Campground · Custer State Park
A creek-side base camp with two corrals at every site.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Custer Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Custer State Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Custer audio tourRecorded for this place
French Creek Horse Camp: A Base for Riders“You're nearing French Creek Horse Camp on North Lame Johnny Road. This is a creekside base for visitors camping with horses, with two corrals at each site and riding routes from camp.”
Plays as you drive up to French Creek Horse Camp in the Parkwolf Custer Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“We recently toured Badlands, Custer State Park, Mount Rushmore and more! We learned so much from this app as we toured each of these sites. The audio tours are worth the money.”
Guide
French Creek Horse Camp is a developed campground for visitors camping with horses, 2.5 miles east of Blue Bell Lodge on North Lame Johnny Road. It makes sense if you want to stay with your horse and ride from camp into the park; this is not a general overnight campground for non-horse campers.
There are 28 electric sites, each with two corrals, plus three cabins. Flush toilets and showers, drinking water, a vault toilet and a dump station make this a well-serviced camp during the main season. A host and attendant are on site. Horse water is listed at the corrals, but availability at some farther corrals has been reported as inconsistent; check your assigned corral with the host before relying on it.
French Creek became famous after prospectors with Custer's 1874 expedition found gold there, drawing more prospectors into the Black Hills. The broader creek corridor also supports trout, birds, mammals and wildflowers, with bighorn sheep and eagles among the wildlife noted in the surrounding natural area.
Wildlife
993 sightingsBisonMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
91 sightingsWapitiMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
260 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
85 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
259 sightingsBurroMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
711 sightingsPronghornMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Custer. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
Easy2 Hour Trail Loop2.1 mi · 1.5 hr · 0.2 mi awayA compact circuit tucked among the French Creek routes.
ModerateSaw Mill Trail2.2 mi · 1.3 hr · 2.2 mi awayA forested ridge traverse links two mapped Saw Mill sections.
ModerateParker Canyon Loop4.4 mi · 2 hr · 2.2 mi awayA moderate loop links Parker Canyon with a meadow and Centennial Trail.
ModerateHeddy Draw Horse Trail7.1 mi · 4 hr · 2.3 mi awaySteep Black Hills horse trail with a long descent into Heddy Draw.
ModerateGalena Trail6.4 mi · 2.5 hr · 2.4 mi awayA 6.4-mile out-and-back on a marked, shared-use Custer trail.
ModerateBarnes Canyon Trail4.9 mi · 4.5 hr · 2.4 mi awayA 4.9-mile one-way walk through Dry Creek backcountry.
ModerateCalkins Draw Trail4.4 mi · 2.8 hr · 2.4 mi awayA backcountry trail from Barnes Canyon down to French Creek.
ModerateMount Coolidge Trail3.3 mi · 1.8 hr · 2.5 mi awayClimb the fire tower road for Black Hills views and CCC history.
Entrance station · 1.3 mi awayBlue Bell Entrance StationA quick pass checkpoint at the start of Wildlife Loop
Campground · 1.4 mi awayBlue Bell CampgroundPine shade, tent pads, and cabins beside French Creek.
Sight · 1.4 mi awayBlue Bell Lodge StablesA guided horseback ride into French Creek’s pine-lined backcountry.
Lodging · 1.4 mi awayBlue Bell LodgeA Black Hills cabin base with a creekside patio and backcountry cookout.
Store · 1.5 mi awayBlue Bell StoreA handy fuel and supply stop along the Wildlife Loop.
Sight · 2.5 mi awayMount Coolidge Fire TowerClear-day views reach Rushmore, Crazy Horse and the Needles.
Scenic pullout · 2.5 mi awayHeddy Draw OverlookA short walk to a covered shelter and broad Black Hills views.
Sight · 3 mi awayBadger Hole Historic SiteA poet’s furnished cabin with a short, story-filled woodland loop.Parkwolf’s Custer ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
