Oct. 9, 2024

This paid piece is sponsored by The Ramkota Companies.

There’s still time left to enjoy the season at Custer State Park – plus some exciting reasons to begin planning your trip for next year.

“It’s been a phenomenal year,” said Josh Schmaltz, president and CEO of Sioux Falls-based The Ramkota Companies, which manages the resort.

“Nearly everything was up over last year, and guests have been enjoying the great accommodations, the wildlife and the outstanding food, so we couldn’t be happier.”

This marks the first full season of improvements related to an accidental fire in late 2021 in a popular area of the park.

Guest rooms at Sylvan Lake Lodge were updated from top to bottom.

“We updated the 1991 addition at the lodge in addition to the historic guest rooms with new bedding packages and beds, carpet and furniture, so everything is all new from after the fire,” Schmaltz said.

The Sylvan Lake General Store was rebuilt from the ground up and reopened in mid-2023, offering quick, casual comfort food, ice cream, coffee, general merchandise and gift items, plus lakeside seating.

Plus, all resort cabins have been renovated in the past three years with new flooring, furniture, fixtures, windows and doors.

“What we’re seeing is that people are becoming more budget-conscious, and Custer State Park Resort is a great fit for that,” Schmaltz said.

“They might not be buying as many sweatshirts and souvenirs, but we’re seeing guests from some of our biggest states such as Colorado and Minnesota continue to book here. You don’t have to buy expensive plane tickets. You can drive here, and along the way there are so many stops to hit and ways to enjoy everything South Dakota has to offer.”

The last night to stay at the full resort with food and beverage options open for the season is Oct. 19, leaving a couple of weekends to take advantage of unseasonably nice weather.

“The fall colors in the southern Hills and Custer are very close to peaking if they haven’t yet, so it looks beautiful, and it’s a great time to be on the Wildlife Loop and Needles Highway while it’s so warm,” Schmaltz said. “The next two weeks are expected to be in the low 70s and upper 60s, which is perfect.”

There also are opportunities still to stay at Custer State Park during the winter, he added.

“You can stay at the reunion cabins or Creekside Lodge, the 30-room hotel on the State Game Lodge campus,” Schmaltz said. “While our food and beverage is closed, you can find great places to eat in Custer, and the local restaurants do a good job staggering which days they’re closed, so you’ll always be able find a great local option.”

Fire danger also is being managed, he added.

“The fire crews have done a great job. When something flares up, they’re on it, and they’ve been very attentive,” Schmaltz said. “We’ve been fortunate to where everything has been kept under control, and they’re on it right away and have done a very good job protecting everything.”

Looking ahead

The offseason also will bring some exciting improvements to Custer State Park.

Schmaltz is especially excited about the relocation of a log chapel with meaningful ties to South Dakota. It was funded through donations from the families of those killed in the 1993 plane crash that included Gov. George Mickelson.

It originally was meant to serve the STAR Academy, which was a home for troubled teenagers.

“The purpose was to restore faith for troubled youth, and it’s a really neat chapel, but it hasn’t been utilized since it closed in 2016,” Schmaltz said. “That part of the campus now is used as staff housing, so no one from the public really sees it.”

With help from Jorgensen Log Homes, Schmaltz and his team have started the process of moving the chapel to the State Game Lodge, not far from the pavilion, “so you’ll be able to see it when you drive by, and we see it having great potential for weddings,” he said. “We’re going to restore and restain it and bring it back to what it was when it was first built.”

It’s a major process to move, including navigating power lines and removing some trees.

“After we close down, we’ll start digging footings and foundations and then begin the move,” Schmaltz said. “It’s a historic place in the truest sense, even though it’s not a historic building, and with this move we’re going to be able to honor the donors’ intent and allow so many more people to enjoy it.”

Seven historic guest rooms in the State Game Lodge also will be fully renovated over the winter months.

“We’re not changing the layout because of the historic nature of the building, but we’ll have upgraded bathrooms with new finishes, beds, furniture and flooring while still keeping the historic integrity of the rooms,” Schmaltz said.

Watch for rooms to be renamed in honor of more historic figures with South Dakota ties, as well as individual designs for each room.

“They’re all going to be different, so some will be more masculine designs, others will be more feminine, and the furniture will be unique to each room,” Schmaltz said.

“We’ve had a great time putting the designs together to give each room a personal touch.”

Considering a stay next year? Schmaltz suggests booking soon.

“For the more specialty rooms, I would say be booking by the first of the year for the upcoming summer, whether it’s a historic room or reunion cabin,” he said. “We can generally accommodate guests with shorter booking windows for other guest rooms, but for those more unique offerings, you’ll want to book sooner than later.”

To learn more about Custer State Park Resort, click here.