The scenic drives
Three roads that are the reason to have a car out here.
The Black Hills reward driving more than almost anywhere in the country. Three roads in particular are destinations rather than routes.
Iron Mountain Road
Iron Mountain Road runs between Custer State Park and Mount Rushmore, and it was deliberately built to be difficult. It has pigtail bridges that spiral the road back over itself, and a series of one-lane rock tunnels cut so that Mount Rushmore appears framed in the opening as you approach from the south.
It is slow going and that is the point. Allow far longer than the distance suggests.
Needles Highway
The Needles Highway climbs north from Sylvan Lake through the granite spires that give it its name, ending at the Needle's Eye — a slot tunnel with the rock closing in on both sides.
Check your vehicle height and width first. Large RVs and trailers genuinely do not fit through the tunnels, and finding that out at the tunnel mouth is a bad afternoon.
Spearfish Canyon
Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway runs through a limestone canyon in the northern Hills, following the creek between walls of rock and pine. Bridal Veil Falls is right beside the road. Roughlock Falls needs a short walk.
In late September and early October the canyon turns gold with birch and aspen, and it is the best fall colour in the region by a distance.
A note on winter
Needles Highway and Iron Mountain Road close or become impassable in winter, and conditions change fast. Check road status before setting out between roughly November and April.