Elk Mountain Campground

Elk Mountain Campground straddles the edge of a ponderosa pine forest and open prairie in Wind Cave National Park, offering unique opportunities to view the diverse flora and fauna of the southern Black Hills. Campsites are available in both forested and open environments. Campsites may be reserved all year, reservations may be made 6 months in advance of your stay, and same day reservations are available. This 63-site campground is open all year, with sites available on a reservation basis from May to September 30th. In the off-season, only sites 15 through 35 are available. Sites 17 and 49 are handicap-accessible. Flush toilets and drinking water are available from late spring through early fall, and fees are half-price when water is not available. Ranger programs are offered most nights in the amphitheater during the summer. Two group campsites are able to be reserved 6 months out. Wind Cave National Park has over 30 miles of hiking trails on the surface, with rolling prairie vistas, ponderosa forests and wildlife in its natural environment. Two trails are pet friendly: the Prairie Vista trail leaves from the Visitor Center and the Elk Mountain Trail leaves from the amphitheater at the campground, both approximately 1 mile in length. Kids of all ages can complete the activity book, learn about the park, and take the pledge to earn a Wind Cave Junior Ranger badge. Wind Cave National Park protects two very different worlds — one deep within the earth, the other a sunlit world of many resources. Bison, elk, and other wildlife roam the rolling prairie grasslands and forested hillsides of one of America's oldest national parks. You can still see the largest natural opening into Wind Cave without going on a tour; Lakota oral tradition speaks of how the first bison and humans emerged from this deeply spiritual place.