Buffalo Gap

Buffalo Gap is a small municipality located 12 miles north of Hot Springs and 50 miles south of Rapid City, close to all the Black Hills have to offer — springs, lakes, parks, and hiking. Wind Cave National Park and Custer State Park are both just a short drive away, Hot Springs and its mineral springs are down the road, and the Crazy Horse Memorial and Custer are easily reachable to the north. East of town is the Buffalo Gap National Grassland, the second largest of 20 national grasslands in the United States, encompassing 600,000 acres in scattered tracts that run from the Badlands near Wall to the southwestern tip of South Dakota.

The Buffalo Gap National Grassland on Buffalo Gap's eastern doorstep is a genuine outdoor destination in its own right, though it flies well under the radar. It's a destination for OHV riders, rock collectors, and hunters, offering motorized trails through badlands terrain and open riding areas for beginning to advanced riders. It's also one of the best places in the state to search for the rare and beautiful Fairburn Agate — South Dakota's state gem.

Bison can also be viewed throughout the grassland, most reliably in the area adjacent to Badlands National Park, and thanks to its remote location and hundreds of thousands of protected acres, it's a fantastic place to take in unobstructed views of the night sky. For visitors who want to escape the crowds of the main Black Hills circuit, the grassland offers solitude and scenery that's hard to find anywhere else in the region.

Buffalo Gap is known for its historic past as a frontier town, its small-town atmosphere, and proximity to attractions like Wind Cave National Park.