Center Lake Campground

We decided to extend our stay at Custer one more day but everything was full. We were able to grab one of these same day reservation spots. Very quiet and peaceful spot. We were in the upper campground which is a very short walk to the lake and showers. Showers were impeccably clean. The staff at Custer is the friendliest we’ve ever met. Amazing hiking trails next to this campground.

Arrived on a Monday and was able to get a spot. The reservation system is easy and the operator was very nice and helpful. Previous review gives accurate info on campground. Camp Host are available but can be a bit over zealous. So much to see and do in the area. Center Lake is beautiful and great for swimming, fishing, kayaking and canoeing. Minimal to no cell service.

This is the only first come first serve/same day reservation campground in Custer State Park. Sites are all nonelectric but generators are allowed from 8 am to 8 pm in 2 hour increments. There's a few water spigots scattered. A shower house is located between the beach and the lower loop. Showers were clean and the water was hot.

We were able to park out 30' travel trailer comfortably in 67. It is a hilly location but the paved pads were level. Our picnic table and fire ring were a little walk uphill. Check each individual site if booking online to ensure your RV/TT will fit.

This site is slightly inconvenient for sight seeing. Its located in the middle of the park with a good drive to Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, or Custer. Rushmore was about an hour away.

The beach at Center Lake was small but the sand was nice. There were a lot of people kayaking and paddle boarding.

State park campground with basic amenities. About 45 minutes from Mt Rushmore. Showers were a little run down but better than nothing! Campsites are very nice and mostly spacious. Can walk to lake which was very pretty. Campstore (about 10-15 minutes away) closes at 7 which is where camphosts recommended to get wood. Lots of deer on grounds at night.

This campground lets you book online same day at 7am. There were many spots open at that time of day - a Thursday. Campground is beautiful. No hookups and it's all shady if you want to charge your batteries with solar. A mix of tent campers and big rigs were here during my stay. With all the pine trees, it's a very still area. If a pin drops, you'll likely hear it, and you'l definitely hear your neighbors. That was the only downside for me, though the neighbors were all relatively quiet. I very much enjoyed walking my dog around the lake every morning. I never ran into other people on that hike. The lake is lovely. The whole area is. I wasn't expecting to enjoy Custer State Park as much as I did. No service in the campground but there is a decent signal for Verizon all around the visitor center.

We headed into Custer State park to use the dump station and refill our water. The state website wouldn’t allow us to book anything (all full) so I called instead. The lady was very nice and booked us into the “last” spot in the upper section that could accommodate our trailer. Lots of really curvy roads to get back in there. But really was no problem for us.

It was a site that you just pull up sideways so a little weird for our 26’ travel trailer. But it worked. The hosts came by to check on us and actually offered us a different spot at 67 b/c we could back in. We were already settled so decided not to move. They said they leave one campsite open all the time so they can move people if they need to. So even if the websites say they are empty, call them or talk to the camp host. We stayed one night before moving on to Yellowstone. Custer is one of the spots we wish we had stayed to explore longer.

It was a bit pricey for dry camping, but the location made it worth it!

We actually made 4 videos in this area:

Overview of Custer State Park
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vt_mgwZ5u_w

Center Lake Campground
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_GgM3_LvdI

3 Scenic Drives in Custer State Park
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-QUtNb3_D0

Must Sees at Mount Rushmore
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqLzcw1_ynA

Center Lake campground is a same day campground booking. If you have a big rig call VERY EARLY at 7 am Central time to book a spot. They don’t take reservations but fill up right away each morning. Tent sites are more available. We had no cell service there, but if you take the hike we had cell service at the top of the hike and I’ll admit taking more hikes than I needed just to make a phone call. Center lake had incredible trout fishing! Bathrooms were clean and the staff were incredibly nice and helpful. You could easily stay here for a week and not run out of stuff to do :). Needles, Rushmore, Buffalo all close by