highlander's hood pointed up a tad and porpoising and bouncing became a problem.  Before the trip to the blackhills, I installed the Andersen WDH.  One of the tension chain bolts had defective threads, but Andersen sent a free replacement immediately.   The WDH seems to have solved the towing problems and the ride noticeably improved .  On the way to the Blackhills, I set the tension at five threads, but the that was too rigid and the hitch made some noise.  On the way home, I adjusted the tension to four threads and the ride improved even more and the noise went away.  The highlander handled the hills fine but struggled some on the steeper grades.  Our 2000 ford focus is on the downhill slide to the crusher and a midsize truck in the plans as a replacement.

I was able to keep the battery charged with a 120W portable solar panel kit. I hooked it up in the morning and the battery was charged back to 90% after an hour of direct sunlight. 

[leslie]

We want to stop at Mt. Rushmore on our trek west to Fort Stevens. Is there a NFS campground near Mt. Rushmore?

[sandyu]

If your taking a trip out west, you must get the AllStays app. It will answer all camping/rv questions. It's expensive for an app, but is well worth it.

There are lots of campgrounds in the Black Hills. One is called "Grizzly Bear Campground". Sounds right up your alley.

[pinstriper]

If your taking a trip out west, you must get the AllStays app. It will answer all camping/rv questions. It's expensive for an app, but is well worth it.

There are lots of campgrounds in the Black Hills. One is called "Grizzly Bear Campground". Sounds right up your alley.

Well played, sir.

[dontaknow]

The nearest NFS campground to Mt Rushmore is at Horsethief Lake.  Oreville NFS campground is a little further away but offers greater privacy between sites.  Both campgrounds are close to the highway, so you might hear traffic.  As you get further away from Mt. Rushmore campground reservations are less critical. 

Have a fun trip to the rally.