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4.7
24 votes

Sage Creek Campground

Sage Creek Rd, South Dakota 57790 USA

Free
Free to Visit
Open Now
Thu 12a-11:59p
  • Independent
  • Credit Cards
    not Accepted
  • Pet Friendly
  • Not Wheelchair
    Accessible
  • Public
    Restrooms
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“free camping with the bison”

Sage Creek Campground is a primitive campground. There is no charge to stay here and camping is available on a first come first serve basis. The campground rarely fills to capacity.

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Reviews of Sage Creek Campground

44 people have reviewed this location

Ratings Summary

4.0 Access
4.7 Location
4.8 Cleanliness
4.1 Site Quality
4.4 Noise

Cell Coverage

Verizon 4G/5G

Confirmed by 12 users | Last reported on July 25, 2023

AT&T 4G/5G

Confirmed by 6 users | Last reported on September 06, 2023

T-Mobile 5G

Confirmed by 3 users | Last reported on July 23, 2022
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Reviewed by
Chad

  • 13 Reviews
  • 3 Helpful
July 18, 2016
Rated 5.0

Best campground ever! Free, extremely off the beaten path. Nice sunrise, great people.

Bring plenty of water and don't forget the sunset at middle up, 200ft mile hike.

Met so many great friends here just by helping set up tents. Bring your own toilet paper, trust me.

Cheers, Rigs

3 people found this review helpful

Reviewed by
Chookie76

  • 4 Reviews
  • 1 Helpful
July 07, 2018
Rated 5.0

Just beautiful. It was a long bumpy road to the camp ground but so worth it. Get there at a decent time and roam around the site. Amazing views all around! You hear the animals at dusk which is awesome and the stars are completely unreal at night. Have binoculars because bison and big horn sheep may come into sight during your stay

1 person found this review helpful

Reviewed by
TaraSchaafsma

  • 3 Reviews
  • 2 Helpful
May 04, 2018
Rated 5.0

Stayed here twice. Bison go right through campground at night. Great hills to climb to see them roaming around. Second time though the wind was so hard our tent poles broke. Still recommend it. Take in your own water.

1 person found this review helpful

Reviewed by
Bailey Irene.

  • 28 Reviews
  • 3 Helpful
August 28, 2016
Rated

The pit toilets are not gross. Make the trip down the gravel roads. We saw dancing spiders, bison, prairie dogs, mountain goats, and heard lots of noises.

1 person found this review helpful

Reviewed by
Krista

  • 3 Reviews
  • 1 Helpful
July 23, 2016
Rated

We stayed in July 2016. Awesome campground! Get there early if you want a good spot, it fills up VERY fast and there are only a few picnic tables available. Definitely worth the drive! We didn't see any bison, but we did see a big horn sheep and tons of prairie dogs! Also, coyotes howl as soon as the sun goes down. Beautiful sunrise. We will definitely return next time we're in SD!!

1 person found this review helpful
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Reviewed by
Campendium

February 26, 2016
Rated

This is a free campground within Badlands National Park, but you must of course pay park admission or show your NP pass. Once our 2WD truck made it to the campground with our camper, we relaxed and completely enjoyed our stay here. But be advised that you need to check road condition. Bison wander right through your campsite! Coyotes yip and howl in the evening. We used our dual sport motorcycle as transportation to all the hiking trails and scenic areas of Badlands. Absolutely breathtaking experience here. No water or electric. Picnic table at each site. This is remote.

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This reviewer would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 5

Site Number: -

3 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
3 Site Quality
5 Noise
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Reviewed by
Campendium

June 05, 2016
Rated

This is the second time that I've stayed at this Campground, and it remains as one of my favorite National Park campgrounds.

This is a primitive, dry campground. There are vault toilets, picnic tables, and trash service, but that's it. Make sure you have all of the water and power you need for your planned stay.

There's not actually all that much of actual sites. The campground is mostly situated around one loop, which you can simply park parallel around. I've seen some RVs just find a spot in that loop that didn't interfere with traffic enough: the loop is a wide road. There is also a grassy area used largely for horse use, but you can camp there as well. Last year, some people did need help getting out of the mud after some heavy rains, parked in the grassy area.

It is a dirt road in. I came each time the main road looping through the park. Sometimes, the main, scenic dirt road is closed during/after weather, so it's best to always check that. There are alternate routes, which are still also dirt roads. I've seen just about every size and type of car/RV make it to the campground when the road conditions were good.

