Skyline Wilderness Area: St. Cloud Trailhead

The St. Cloud Street Trailhead provides neighborhood access to the central portion of the Skyline Wilderness Area, sitting just below the historic WPA Amphitheater site on Dakota Hogback Ridge. In 1939, WPA workers cut terraces into the sides of the bowl-shaped slope above this area, and stonework on the abandoned road between St. Cloud Street and the amphitheater indicates this section was also a WPA project. The Amphitheater is a bit misleading — the structure was never actually built — but if you look carefully, terraced notches carved into the hillside hint at what would have served as seats, and the bowl-shaped depression provides spectacular views of Rapid City and the prairie to the east. The trailhead connects into the broader Skyline Wilderness singletrack network, open to hikers and mountain bikers. Street parking is available along St. Cloud Street. No dedicated parking lot or restrooms at this access point. Dogs are welcome on leash. Free and open year-round.