#5 of 10 sights in Wind Cave
Sight · Wind Cave National Park
One road climbs over its own path, then curls back underneath.
Overview
Pigtail Bridge is a historic loop bridge on SD 87, one of Wind Cave's main paved roads. The highway crosses above its own route, curves around, then slips back underneath the bridge. You can take in the whole idea in one pass through; it earns a short stop if unusual road engineering interests you.
Parkwolf’s verdictWhy stop hereMap
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Wind Cave Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Wind Cave National 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 place
Pigtail Bridge“You're approaching Pigtail Bridge, where the highway loops around and passes beneath its own bridge. The shape is the attraction: follow the curling road and you'll see how the crossing fits together.”
Plays as you drive up to Pigtail Bridge in the Parkwolf Wind Cave Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
For the nearby Schist geology stop, use the small pullout on the right immediately after driving beneath the bridge. The rock outcrop is on the left side of the curve, and traffic still uses the road, so stay clear of the travel lane. For a photo, include both the bridge and the curling pavement below it; without the bend, it looks like an ordinary crossing.
The outcrop beside the pullout is schist, a mica-rich metamorphic rock from the Precambrian core of the Black Hills. Look for its thin, shiny layers, called foliation, and small folds. Those layers record the intense pressure that changed the rock deep underground.
The bridge is also known as Pig Tail Bridge and has been a nationally listed historic structure since 1995. Its historic record identifies it as SD 87 looping over SD 87 and credits the South Dakota Highway Department. Sources differ on the construction year, so the bridge is easier to place by its shape than by a date.
Wildlife
600 sightingsBisonMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
59 sightingsElkMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
258 sightingsPronghornMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
14 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
128 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
26 sightingsGolden EagleMost seen around noonSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Wind Cave. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateLookout Point Trail and Centennial Trail Loop4.8 mi · 2.5 hr · 1.5 mi awayPrairie dogs, creek bridges and one steep climb on a 4.8-mile loop.
ModerateCentennial Trail: Norbeck to Highland Creek6 mi · 2.8 hr · 1.5 mi awayA six-mile one-way mix of prairie, ponderosa forest and creek crossings.
EasyRankin Ridge Nature Trail1 mi · 1 hr · 1.6 mi awayA short ridge loop with a fire tower and wide plains views.
ModerateSanctuary Trail7.2 mi · 3.5 hr · 2.5 mi awaySeven miles of rolling prairie to a large prairie dog town.
EasyElk Mountain Nature Trail0.7 mi · 45 min · 2.5 mi awayShort prairie-and-pine loop; listen for elk bugles in autumn.
EasyPrairie Vista Nature Trail1 mi · 36 min · 3.2 mi awayA one-mile loop past the Natural Entrance and prairie waysides.
EasyWind Cave Canyon Trail3.6 mi · 2 hr · 3.5 mi awayAn easy former road beneath limestone cliffs, with nesting birds overhead.
ModerateHighland Creek Trail8.6 mi · 5.5 hr · 3.9 mi away8.6 miles one way across prairie, creek bottoms, and canyons.
Sight · 0.7 mi awayAncient FoundationsFind pink feldspar, gray quartz and black tourmaline in ancient pegmatite.
Sight · 1.2 mi awayBeaver Creek BridgeA 1929 arch bridge designed to rise from Beaver Creek Canyon’s walls.
Sight · 1.5 mi awayDeadwood SandstoneA quick stop to read Wind Cave's Cambrian rock layers
Sight · 1.8 mi awayRankin Ridge Fire TowerA steel fire tower marks a summit you can’t climb.
Campground · 2.4 mi awayElk Mountain CampgroundA pine-and-prairie base near cave tours, with seasonal elk bugles.
Picnic area · 3 mi awayWind Cave Picnic AreaA picnic stop with a 150-yard walk to the natural entrance.
Historic marker · 3.1 mi awayAlvin McDonald GraveA memorial to the young explorer who mapped miles of Wind Cave.
Sight · 3.1 mi awayWind Cave Natural EntranceA ten-inch opening with air you can feel moving.Parkwolf’s Wind Cave ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
