About Horsethief Lake Campground
Number of accommodations: 22
Seasonal information
2026 Season availability
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Reviews (217)
What Guests Are Saying
Horsethief Lake Campground is a charming and well-maintained site near Mount Rushmore, praised for its clean facilities, beautiful lake views, and helpful camp host. Campers enjoy the peaceful atmosphere, hiking trails, and the opportunity to see wildlife, making it a favorite spot in the Black Hills. While some sites may be close together and noise from other campers can be an issue, the overall experience remains positive with many expressing a desire to return.
What Guests Are Saying
Horsethief Lake Campground is a charming and well-maintained site near Mount Rushmore, praised for its clean facilities, beautiful lake views, and helpful camp host. Campers enjoy the peaceful atmosphere, hiking trails, and the opportunity to see wildlife, making it a favorite spot in the Black Hills. While some sites may be close together and noise from other campers can be an issue, the overall experience remains positive with many expressing a desire to return.
Review Summary
Daniel W
VerifiedSeptember 30, 2020 • Stayed at: 012, Loop: HORS
Camp host were very helpful.
Mark T
VerifiedSeptember 22, 2020 • Stayed at: 027, Loop: LKSD
Beautiful location right next to the lake.
As many other reviews have stated, the pit toilets smell horribly, but I don't know if there's much that can be done about that. The staff keeps the bathroom itself reasonably clean.
Very friendly attendant, firewood on site, convenient to Mount Rushmore, beautiful sunrises over the lake.
Very satisfied, and would return next time I'm in the area.
Meghan G
VerifiedSeptember 21, 2020 • Stayed at: 023, Loop: LKSD
Horsethief Lake campground is a great campground. Only about two miles from Mount Rushmore so it is very conveniently located if you are traveling there. The tent only campsites are right on the lake and have beautiful views. There is a trail and board walk around the lake to enjoy the views and we also saw people fishing. I would recommend this camp ground to anyone!
Justine W
VerifiedSeptember 21, 2020 • Stayed at: 032, Loop: WALK
Campsites have little to no privacy, but convenient location to Mount Rushmore. Not ideal for us.
Joseph S
VerifiedSeptember 19, 2020 • Stayed at: 026, Loop: LKSD
Perfect spot right on the lake. Quiet and well-maintained. So easy to get to Mount Rushmore and back - just a few miles up the road. Highly recommend the lighting ceremony.
Connor H
VerifiedSeptember 4, 2020 • Stayed at: 009, Loop: HORS
Very nice campground. Close to Mt. Rushmore and the lake is a great place to relax. Clean bathrooms and campsites. Will surely be back.
Jorge J
VerifiedSeptember 2, 2020 • Stayed at: 014, Loop: HORS
The area is amazing and close to some great hikes and obsessively close to all the main attractions. The lake is a big plus especially if you have kids our want to get some fishing in.
Cheryl H
VerifiedSeptember 1, 2020 • Stayed at: 007, Loop: HORS
The campground was beautiful. We stayed in #7 and the pad was paved and level; close walk to the lake, but no view of the lake. The sites are nicely separated and wooded for shade. This is a great location for exploring the area; Mt. Rushmore, Keystone, and Custer are very close. We had an excellent experience.
Zeferina A
VerifiedAugust 27, 2020 • Stayed at: 031, Loop: WALK
We had a marvelous time at the campground!!! Morning view from our campsite was breathtaking. If you are planning a camping trip close to Hill City or Mount Rushmore this is the place to stay :)
Aguilar family
Emily C
VerifiedAugust 16, 2020 • Stayed at: 029, Loop: WALK
Horsethief Lake Campground is right in the shadow of Mt. Rushmore and perfect distance from other activities such as relaxing by the lake, swimming, or hiking in Custer State Park. The location is perfect. Be aware that there are no shower stations at this campground, and we only saw pit toilets. We booked a walk-in site, and the walk was VERY short (we could still see our car from our tent). A large group, maybe 25 people total, booked a set of campsites near ours, and they were very loud and obnoxious. They got into a screaming match at 6:30 am. Also the camp hosts are a little aggressive on their ATVs. Overall, this was a decent spot on our trip, but had some drawbacks.
Location Horsethief Lake Campground
Address:
Forest Recreation Management, Inc
Hill City, SD, 57745
United States
From Hill City, take U.S. Rt. 16/385 south 3 miles to State Rt. 244. Turn left onto Rt. 244. Travel 5.9 miles to campground sign. Turn right at sign into campground.
Latitude & Longitude: 43.8951 / -103.484
Elevation: 1509 feet
