Black Elk Peak Trail #4

Black Elk Peak Trail #4 is a strenuous 6.5-mile out-and-back from the Little Devils Tower / Trail #4 access on Needles Highway, south of Sylvan Lake. It is 3.25 miles each way: follow Trail #4 to Norbeck Trail #3, then Trail #9 to the summit fire lookout. Allow about five hours, with more time if you stop at the tower or wait on its narrow stairs. Trail #4 has more ups and downs than the better-known Trail #9 approach. Pick it for a rougher, more varied climb and views toward the Needles, not as an easy shortcut.

Use the signed access south of the lake, shared with the Little Devils Tower trail. The Sylvan Lake Day Use footbridge is the separate Trail #9 start. Starting from the southeast Day Use lot instead adds a connector and mileage; the footbridge there starts Trail #9. Custer State Park requires an entrance license before parking. The route crosses into Black Elk Wilderness, where hikers must register at a major portal and carry the form.

Trail #4 climbs and dips through rocky forest toward the Little Devils Tower and Cathedral Spires area. The tread is rougher and looser than Trail #9, with steeper pitches and intermittent views toward the granite Needles. Turnoffs for Little Devils Tower and Cathedral Spires are side hikes; neither is included in this route or its mileage. At Norbeck Trail #3, continue toward the junction with Trail #9, then follow #9 to the summit.

The numbered intersections with Trails #3, #7 and #9 can be easy to miss, especially on the return. At the Grizzly Creek Trail #7 junction, stay left to remain on Norbeck #3. Pause to read the trail numbers both ways; the route’s mileage depends on staying on the #4-to-#3 connection rather than wandering onto a spur.

Trail #9 reaches the bare granite summit area. Stone steps pass through a narrow cleft, then metal stairs and a spiral staircase climb to the lookout. It is a striking finish, but the stair is narrow; expect to wait for people moving the other way. The final access is much steeper and more confined than the forest trail below.

A wooden crate served as a lookout here in 1911; larger wooden towers followed. The Civilian Conservation Corps built the present stone tower from 1938 to 1940, and fire crews last staffed it in 1967. It joined the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. A small dam built in 1935 held water for the summit complex, with a pump house added in 1938. The tower no longer works as a fire lookout, but its stone walls, stairs and waterworks still make the top more than a viewpoint.

At 7,242 feet, Black Elk Peak is South Dakota’s highest point. From the exposed summit, granite spires and the Needles fill the closer view; on a clear day the panorama reaches across South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana. For a photo, use the tower or a granite edge in the foreground with the spires behind it, so the frame shows both the summit and the wider landscape.

There are no restrooms along the trail, so use facilities before leaving the lake area. Summer thunderstorms can bring hail, strong wind and rain, and the summit is often cooler and windier than the trailhead. Pets are allowed; Custer’s park rule requires a leash no longer than 10 feet. The Sylvan Lake Store is a separate stop back by the lake for snacks and lunch. If you want the most direct, most-traveled summit route instead, Trail #9 begins at the Day Use footbridge and is 3.3 miles one way; it is also strenuous.