Custer County Highpoint Trip Report
Dates: September 8 and 12, 2004
Author: Hiram Rogers
I was visiting the Black Hills to prepare a third edition of my hiking guidebook.
In particular, I climbed Sylvan by the shorter and
easier routes described in Mike Schwartz and Dave Covill's respective trip reports.
The directions in these previous reports are good, though the firewood area sign is gone.
Both routes have a few white blazes. Here are both my route and access descriptions.
Access: From Hill City, drive three miles south on US 16. Turn east onto South Dakota 87 and drive three
miles to a paved turnout on the left. The turnout is opposite a dirt road that loops quickly back to South
Dakota 87. The route is unmarked, but begins on the slope southwest of the turnout.
From the turnout, hike southwest to gain the north ridge at an elevation of 6,000 feet. Continue due south
on the crest of the ridge, cross an old logging road at 6,760 feet, and reach the north sub-peak at 6,880 feet.
It is the cliffs on this sub-peak that appear to be the summit when viewed from near Sylvan Lake.
The scramble to the top of the rocky sub-peak is well worth the effort.
There are excellent views of Sylvan Lake and Harney Peak.
The group of spires around the dam at Sylvan Lake, called the "outlets", are especially prominent.
Cross a second old logging road in the saddle between the north and main peaks, and continue
southeast to the summit, which is visible from the saddle.
A small rock cairn crowns this rarely climbed summit.
The County Highpointers route starts where a dirt road leaves the west side of South Dakota 87,
0.9 mile north of the South Dakota 87/89 junction or 2.1 miles south of the start of the north ridge route.
The route follows the road up a set of switchbacks to a buried tank at about 6,500 feet.
From the tank, the southeast ridge leads directly to the summit.
A few rock towers are more easily bypassed on the left.
A few small white blazes, which apparently predate use by County Highpointers, help mark the route.
The blazes are more common at the start and where the route swings left to avoid the ridge crest
but are few and far between closer to the top.
Observant hikers may spot a few similar blazes on the north ridge route.