Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup 2027

Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup 2027 takes place on Sep 24, 2027, in Custer State Park, South Dakota.

Custer State Park, South Dakota (Wildlife Loop Road).

Sep 24, 2027 (single-day event).

Best categories: rv, towable, trucks-vans. Custer State Park Resort lists the next Buffalo Roundup for Friday, September 24, 2027. South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks runs the morning as a working day for the herd: riders, including private citizens chosen by application, drive the bison into the corrals, where crews test, brand and sort them in the afternoon. Spectators watch from two temporary viewing areas on the Wildlife Loop Road, the north one reached by heading south from the Game Lodge area and the south one by heading east near the Blue Bell campground, and everyone leaves the way they came in. For the 2026 roundup, parking opened at 6:15 a.m., the drive began at 9:30 a.m. Mountain time, and the crowd stayed in the viewing areas until the herd was in, usually around noon. The park asks visitors not to bring campers; a camper that comes anyway follows the posted route to the North Overflow Lot and its shuttle. Stockade North and Sylvan Lake, both inside the park, are the campgrounds in our records.

Recommended lead time: 26 weeks. Event windows book up early, so search and lock your dates as soon as your plans firm up.

The park encourages visitors not to bring campers to the roundup itself. If you do, Game, Fish and Parks directs campers along its green route to the North Overflow Lot, with a shuttle to the viewing area. Camping in the park the night before, at a campground such as Stockade North or Sylvan Lake, keeps the rig out of the morning traffic.

Game, Fish and Parks' 2026 schedule had the herd tested, branded and sorted from 1 p.m. until about 3 p.m., with lunch served at the corrals for a fee, and crews working the rest of the herd in October. The Buffalo Roundup Arts Festival, with vendors and Western and Native American entertainment, runs Thursday through Saturday around the roundup.

Stay inside the viewing areas until the herd is corralled; bison are fast and unpredictable. Bring layers and rain gear for a cold Black Hills morning.

Pick your viewing area the night before: Game, Fish and Parks wants the choice made before Friday morning, and each side has its own route in and out.