The Black Hills of South Dakota are a lone series of mountains in the middle of the Great Plains. The nearest rocky mountains are several hundred miles to the west. The nearest mountains to the east or south are several thousand miles away. It was formed by unknown means when some kind of 'uplift' occurred many millions of years ago.

The Black Hills are possibly named black because of the Ponderosa Pine trees that grow there; young trees have black bark that turns orange as the trees mature.

The Black Hills are sacred to Lakota people and were a refuge during harsh seasons on the plains. The hills unique ecosystem also provided many plants not found on the prairies that could be used for food making or medicine. Nowadays the Lakota live mostly on the Pine Ridge Indian reservation several hours to the east.

The Hills unique formation of limestone rocks being shifted by the 'uplift', and then eroded and deposited-upon by water, make wonderful conditions for caves to form, and the area is dotted with many that you can visit. The federal government has taken over two of these via the National Park Service; Wind Cave and Jewel Cave. You can go on guided tours through these. There are several commercial caves owned privately by companies that also give tours.

Tourism is a big business in the Black Hills. In summer the temperatures rise and tourists flood in for a variety of reasons. Thus there are many touristy type shops and restaurants and casinos and so forth usually with a western theme, banking on the 'Wild West' image of Deadwood and the surrounding area.

There are also lots of mountain climbers, and therefore several mountain climbing schools and equipment supply shops. Devil's Tower which is a famous climbing destination lies a few hours to the West of the area in Wyoming.

The hills are mostly populated lower income white people, farmers and ranchers, and Indians, but in recent years lots of people from California, driven out by high land prices, have invaded the area. Many of the old citizens have sold their land to incoming Californians for a good price and have moved farther from the Hills.

There are quite a few amazing things to see in the Black Hills. There is Mount Rushmore, Custer State Park, the Needles highway, Wind Cave, Jewel Cave, many scenic overlooks and bypasses, tours of a recently closed gold mine in Lead, gambling trying to cash in on western legends in Deadwood, a 100 mile bicycle trail that goes through the hills, the massive Crazy Horse sculpture, Spearfish Canyon, and so forth and so on.

The black hills bicycle trail, the Mickleson Trail, is remarkable. It is gravel and runs along an old railroad track. It will have a very gentle uphill grade for several miles, and then a gentle downhill grade for several more miles. It stretches for 100 miles up through the hills hitting several cities such as Custer and Hill City, and passes right by the Crazy Horse monument.