# Road trips in South Dakota > 4 road trips and 16 hand-picked places in South Dakota, with routes, stops and practical tips for driving and camping. Source: https://camping-spirit.com/roadtrips/south-dakota/ 4 road trips and 16 hand-picked places in South Dakota, with routes, stops and practical tips for driving and camping. ## Road trips through South Dakota - [Up the Missouri River through South Dakota](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b9-missouri-river-sd/): From Sioux Falls to the Missouri at Chamberlain, then north past the state capital and Oahe Dam to the Sitting Bull Monument above the river. - [Southern Black Hills: Crazy Horse, the Needles and Wind Cave](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b19-southern-black-hills/): The Crazy Horse carving, crystal caves, granite spires on the Needles Highway, bison in Custer State Park and the mammoth dig at Hot Springs. - [Badlands and the Black Hills with kids](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/black-hills/): A corn-covered arena, free ice water, bison jams and four presidents in granite. - [Deadwood and Spearfish Canyon](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/northern-black-hills/): The Wild West town of Deadwood and a canyon road with waterfalls in the northern Black Hills. ## Places worth the detour in South Dakota - [Badlands National Park](https://camping-spirit.com/places/badlands/): Striped spires and prairie where bison graze. The Badlands Loop Road (SD-240) is an easy detour off I-90. - [Dignity](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b9-dignity-statue/): A 50-foot stainless-steel statue of a Native woman holding a star quilt, standing at an I-90 rest area above the Missouri River. Best in late light. - [Crazy Horse Memorial](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b19-crazy-horse/): An unfinished mountain carving of the Lakota leader Crazy Horse, in progress since 1948, with a large Native American museum and cultural center. An entry fee is charged; a nightly laser show runs in summer. - [Sylvan Lake](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b19-sylvan-lake/): A small reservoir framed by granite boulders at the north end of the Needles Highway in Custer State Park. A short loop trail circles the lake, and the Black Elk Peak trail starts here; a park pass is required. - [Custer State Park Wildlife Loop](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b19-custer-sp/): A 29 km loop road through grassland and pine hills with one of the largest public bison herds in the country, plus pronghorn and the begging burros. Drive it early or late in the day; a park pass is required. - [Mount Rushmore National Memorial](https://camping-spirit.com/places/rushmore/): Four presidents carved into Black Hills granite between 1927 and 1941. The Presidential Trail takes you closer. - [Wall Drug](https://camping-spirit.com/places/wall-drug/): Free ice water brought travelers here in 1936. Now a block-long maze of shops with an animatronic T. rex and 5-cent coffee. - [Corn Palace](https://camping-spirit.com/places/corn-palace/): An arena covered in murals made of thousands of ears of colored corn. The design changes every year. - [Cedar Pass Campground](https://camping-spirit.com/places/cg-cedar-pass/): Picnic shelters facing the Badlands wall, with some of the darkest skies in the Midwest for stargazing. - [Spearfish Canyon](https://camping-spirit.com/places/spearfish-canyon/): A scenic byway through limestone cliffs and waterfalls in the northern Black Hills. - [Oahe Dam](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b9-oahe-dam/): A huge rolled-earth dam holding back Lake Oahe, one of the largest reservoirs in the country. The visitor center and overlook show the scale. - [Sitting Bull Monument](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b9-sitting-bull-monument/): A granite bust of the Lakota leader on a bluff above the Missouri, west of Mobridge. The Sacagawea monument is nearby. - [Jewel Cave National Monument](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b19-jewel-cave/): One of the longest caves in the world, lined with calcite crystals. Tours sell out in summer, so reserve online; the Scenic Tour has hundreds of stairs, and the visitor center is off US-16 west of Custer. - [Needles Highway and Needles Eye Tunnel](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b19-needles-eye/): SD-87 twists 23 km through granite spires and three one-lane tunnels, the narrowest about 2.5 m wide at the Needles Eye. Closed in winter; check tunnel sizes before taking an RV or large truck. - [Wind Cave National Park](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b19-wind-cave/): A cave famous for rare boxwork formations lies under prairie with bison and prairie dog towns. Cave tours start at the visitor center on US-385 and sell out in summer; some can be booked online, the rest are sold on the day. - [The Mammoth Site](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b19-mammoth-site/): An active paleontology dig inside a building over an ancient sinkhole, where more than 60 mammoths have been found in place. Guided tours run all year; kids can join a simulated dig in summer. ## FAQs **What are the best road trips in South Dakota?** Popular routes include Up the Missouri River through South Dakota, Southern Black Hills: Crazy Horse, the Needles and Wind Cave, Badlands and the Black Hills with kids and Deadwood and Spearfish Canyon. CampingSpirit has 4 trip guides that pass through South Dakota, each with a stop-by-stop itinerary and a route map. **Which places in South Dakota are worth a detour?** Our editors recommend Badlands National Park, Dignity, Crazy Horse Memorial, Sylvan Lake and Custer State Park Wildlife Loop.