Last Updated on: 2nd July 2025, 11:33 am
For those who’ve already seen Custer State Park’s famous landmarks and are looking to experience more but without the crowds, consider hiking the Sunday Gulch Trail. The thrilling yet relatively short trail takes you across uneven granite boulders, while you’ll have to grab onto metal railings to keep your balance.
It’s quite an exciting hike, but one that doesn’t seem to get much attention, likely because Custer State Park simply has so much else to offer. Given how the Sunday Gulch Trail just takes a few hours to complete, you can easily fit in other activities on the same day.
Following our detailed guide to the Sunday Gulch Trail, be sure to check the end of the article for more info on local accommodation options and park entry fees.
About This Hike
THE BASICS: The Sunday Gulch Trail is a loop hike that begins at Sylvan Lake (but it does not include Trails #9 or #4 that lead to some of the park’s more famous landmarks).
At the end of Sylvan Lake, you have the choice of doing the Sunday Gulch Trail either clockwise or counterclockwise, the latter being the much easier of the two, as you’ll be descending the hike’s trickiest part.
Personally speaking, I found going counterclockwise to be a bit too easy and would someday like to try it again going the other way.
All in all, the hike should take you about 2-3 hours. The total hike is about three miles long, though the length will vary slightly depending on whether or not you plan to do a full loop around Sylvan Lake (as seen on AllTrails), which isn’t actually necessary.
The following guide is based on a hiking experience that took place in September 2024. While I didn’t realize it at the time, I hiked the Sunday Gulch Trail just two days before it would be closed for about six months for a ‘trail upgrade.’
Therefore, by the time you read this, some things may appear different. Please let us know in the comments if any significant changes have been made.
WHAT TO BRING: The main thing you’ll want for this hike are sturdy shoes with a good grip. Few parts of the Sunday Gulch Trail will have you exposed to the sun, but having some sunscreen and water on you would still be a good idea.
You probably won’t want trekking poles, as you’ll want to keep your hands free for the metal railings.
RECOMMENDED APPS: This hike is clearly outlined on the AllTrails app, though AllTrails requires a yearly subscription for offline access. If you don’t want to pay, the free Organic Maps app should also come in handy.
Hiking the Sunday Gulch Trail
As mentioned, the Sunday Gulch Trail can be accessed from Sylvan Lake, one of Custer State Park’s most beautiful landmarks. You’ll find numerous parking lots around the lake, and it’s not particularly important which one you choose.
But as many of the lots can fill up by late morning, you’ll want to get here relatively early.
After reaching the northwest end of the lake, the Sunday Gulch Trail officially begins.
Reading the AllTrails reviews, most people seemed to recommend doing the hike hike counterclockwise, so that’s what I decided to do. But as we’ll cover shortly, if I had to do things over again, I’d do the hike clockwise instead.
Nevertheless, the following guide covers the hike as done in a counterclockwise direction.
Past the lake, it won’t be long before the hike takes you up a fairly steep granite boulder. Be sure to look back for some great views of Lake Sylvan from above.
If you found this section of the hike tiring, don’t worry, as the next sections are largely downhill.
The Sunday Gulch hike is most known for its metal railings that help hikers traverse its steep and uneven granite boulders.
Though not nearly as famous as Zion National Park’s Angels Landing hike, the experience is somewhat similar – at least if you’re going uphill.
As mentioned, many commenters seem to suggest doing this hike counterclockwise in order to hike down this section rather than up it.
But as I was making the descent, I couldn’t help but feel that it would’ve been more fun to climb up, while this section would also make for a rather climactic ending to the hike.
In any case, if you start early enough, you’re likely to have large part of the Sunday Gulch hike to yourself. That path will take you past multiple streams, and just when you think the section with the railings is about over, you’ll encounter some more.
Eventually, however, the railings do come to an end. And frankly speaking, the middle portion of the hike is rather uneventful, aside from some occasional unique rock formations.
After hiking through the forest for a while, the trail eventually opens up, and you’ll be greeted with views of Custer State Park’s iconic towering spires known as the Needles.
But unfortunately, past a certain point, a significant portion of this hike has you walking relatively close to a highway. Not only do power lines partly obscure the view, but you’ll be able to hear traffic through much of the trek.
Eventually, however, the peace and quiet will return, and I found myself once again immersed in nature.
Already a couple of hours into the hike, I couldn’t help thinking how strange it was that the Sunday Gulch Trail seemed to be almost entirely downhill or flat (at least doing it counterclockwise, of course). But finally near the end, I found myself walking uphill.
Making my way higher, I was greeted with some of the spectacular views of the granite spires that Custer State Park and the wider Black Hills region are so well-known for.
I took my time during this park of the hike, taking as many pictures as possible. While it couldn’t quite compete with the views I’d seen the previous day on a long loop hike, most visitors will find it hard to get tired of this scenery.
Near the end of the hike, as you get closer to the lake, the trail can be a bit hard to follow, as multiple paths seem to converge here. But with the help of an app and the on-site signage, you should be able to make your way back to Lake Sylvan.
(As mentioned above, the trail will have been upgraded by the time you read this, but it’s unclear exactly what will change.)
One of the final highlights of the hike is an interesting natural tunnel formed by large boulders that seem to have fallen and gotten stuck in the large crack! It can be a bit daunting to walk under, but they’re unlikely to collapse any time soon.
Back at Lake Sylvan, I checked out a small viewing platform built over a dam, and then proceeded to walk around the rest of the lake. By this time in the late afternoon, the lighting was perfect.
All in all, the Sunday Gulch Trail is a nice little hike that lasts just about 2.5 hours. That means that you’d still have plenty of time left over to do other activities, such as one of Custer State Park’s scenic drives or a trip over to the Crazy Horse Memorial.
Additional Info
While Custer may be a small town with under 2000 residents, its proximity to Custer State Park, Wind Cave National Park, the Crazy Horse Monument, and Mount Rushmore make it a popular place for long stays.
There are plenty of hotels to choose from, but I ended up staying at the Super 8 and have no complaints about it. I found it to be a quiet hotel and I slept well each night.
Other popular options in the area, meanwhile, include the Comfort Inn & Suites, the Holiday Inn, and the Rocket Motel.
At the time of writing, Custer State Park costs $20 per vehicle and your pass will be valid for 7 days. For those traveling by motorcycle, the fee is $10.
Learn more information here.