Black Elk Peak

Black Elk Peak is the highest natural point in South Dakota, rising to 7,242 feet in the Black Hills within Black Elk Wilderness.

Black Elk Peak Lookout Tower: A stone fire lookout tower stands near the summit of Black Elk Peak. The tower is the summit’s most recognizable built landmark.
Black Hills: An isolated mountain range in western South Dakota and northeastern Wyoming. Black Elk Peak is the range’s highest summit.
Black Elk: A Lakota holy man whose life and visions were recounted in Black Elk Speaks. The peak was renamed in his honor in 2016.
Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868: A treaty between the United States and the Sioux Nation that recognized the Black Hills as Sioux territory. Its violation frames the contested history of the peak’s region.
Black Elk Peak Trail: A hiking route climbs to the summit of Black Elk Peak from Sylvan Lake. This popular approach links the peak with Custer State Park.
South Dakota: A state in the north-central United States. The peak is the state’s highest natural point.
Black Elk Speaks: A 1932 book presenting Black Elk’s life and spiritual teachings through John G. Neihardt’s account. The book helped make Black Elk’s name widely known.
Black Hills Gold Rush: A gold rush that brought large numbers of settlers into the Black Hills beginning in the 1870s. The influx accelerated U.S. occupation of the land around the summit.
Sylvan Lake: A reservoir in Custer State Park, South Dakota, surrounded by granite formations. Its trailhead is the starting point for a common summit hike.
Custer State Park: A large state park in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Its roads and trailheads provide access to the summit.

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