Rankin Ridge Nature Trail

Rankin Ridge Nature Trail is a one-mile loop from its signed parking area to Wind Cave National Park's highest point, at 5,013 feet, then back around the hill. It's a good pick for a real ridge walk that doesn't take half a day, including as a short break between cave tours. Most of the work comes early: the nature path is rocky and uneven, with a few stair sets, so this isn't a flat stroll. Give yourself about an hour to take in the view and pause at the interpretive stops. On a clear day, the long sightlines are the payoff.

The narrower path climbs through ponderosa pines toward the ridge, gaining about 250 feet in roughly the first half mile. Short stairs and rough patches make the climb feel more substantial than the one-mile distance suggests. The loop comes back on the broader tower access road, a simpler way down with loose gravel underfoot. The listed mile is the full round trip from the parking area, not the distance to the tower with another mile to return.

The ridge gives you two different views: Black Hills peaks to the west, then open plains to the east. From the eastern edge, Buffalo Gap and even the Badlands may be visible when the air is clear. If the distant view is why you're here, a clear day matters. For a photo, include one of the numbered trail posts with the prairie behind it; that shows both the overlook and the scale of the landscape.

The interpretive stops make the short walk more than a climb to a tower. At Post 9, a rockslide left a sunny slope of jumbled boulders. Few plants can get a foothold there, but the rocks shelter rodents, insects, and reptiles. At Post 5, the story shifts to a fallen tree: the gap it makes in the canopy lets sunlight reach grasses, wildflowers, shrubs, and new pine seedlings. Keep an eye out for those small changes as you walk through the forest.

At Post 11, look east across the seam between pine-covered hills and open prairie. Historically, much of the park burned every 8 to 12 years; fire kept trees from taking over the grassland. After a century of fire suppression, the forest expanded, using more water and leaving less to flow down from the hills. The final stop asks you to picture the unbroken prairie that once covered the area, with huge bison herds and prairie-dog towns stretching across the grass. Wind Cave is one of the few places where that landscape still has room to show through.

The fire tower was built in 1956 and staffed regularly during fire seasons until 1998. It is still used occasionally to look for fires or monitor severe weather, but visitors cannot climb it. The ridge is named for William A. Rankin, Wind Cave's first superintendent; the area joined the park in 1946. Fourteen interpretive stops sit at irregular intervals, with a self-guided audio tour and a short printed guide available at the visitor-center bookstore. Reach the trailhead from the signed turnoff on SD 87 toward Custer. RVs and trailers must park at a nearby pull-off and walk about 1,200 feet. Pets aren't allowed, and there is no drinking water on the trail. Summer storms can bring large hail, so check the forecast before you head up.