Black Elk Peak

Black Elk Peak (renamed from Harney Peak in 2016) is the highest point in the United States east of the Rocky Mountains at 7,242 feet — and the summit's 1938 CCC-built stone fire lookout has 360-degree views across the entire Black Hills uplift into Wyoming and Nebraska. The standard trailhead at Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park requires a South Dakota state park entry fee (separate from the National Forest USFS land the summit sits on — the trail crosses the boundary about a mile in). The 7-mile loop via Trails #9 and #4 is the most-hiked combo; the Sylvan Lake lot accepts oversize vehicles including RVs up to 35 ft. Sylvan Lake Campground at the trailhead has 35-ft electric sites — rare for a high-elevation Black Hills loop. The trail's final half-mile is granite slab walking with cairn-marked routes. Bison and bighorn sheep are routinely on or near the trail.