Sundance Trail System Trailhead (Trail #93)

The Sundance Trail System weaves through the network of densely-forested canyons and winding open ridges that form the Bearlodge Mountains. From some ridge tops you can see the Custer Expedition Route, Devils Tower, and the Twin Missouri Buttes. Elk, deer and turkey are some of the species represented by the abundant wildlife.

The secluded trails provide one of the most primitive recreational opportunities in the Black Hills. Parts of the trail system have existed since the 1800s. They were the routes to reliable water, the only access to some parts of the mountains, and a key part of the rich mining history of the Bearlodge Mountains.

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, miners and homesteaders made their way into the Bearlodge Mountains and settled. The Ogden Family settled in the mouth of what is now Ogden Canyon in 1881. In 1893, a German immigrant, Emil Reuter, also made his way into the canyon to spend the rest of his life prospecting.

As trail users wander through the southern Bearlodge Mountains, they might notice old fire scars.  They are remnants of the great Sundance Fire of 1936 that burned 8,200 acres and treatened the town of Sundance.

Individual Trail Information:

• Ogden Creek Trail, 4.8 miles, Difficulty Rating: Moderate.
• Sand Pit Trail, 4.8 miles, Difficulty Rating: Moderate.
• Upper Ogden Trail, 1.5 miles, Difficulty Rating: Moderate.
• East Fork Quarry Trail, 1.2 miles, Difficulty Rating: Moderate.
• Ogden Ridge Trail, 4.3 miles, Difficulty Rating: Difficult.
• Reuter Springs Trail, 3.0 miles, Difficulty Rating: Difficult.
• Richardson Fire Trail, 5.2 miles, Difficulty Rating: Difficult.
• Sheepnose Trail, 5.8 miles, Difficulty Rating: Difficult.
• Sheepnose Mountain Trail, 2.3 miles, Difficulty Rating: Moderate.
• Tent Canyon Trail, 1.5 miles, Difficulty Rating: Moderate.
• Tent Canyon Ridge Trail, 4.1 miles, Difficulty Rating: Difficult.
• West Fork Quarry Trail, 0.5 mile, Difficulty Rating: Moderate.
• Whitetail Trail, 0.5 mile, Difficulty Rating: Moderate.
• Edge Trail, 2.6 miles, Difficulty Rating: Difficult.
• South Fork Trail, 2.8 miles, Difficulty Rating: Difficult.*
• Sundance Trail, 1.9 miles, Difficulty Rating: Difficult.

*The South Fork Trail is not recommended for horse users due to terrain, slope and/or difficulty.