Parking
Use the marked parking area at Fisherman Flats Trailhead, at the end of unpaved Fisherman Flats Road (CSP 2). The map shows parking, but its capacity is not documented.
Overview
About Fisherman Flats Trail
Why go
- A quick descent to a rock outcrop above French Creek.
Heads up
- The return is steep and rocky.
- Published round-trip distances vary, and the onward creek connection is unverified.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Custer map
Full mapElevation4,209–4,537 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Custer Tour Guide
Your drive to Fisherman Flats Trail, narrated.
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.
Recorded for this trailhead
Fisherman Flats: A Short, Steep Creek Walk0:00 / 0:24
“Fisherman Flats Trailhead is coming up, with a short but steep walk down toward French Creek. Choose this if you'd like to sit on a rock outcrop above the water and don't mind climbing back up.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Custer Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Read the Deer’s Tail
- The Elk You Hear First
- The Burros' Old Job
- A Fuzzy Sign of Spring
- 82 audio storiesacross Custer’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Bison, Wapiti, Bighorn Sheep, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 40 trails, 49 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“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.”
Trail guide
Hiking Fisherman Flats Trail
A short descent, with a climb backFisherman Flats Trail is a shared hiking-and-horse path from its dedicated trailhead down…
Fisherman Flats Trail is a shared hiking-and-horse path from its dedicated trailhead down toward French Creek, ending near a rock outcrop above the water. The park map marks the downhill segment at 0.6 mile; returning the same way makes this about 1.2 miles round trip. Other published out-and-back totals range from about 1 to 1.25 miles, so treat the distance as approximate. Allow 45 minutes to an hour for the steep return and a look at the creek.
Rough footing at the creekThe short path drops over a somewhat steep, rocky grade.
The short path drops over a somewhat steep, rocky grade. The creek-side rock outcrop is the payoff; one route account describes getting wet feet when it tried to cross French Creek. The mapped line ends short of a confirmed connection to the longer French Creek Trail. Treat Fisherman Flats as an out-and-back and do not count on a dry crossing or through-route.
Finding the startStart at Fisherman Flats Trailhead, at the end of unpaved Fisherman Flats Road (CSP 2); the…
Start at Fisherman Flats Trailhead, at the end of unpaved Fisherman Flats Road (CSP 2); the park map marks parking there, though capacity is not documented. Horses also use this trail, so yield to stock. Dogs may come on a leash no longer than 10 feet. Food, drinking water and toilets at this access were not confirmed.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Custer
993 sightingsBisonMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
91 sightingsWapitiMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
258 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
85 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
256 sightingsBurroMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
707 sightingsPronghornMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Custer. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
