Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway is a roughly 20-mile stretch of US Highway 14A through Spearfish Canyon in South Dakota’s Black Hills, framed by 1,000-foot limestone walls that the U.S. Forest Service calls older than the Grand Canyon’s exposed rock. Budget 45 minutes for the drive alone, or a half day if you stop for the waterfalls and short trails along the way. We unfortunately were towing our travel trailer through the canyon, so we didn’t get a chance to stop at the falls along the drive.

Spearfish Canyon Drive Facts

• Length: roughly 20 miles, from the city of Spearfish to Cheyenne Crossing
• Managing agency: U.S. Forest Service, Black Hills National Forest (Northern Hills Ranger District) — this is national forest, not a state park, so there’s no entrance fee for the drive itself
• Canyon walls: up to 1,000 feet of limestone palisade
• History: the highway follows an old railroad grade, abandoned after a major flood destroyed the line in 1933
• Named waterfalls along the byway: Bridal Veil Falls, Roughlock Falls, and Spearfish Falls
• Camping: dispersed camping is not permitted inside the canyon

A State Correction

This post was originally published with “MT” in the title and body, as if Spearfish Canyon were in Montana. It isn’t — Spearfish, the canyon, and this entire drive are in South Dakota’s Black Hills, part of the same cluster as Custer State Park and Needles Highway and Hanson-Larsen Memorial Park. That’s now fixed throughout.

Driving Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway

Bridal Veil Falls is the easiest stop on the drive — it’s visible right from a large pullout on US 14A, no hike required, which makes it the one to catch even if you’re short on time. Roughlock Falls, a short drive up Forest Service Road 222 from the town of Savoy, has a boardwalk and picnic area and is the prettiest of the three in most light. Spearfish Falls sits behind the old Spearfish Canyon Lodge and takes a short, easy walk to reach.

The canyon itself is the real draw beyond any single stop — towering limestone and sandstone walls close in on both sides of the highway, with pine and spruce forest climbing the slopes above. We didn’t have time to stop for the hiking or fly fishing we saw plenty of people doing along the creek, and that’s the honest gap in this post: if you can build in an extra hour or two, this canyon rewards getting out of the car more than we did.

Photography Notes

• Late afternoon light works well low in the canyon, since the walls block direct sun for a lot of the day and create soft, even light for waterfall shots.
• Fall color (typically late September into early October) is the canyon’s signature season — the birch and aspen against the limestone is a different drive entirely from summer green.

Know Before You Go

• No fee for the drive — it’s a Forest Service road, not a gated state park
• Dispersed camping isn’t allowed in the canyon — use a developed campground or base outside it
• Pairs naturally with the rest of the Black Hills cluster — the Needles Highway scenic drive is roughly 90 minutes south, and the M Hill trail network in Rapid City is about an hour south
• Watch for cyclists and anglers pulled onto the shoulder — the highway is narrow in places with limited sightlines around the canyon walls

Is It Worth It?

Yes — this is one of the most dramatic short drives in the Black Hills, and it’s free. Next time, we’d build in time to actually hike to Roughlock Falls and cast a line rather than just driving through.

Current conditions and access info: U.S. Forest Service – Black Hills National Forest, Spearfish Canyon.