Black Elk Peak Trail 9 from Sylvan Lake Hiking Guide
Trail 9 from Sylvan Lake is the shortest and busiest way up Black Elk Peak, the highest point in South Dakota, where a stone fire lookout sits on the summit rocks. The route starts in Custer State Park, crosses into the Black Elk Wilderness, and climbs steadily through pine and granite to a view over the Needles. Expect company on summer weekends; the Forest Service says solitude on this trail is hard to find.
Permit: Custer State Park requires a park entrance license before you enter or park: $25 per vehicle or $20 per motorcycle, valid 1 to 7 days, sold at the entrance stations or online. Annual licenses are $40 for South Dakota residents and $60 for nonresidents. No permit is needed to day hike in the Black Elk Wilderness.
Route, Distance and Time
AllTrails maps the out-and-back at 6.8 miles with 1,446 feet of gain and suggests three and a half to four hours. Custer State Park lists Trail 9 as 3.3 miles each way, rates it moderate to strenuous and allows two to four hours for the climb alone. Start just across the footbridge that leads to the Sylvan Lake swimming beach. The grade is steady rather than steep for most of the way, with rocky, sometimes muddy footing, and the last stretch climbs stone steps to the lookout.
The Lookout on Top
The Civilian Conservation Corps built the stone tower on the summit between 1938 and 1940, replacing a wooden lookout first placed there in 1911. The Forest Service lists the site as including the stairway, a small dam and a pump house as well as the tower. From the top you look down on Little Devils Tower and the Cathedral Spires and out across the Black Elk Wilderness. Camping is banned within a quarter mile of the summit and inside the tower.
Wilderness Rules and Dogs
Once you pass the wilderness boundary, Black Hills National Forest rules apply: groups are capped at 25 people and animals combined, bikes, strollers and carts are prohibited, switchback shortcutting is banned and open fires are not allowed outside designated sites. Dogs are welcome, but inside the state park they must be on a leash no longer than 10 feet, and in the wilderness they must be leashed or under strict voice control. Since you start in the park, plan on keeping the leash on.
Weather and Downed Trees
The park warns that summer thunderstorms on the peak bring hail, strong wind and rain, and that the summit is likely to be windy and cooler than the lake, so carry an extra layer. There are no restrooms or water on the trail; the park suggests at least a quart of water per person. The Forest Service keeps a standing caution for the wilderness because trees can fall without warning and storms can drop new ones across trails after the early-summer clearing.
License, Parking and Crowds
You need a Custer State Park entrance license to park at Sylvan Lake, $25 per vehicle for up to seven days, bought at an entrance station or online. The Sylvan Lake lot is the most used trailhead in the wilderness, so arrive early on summer and fall weekends. If it is full, Trail 4, which the park lists at 3.5 miles one way, reaches the summit from the Little Devils Tower trailhead on the Needles Highway.
Hiking tips for Black Elk Peak Trail 9 from Sylvan Lake
- Buy the Custer State Park license at an entrance station or online before you park at Sylvan Lake.
- Pack a wind layer even on a warm day; the lookout is exposed.
- Turn around early if thunderheads build over the Needles in the afternoon.
- Watch the junctions with Trails 3, 4 and 7 on the way down; the park says they are easy to miss.
- Bring all the water you need; there is none on the route.
Nearby trails to explore
- Little Devils Tower Trail
- Sunday Gulch Trail
- Cathedral Spires Trail
Hike this trail with TrailMates
Black Elk Peak is a classic first summit in the Black Hills and better with a partner on the steep stretches. Use TrailMates to find hikers in the Black Hills heading up Trail 9. Download the TrailMates app to connect.