In my experience, the campground has always been clean. During the day, it tends to be quiet, as most people leave to do things in the park during the day. I consistently saw Rangers come through to clean during the day.

It can be busy at night, and it's best to try to arrive somewhat early, especially on weekends.

Very cool things:

You might wake up to several bison right outside of your door. They are wild bison, and remarkably large, so you want to be safe, but enjoy the beautiful creatures when you can. Both times I stayed here, I had this experience.

This time, some USFS Rangers came in and did a talk/demonstration of an adaladal every day. I learned that I'm absolutely terrible at using one myself, but it was pretty cool, and the kids in particular found it really cool.

This really is one of my favorite campgrounds. I recommend it, and definitely would visit once again.

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This reviewer would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 4

Site Number: -

4 Access
4 Location
5 Cleanliness
4 Site Quality
4 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

Verizon 4G

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Reviewed by
Campendium

July 27, 2016
Rated

So...I was more than thrilled with this spot as we got to encounter wildlife in its rarest form, Bison, Prairie Dogs, White Tale Deer, and Coyote!. The sunsets are amazing and so are the endless views. This place can get a lot of tent campers at night but everyone has the same intentions. By far the coolest place I've ever stayed! I would give the access 3 stars cause its a rough and rugged dirt road but well worth it! AT&T service is only good on top of the hill at the campsite.

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Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 1

Site Number: -

5 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise
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Reviewed by
Campendium

August 03, 2016
Rated

What a cool little campground. Considering it is 12 miles down a washboard gravel road, this place fills up each afternoon (only to completely clear out by 9am the next morning). Mostly tent campers, but by evening what little space there is for RVs can be taken.

Not much of a cell signal unless you have a booster. We got a few bars of Verizon 4G with the booster, but unusable without it.

Bison will roam nearby and coyotes could be heard each evening. A few small trails span out from all sides of the campground.

Trash and recycle cans (along with two vault toilets) really help this place stay clean.

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This reviewer would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 2

Site Number: -

3 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
4 Site Quality
5 Noise
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Reviewed by
Campendium

September 16, 2016
Rated

I would definitely go there again.

Was this helpful?
This reviewer would stay here again

Nightly Rate: -

Days Stayed: 3

Site Number: -

3 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

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Sage Creek Campground

Sage Creek Rd
South Dakota
57790 USA
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Hours

Open 24 hours today
  • Sun - Sat: 12:00 am - 11:59 pm

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  • Check
    Parking
  • Check
    Pets Allowed
  • Check
    Restrooms
  • Unavailable
    Wifi
  • Unavailable
    Wheelchair Accessible
  • Unavailable
    Credit Cards Accepted
Affiliation
National park
Last Nightly Rate
0.0
Longest Vehicle Length Reported
38.0
Lowest Nightly Rate
0.0
Max Length
18ft
Max Stay
14
Sites Count
22
  • Unavailable
    Swimming Pool
  • Unavailable
    Paved Sites
  • Unavailable
    Fifty Amp
  • Unavailable
    Full Hookup
  • Check
    Rec Facilities
  • Unavailable
    Pull Through
  • Check
    Tent Sites
  • Unavailable
    Dump Station
  • Unavailable
    Big Rigs
  • Unavailable
    Open Seasonally
  • Unavailable
    Age Restricted
  • Check
    Boondock
  • Unavailable
    Cabin Sites
  • Unavailable
    Dispersed Sites
  • Check
    Equestrian Facilities
  • Unavailable
    Equestrian Sites
  • Unavailable
    Firewood
  • Unavailable
    Fulltime Residents
  • Unavailable
    Group Tent Sites
  • Unavailable
    Laundry
  • Unavailable
    Mobile Homes
  • Unavailable
    Permit Required
  • Check
    Potable Water
  • Unavailable
    Propane
  • Unavailable
    Public Water
  • Unavailable
    Pull Through RV Sites
  • Unavailable
    Reservations
  • Unavailable
    RV Sites
  • Unavailable
    Sewer Hookup
  • Unavailable
    Showers
  • Check
    Sites
  • Check
    Standard Tent Sites
  • Check
    Trailer Permitted
  • Unavailable
    Water Hookup
  • Check
    Outdoor Seating
  • Unavailable
    Adult Only
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