A local's favorite time to explore, May stays at Legion Lake Lodge offer 15% off for (2) two or more consecutive nights stayed. Stay three (3) or more nights and save 20%.
And for 2024, the Stay More, Save More special also applies to most lodge rooms and cabins at all four resorts. Let us help you make your reservation and find the best time to save today.
Valid for stays April 26 - May 24, 2024 for stays booked in the same applicable room type, for consecutive nights at participating lodges. Limited cabin exclusions apply. For call-in reservations: promotion must be mentioned at the time of booking. For online reservations: "Save 2 Night" or "Save 3 Night" rate option must be selected and reservation completed at the time of booking for discount to be valid. For help securing a discounted rate before making your reservation, please contact our local reservations office at 888-875-0001.
Henry David Thoreau's words ring true during any season, but we tend to appreciate them a bit more in the spring. Catch a bison being born or a doe nursing its fawn during your trip around the Wildlife Loop. Keep your eyes peeled for young bighorn sheep lambs clinging to the hillsides and crossing the roads along with mom & friends.
Custer State Park's Summer Trail Challenge starts May 1 each year, and what better way to harness self-motivation. To complete the challenge, participants must hike all listed trails and take a selfie at each official sign. Bonus points for fun photos! Designated trails change each season for the challenge, so be sure to stop at the Custer State Park Visitor Center down the road from the State Game Lodge for the updated Trail Challenge flyer.
A Mecca of Spring Habitats
Custer State Park offers some of the most diverse bird habitat types including grassland, riparian habitat, Ponderosa pine and spruce forests with aspen and deciduous groves. Additionally, the many interior roads and trails make the area incredibly suitable for birding.
More than 350 species of birds, including nearly 200 breeding species, can be found among the 38 sites comprising the Black Hills, Badlands and Lakes Birding Trail, which encompasses essentially the western third of South Dakota. Explore more birding opportunities during your stay in the Park.
Book your spring stay today in search of nearly 20 rare species.
The best birding months at Sylvan Lake are April - September, where you can find Ruffed Grouse drumming in April-May around Harney Peak. Also watch for: Clarkâs Nutcracker, Red-headed Woodpecker, Red Crossbill, American Three-toed Woodpecker, Black-backed Woodpecker, Red-naped Sapsucker, Brown Creeper, Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned kinglets, Gray Jay, Western Wood-Pewee, Osprey, Hairy Woodpecker, Pine Siskin, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Golden Eagle. Rarities: Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch, White-winged Crossbill.
Birding on the Wildlife Loop
Birds to look for along the Wildlife Loop and over at French Creek Nature Area include: Canyon Wren, Northern Goshawk, Western Tanager, Black-headed Grosbeak, Dusky Flycatcher, Cordilleran Flycatcher, riparian species, White-throated Swift , Mountain Bluebird, Balti more Oriole, Spott ed Towhee, warblers in migrati on. Sharp-tailed Grouse, Upland Sandpiper, sparrows, hawks along Wildlife Loop. Rarity: Pinyon Jay.
May Events in the Park
Mother's Day Brunch
Celebrate with Mom by taking her to Brunch with all of the baby animals.
Perfect for family reunions, social events, or small meetings and hospitality suites, this magnificent 3,150-square-foot cabin is the largest cabin available for rent at Blue Bell Lodge.
What a view! Perfect for a small family of up to five, we have just three of this cabin type, all nestled behind Legion Lake Lodge. Peaceful, private lake views.
Tucked in the trees near French Creek Nature Area and the Wildlife Loop, these spacious chinked log cabins with private decks at peaceful Blue Bell Lodge can't be beat.
As the largest cabin on property at Sylvan Lake, our Cathedral Spires Cabin has it all. A designer kitchen, a beautiful, private backyard patio surrounded by the spires, and all four bedrooms offer en suite baths.