Camping at Spearfish City Campground in South Dakota’s Black Hills

Looking for more fun things to do in and around Spearfish?
Head to Spearfish Canyon to explore beautiful waterfalls and a natural waterslide at Devil’s Bathtub!

AMENITIES

• Flush toilets and running water
• Drinkable water
• Dishwashing station located outside the restroom with hot water
• Garbage & recycling bins
• Picnic tables and fire rings at most sites (a few of the fully serviced sites lack fire rings)
• Free hot showers!
• Electrical, water, and sewage hookups available at RV sites
• Firewood for sale

ABOUT THE SITES

• Spearfish City Campground offers 150 unserviced campsites and 61 full hookup campsites.
• Spearfish City Campground is open year round. Amenities, such as showers and full hookups, are available from mid-May through October, but may not be available during the winter season.
• Unserviced campsites cost $30 per night. This is higher than many campgrounds, but keep in mind it includes hot showers at no extra charge!
• Full hookup campsites cost $45 per night.
• Off season camping costs $20 per night. Hookups and other amenities are not available during this time.
• Spearfish City Campground is located in a large, parklike area dotted with trees. Most campsites offer partial shade.
• The campground is quiet and peaceful. Well, except for the small RV camper staying in an unserviced site near us who ran his generator for several hours each evening!

• Fully serviced campsites are situated side by side, as is common in RV campgrounds. The “premium” sites along the northern border of the campground are the most spacious and are adjacent to the creek, but all sites are well kept and nicely landscaped. Overall, it’s one of the more beautiful RV campgrounds I’ve seen.
• Unserviced campsites are scattered throughout the grassy areas on the southern side of the campground. These sites are not numbered or assigned. Even if you have a reservation, you will need to choose your site on arrival from those that are available. You’ll receive a tag to tie onto your camper or tent upon arrival to indicate that you have paid. When you find a site you like, pull up onto the grass near the fire pit and picnic table and set up camp. There are no tent pads or driveways.
• There are no privacy barriers between unserviced campsites, but most are spaced well apart from nearby sites. I prefer those along the creek or the edge of the campground, as they feel more private and offer more shade.

• We stayed at one of the unserviced campsites. Although there was no barrier between us and the adjacent sites, we had plenty of personal space. The creek ran alongside our site, and a small footbridge led to an open grassy area on the opposite side.
• Avoid the campsites at the far end of the campground near the hydro electric plant. It’s a small plant, and barely noticeable from the campground except for the annoying buzzing sound. Fortunately, it’s only audible from a few sites nearby, and you won’t hear it elsewhere within the campground.
• Pets on leash are allowed at Spearfish City Campground.

FUN STUFF

• Play in the grass and wade in the creek. Spearfish City Campground is ideal for play. Many of the tent sites are adjacent to the shallow creek that runs through the campground, a great place to splash around on a hot day. Open grassy areas provide space for bocce, Frisbee, or other outdoor games.
• Ride a bike. The Spearfish Recreation Trail, a paved, 7.5-mile multi-use path, passes directly through Spearfish City Campground. The city of Spearfish offers a bike share program with bikes available for rent in the parking lot across from the street form the city park.
• Visit the D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery. This beautifully landscaped park includes a working fish hatchery and a variety of historic buildings, one of which houses a small museum. There’s a fun scavenger hunt for kids, who can earn a free cup of fish food for completing the hunt. Feeding the fish creates quite the frenzy and was a hit with our kids.
• Hang out in Spearfish City Park. This shady park features an impressive wooden playground and ample picnic grounds. Check the event schedule ahead of time. During our visit, we enjoyed a live bluegrass concert, complete with food trucks and beer. With the kids happy to play in the playground next door, it was the perfect summer evening out.
• Go tubing in Spearfish Creek. There are a few easy access points in Spearfish City Park. Although the creek is shallow, it’s fast-moving — this is no lazy river ride! Plan your route ahead of time so you know where to launch and disembark. A small but steep waterfall at the far end of the park is definitely an obstacle to avoid.

