Best Trails in Custer State Park

My favorite hike in the hills!

This was just simply amazing! Good hiking shoes and moderate fitness required*
Just climbing the gulch up and down would be a great shorter version, to the right on the trail. We were beat after doing the whole loop.

lots and lots of poison ivy, sumac and oak on a narrow trail around the river. It is everywhere a long the trail and didn't know until we were there. Hiked it in shorts with kids in shorts and we were very careful not to touch anything. Beautiful view, dont miss the small scramble to summit and see the view. It was an easy hike.

Great hike with stunning views even if it’s cloudy and rainy! The Spires are a must see and will literally make you feel you are in another world. We took our 3 kids (10-13) and they enjoyed it very much. I would rate this hike moderate but be prepared for much cooler temps and wind at the top of Little Devils tower.

Give yourself plenty of time to finish this trail, it is quite an adventure, with lots of climbing threw rocks, the trail itself is one of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen, with waterfalls, nature and flowers. This is as good as it gets!

We started out at Sylvan Lake and turned left climbing up the mountain, leaving the gulch for last. It was amazing! The kids loved it. Was definitely helpful to have good hiking shoes on.

great hike but to many people. get off the trail and go explore

100% worth it. our 5 and 7 year old kids managed it just fine although they were tired by the end. took us about 1.5 hrs up then 45min back down. the views from the top of the rocks were awesome, clouds were rolling in and out which looked very cool

Went counter clockwise and the beginning of the trail was quite strenuous. Once I got through the rock descent then the trail became moderate. Great workout. Would highly recommend.

Even though the ground was covered in snow, it was still incredibly beautiful with amazing rock formations. Got a little lost but that was on me. P.S. I went in the off season.

We were lucky with the weather and it was a tremendous hike. A friendly goat greeted us at the top when we had lunch!

Fun trail crossing the creek on beams many times. Great with the family.

We have done several times but stopped doing the full loop,not that it isn’t an amazing loop, we love the waterfalls and the rock climb portion. So we just hike down into the gulch and then turn around and climb back out. But an amazing hike, highly recommend!!

A great hike with some interesting opportunities for scrambling and access to great adventure climbing.

Good break-in trail to get used to the altitude. Hiking stick is advised

Ok, this is an incredible trail that you need to be prepared for. If you come at this trail from the Sylvan Lake Visitors center (west side of the lake) you can enter the trail and most of the it will be downhill until you get to the last portion of the trail. After hiking 3 miles you'll be looking up a about 200 ft of scramble that is rail assisted. If you take the trail around the east side of the lake you'll come to the entrance of the gulch and go straight down through the rails with plenty of scrambling. Their are pros and cons for each. Just be prepared for the rail/scramble section, it's a blast if you are prepared for it. Loop trails that is well marked with blue arrows. If you have small children make sure you have plenty of snacks for them, they'll need it.

Hiked with a 10 year old, 13 and 14 year old. Perfect hike! The last 1/4 mike was climbing rocks and a little scary but our kids had no fear at all! I am so glad we went and the views on the top are breathtaking! Took about two hours in total. Definitely take this hike!

AMAZING!!!!

Great time! Had four 32oz jugs of water for 3 people and it wasn’t enough! Bring lots of water! Reminder to self again: Even with wife can only take one GSD! Apparently she can’t handle either one on more than a 2 mile hike!

Beautiful trail!! With Tons of little Waterfalls and streams , this trail is a must!

Love it. Very easy beautiful walk.

Trail was hard to follow.

great eye 2 eye with tantanka on trail. buffalo ribs r great over fire pit.

So many trails in one! Great views, dense foliage, rock clambering, elevation changes, and an incredible water section that deserves a spoiler alert before describing - you just have to see and experience it to understand.

Make sure to wear clothes and bring supplies that help you avoid poison ivy though. It's avoidable but would be easy to brush against if you're not careful. Still, so worth it!

We started at the Trail Head on 87. The trail is 1.5 miles in and 1.5 miles back out We took our entire family including a 7 year old boy & 8 year old girl. The hike was slightly strenuous for them but they loved the rock climbing towards the end. Most of the work was in the constant incline of the trail itself, not the rock climb. At one point there was an unmarked Fork in the trail. To the right is the off shoot trail to Cathedral Spires and to the left is the actual trail. You can get some great views and photos of the back of Cathedral spires a little further up the main trail. It's not much further from there. Once at the top, the views are amazing. If you have a drone you can take some great photos from the other side and understand better why it's called Little Devils Tower. (photo's uploaded) We're not fit but not out of shape. Based on my families experience I would say this is an easy to moderate, and worth the hike

Beautiful lake views, fun rocks to climb. Easy hike for all ages.

This is great way for me to get to work from the employee housing.

Level, easy. Nice river crossings. Great for fishing.

If you are a #TRAILGLIDER and are in this area and DON’T glide this path, you are missing out. Not a 5 star ONLY because of the fact that literally anyone active can do this hike. Amazing journey to the top. We named every “milestone” and feature toward the peak. May was the perfect month to see this area due to the constant change in scenery, pace, and weather conditions. A light mist and multiple various cloud appearances made this an Epic day.