Black Elk Peak is probably the most popular hiking destination in the Black Hills. Hikers have multiple route options to reach the summit from Custer State Park and various locations in the Black Elk Wilderness. It is no longer in use but is open to hikers. There is an old stone tower that was used as a fire lookout on the summit. On a clear day, one can see four states – South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana and Nebraska. Although the mountain is well below treeline, the summit is mostly bare rock with uninhibited and spectacular views. The mountain and surrounding range is granite that many geologists believe was uplifted during the Laramide orogeny between 40 and 60 million years ago. Black Elk Peak has over 2,900 feet of prominence. The peak is also the high point in the Black Elk Wilderness as well as the highest summit in a line between the Rocky Mountains and the Pyrenees Mountains in France. Black Elk Peak is the high point of the state of South Dakota and is located in the Black Hills in the southwestern portion of the state. That ruling will affect how the summit is named on all federal maps in the future. Board of Geographic Names on August 11, 2016. Any inaccuracies are the result of my edits.Īmid much controversy in the state of South Dakota, the former Harney Peak is now officially Black Elk Peak, following a ruling by the U.S. Any usefulness is courtesy of the SummitPost community. More about the geology of the Black Hills.īelow: This map marks hikes that have been featured on so far, including several in Glacier Park – Select full screen to expand, zoom in for more detail, or click on a marker for a link to the post.The text below is copied from SummitPost.Geology, history, significance to Native Americans. Map of the Sylvan Lake – Black Elk Peak area.Įverything you need to know – history, geology, etc.Here is a nice 3-step animation that shows how these form. Bear Butte is a laccolith, whereas the Black Hills (which includes Black Elk Peak) are a batholith. The trail, which starts near Sylvan Lake 47 miles southwest of Rapid City, climbs gradually over the 3.8-miles to the summit, making it doable for reasonably fit hikers.īear Butte and the granite core of the Black Hills are both “intrusive formations” (aka “plutons” or “plutonic formations”). It is a truly unique destination, and the views of the surrounding Black Hills are second to none. The tower, which includes its own reservoir, was staffed until 1967. cavalry general he led a massacre of Sioux women and children at the Battle of Blue Water Creek in present-day Nebraska in 1855.Īt 7,242 ft., Black Elk is not in the same league as high points in other western states – California, Washington, and Colorado all boast peaks over 14,000 and Denali in Alaska is over 20,000 ft! On the other hand, no other state high point has what is found on top of Black Elk – a majestic castle-like stone lookout constructed by the Civil Conservation Corps in the late 1930s. Among other things, he was charged with beating a female slave to death with a cane in 1834, then as a U.S. Harney (1800-1889), for whom the peak was originally named, wasn’t such an honorable man. When Mardi and I did the hike (2015) the mountain was still called “Harney Peak”, but the name was changed in 2016 to honor Black Elk (1863-1950), a famous Sioux medicine man who as a boy was present at the Battle of the Little Bighorn (1876). That afternoon, Amy stayed with CK (handicapped), giving Mardi and I a chance to hike to the summit of Black Elk Peak (formery Harney Peak), the highest mountain in South Dakota (7,242 ft.), and home to one of the coolest lookout towers you’ll find anywhere. The hike to the summit and back is a fun half-day hike (2.8-mile round-trip), but it does gain 1,033 feet, plus there is very little shade – So we were glad we got an early start. Amy and I left Rapid City at 5:30 am, made the 45-minute drive to the Bear Butte 6 miles northeast of Sturgis, and started hiking at 6:30 am. Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Memorial – but the highlight of the trip was a day I got to do two neat hikes, one with Amy in the morning (Bear Butte) and another with Mardi in the afternoon (Black Elk Peak). We enjoyed doing some of the things that typical tourists do, including visiting Mt. Several years ago my wife (Mardi) and step-daughter (C.K.) drove out to Rapid City to visit our other daughter Amy who was living and working there at the time.
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