NEARBY & NOTABLE

• Spearfish Canyon is not to be missed. Mere miles from Spearfish City Campground, this gorgeous red-walled canyon is a wonderland of waterfalls and lush greenery. We spent the better part of a day there, hiking to the natural waterslide at Devil’s Bathtub, as well as Spearfish Falls and Roughlock Falls. A delicious lunch at the Latchstring Restaurant rounded out a wonderful day.
• Hit up Leones’ Creamery for the world’s best ice cream. OK, maybe that’s a slight exaggeration, but it’s surely in the top five. They offer a rotating selection of eight flavors and are kind enough to offer samples. Every flavor we tried was fantastic, and the vegan roasted banana wins top marks.
• Dough Trader Pizza serves delectable pies with a sourdough crust and offers plenty of outdoor seating. This was another hit with our family — my kids even thanked our server and hostess for serving some of the best pizza they’d ever had! Bonus: We also got to savor the lovely sunset view from their patio.
• Deadwood, the historic Wild West frontier town, is only a half-hour drive southeast of Spearfish. I’ll be honest, we visited Deadwood, and it really wasn’t my jam — too touristy and commercialized. Still, Deadwood is home to some worthwhile historic sights. We only had time for the Adams Museum, but if you enjoy quirky, small town museums packed with artifacts, this is the place for you. Exhibits include a steam engine, the bones of an ancient plesiosaur (the only one of its kind), and some interesting insights into Deadwood’s colorful “characters”, such as Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane.

THE VERDICT

If the idea of a “city” campground doesn’t appeal to you, Spearfish City Campground might just change your mind. Located at the end of the road past Spearfish City Park and the D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery, Spearfish City Campground is a quiet oasis with easy access to beautiful Spearfish Canyon. Plus, they had some of the nicest camp showers I have ever experienced at no extra cost!

As you would expect, this is not wilderness camping. It feels more like getting to stay overnight in a charming city park. The RV sites with hookups are pretty packed, but those who don’t require electrical or water hookups will find plenty of space to spread out in the grass. Sites aren’t labeled, so just pick a fire pit and set up camp. There are no privacy barriers, but tent sites are spaced well apart from one another. During our July visit, many of these sites were vacant, giving everyone extra space.

We loved our spot by the babbling brook that runs through camp. Fortunately, in early July it wasn’t very buggy. The shallow creek was a great source of entertainment for the kids, as were the wide open lawns. The only downside was a fellow camper who set up his small RV a few sites away from ours… and ran his generator for more than two hours straight each evening! I don’t know if he missed his chance to reserve a full service campsite or if he just wanted to save money, but we were relieved to head to nearby Spearfish City Park to escape the noise.

Ultimately, the troublesome generator next door had little effect on our stay at Spearfish City Campground. We soon fell in love with this small town in the far reaches of northwestern South Dakota, with its red walled canyon, gorgeous parks, and amazing ice cream. Spearfish City Campground was the gateway to it all.

We pulled into Spearfish City Campground in the early evening, a little uncertain of what to expect. Although we had a reservation, the unserviced campsites were unassigned. A reservation ensured we had a spot, but it didn’t ensure which spot. After picking up our reservation packet from outside the campground office, we slowly looped through the campground in search of the perfect campsite. Initially, we looked at one in the far reaches of the campground, only to discover a persistent hum drifting over from the adjacent power station hidden behind the trees. No thanks!

Luckily, we discovered a beautiful spot along the creek toward the front of the campground. The campsites on either side were vacant, and the trees along the creek provided a pastoral setting for the next three nights. We got to work setting up camp, and the kids soon took to the creek, splashing and laughing and generally having a ball.

Over the next few days we explored waterfalls in Spearfish Canyon, fed fish at the D.C. Booth Historic Fish Hatchery, tapped our toes to bluegrass music in the park, relived the Wild West (or at least some semblance threreof) in Deadwood, and dined on scrumptious pizza and ice cream. Who needs Disneyland when you have Spearfish, South Dakota?

Throughout it all, Spearfish City Campground was our relaxing home away from home. Except for the evening serenade from a neighboring generator, that is. RV campers, please… when staying in an unserviced tent site in a shared campground, minimal generator usage is much appreciated. Your tent and tiny trailer neighbors will thank you.

Aside from the generator (for which I place no blame on Spearfish City Campground), we enjoyed a lovely stay. The bathrooms were clean and provided unlimited hot showers. Despite such generosity, they were never crowded, probably because the majority of campers here had their own self-contained RVs and no need of public showers. We also appreciated the spacious dishwashing station outside the restroom, as well as the easily accessible garbage and recycling bins.

On our last full day in Spearfish, we decided to try river tubing down Spearfish Creek. While it’s difficult to enter the fast-moving creek from the campground, Spearfish City Park offers a few good access points. We quickly discovered tubing down Spearfish Creek is not for rookies, as the swift current makes steering a challenge. Whatever you do, don’t miss your opportunity to pull ashore before you reach the manmade waterfall!

On our final morning, we were a little sad to leave. Our trip was nearing its end, and in just a few more days we’d be back home in Seattle. We pulled out of Spearfish City Campground, past the fish hatchery and city park, stopping in town for a quick breakfast and coffee at Blackbird Espresso. Goodbye, Spearfish City Campground, and thanks for the wonderful memories!