Blue Ribbon – Alkali Creek Trailhead

This trailhead connects to the rugged Centennial Trail and leads into the Fort Mead Recreation Area, where your dog can do a lot of running on the rolling grounds of the old cavalry post. You can choose between hiking through forested lowlands or climbing hills through Ponderosa pine forests.

#2 – Mirror Lakes and Cox Lake

A great place for canine hikers who scoff at the confinement of formal trails. Wide open fields and meadows are playgrounds for your dog and there are excellent dog paddling on the spring-fed lakes.

#3 – Rapid City Off-Leash Parks

The largest city in the Black Hills maintains 1,500 acres of parkland and several places (Wilderness Park, Braeburn Addition, and Robbinsdale Park) allow dogs to run off-leash.

#4 – Harney Range Trails

Harney Peak is the highest point in America between the Rocky Mountains and the Atlantic Ocean and dogs can climb to the top. Dogs are not allowed on Mount Rushmore, but you can see the back of the national monument from here.

#5 – Canal Trail

This National Recreational Trail has a little bit of everything for the canine hiker: scenic views, a variety of routes, a bit of history, and plenty of swimming available (at Sheridan Lake and Spring Creek). Dogs can walk the Flume Trail off-leash on National Forest land.

#6 – Swede Gulch Non-Motorized Use Area

This is a timber production area in the Black Hills National Forest where dog walking is easy along old dirt roads. Dogs can run along these trails where the use of vehicles is prohibited and few people go.

#7 – Rapid City Recreation Trail

This winding concrete path connects five separate city parks over the course of its 13.5 miles. Several loops of trails and spurs lead away from the main trail stem and provide a variety of dog-walking opportunities. Since the trail hugs Rapid Creek, your dog can spend as much time in the water as on the trail here.

#8 – Deerfield Lake Loop

Four trails provide access around the 10-mile Lake Loop Trail. A circumnavigation of Deerfield Lake offers a rich variety of Black Hills habitats. The mile-high hike at Deerfield Lake is gentle and suitable for any level of athletic dog.

#9 – Black Hills Experimental Forest

Any length of outing with your dog can be conjured up from the web of easy-to-walk gravel roads and dirt logging trails in the Black Hills Experimental Forest. This is also a good place to take your dog in the winter when he hits the trails on cross-country skis or snowshoes.

#10 – Carson Draw System and Sundance Trail

There’s something for all levels of canine hikers on the 17 trails that cover 47.3 miles in the Sundance Trail System. Routes plunge into rugged, heavily forested canyons and explore scenic peaks. Some of the routes will test even the most energetic trail dogs.