Spearfish Canyon, South Dakota
Where to Eat After Spearfish Canyon
A guide to the 14A drive, the waterfalls and the trails, and what to do about dinner when you come back into town dusty and starving. Written in Spearfish, at the mouth of the canyon.
Canyon mouth to our door: a short drive · Open every day at 11 AM · Hiking clothes welcome
The drive itself
The Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway is Highway 14A. It leaves the south edge of Spearfish and runs about 20 miles up the canyon to Cheyenne Crossing, where it meets Highway 85 near Lead and Deadwood. Limestone walls a thousand feet high, spruce and birch on both sides, and Spearfish Creek beside you for most of it.
Two things people get wrong before they go:
It's a normal paved road. Two lanes, gentle grades, no gravel, no clearance required. A rental sedan does it fine. Speeds are low, which is the point.
It's shorter than it feels. End to end without stopping, allow about 45 minutes, you'll be driving slowly and pulling over. With the main waterfall stops, allow three to five hours. Most people underestimate this and end up eating dinner at 8 PM.
You can drive up and back the same way, it looks different in the other direction and in afternoon light, or make a loop by continuing to Cheyenne Crossing and coming back through Lead and Deadwood on 85 and I-90. The loop adds roughly an hour and a good chunk of the northern Hills.
The stops
Bridal Veil Falls
A few miles into the canyon, visible from a pullout right on 14A. A thin ribbon of water down the rock face. No hiking. Five minutes, a photo, back in the car. Volume depends heavily on season, dramatic in spring melt and thin in a dry August.
- Time
- 5-10 min
- Effort
- None
- Kids
- Yes
Spearfish Falls
Reached from the Savoy area. A trail drops down to the falls and back up, which is the whole difficulty: it's a climb on the return. Shorter than Roughlock but steeper. Worth it if your group has the legs.
- Time
- 45-60 min round trip
- Effort
- Moderate, uphill returning
- Kids
- Older kids yes
Roughlock Falls
The one to do if you only do one. A wide, layered falls on Little Spearfish Creek, reached by an easy path that follows the water. Broad, flat, well-maintained, shaded, and beautiful the whole way rather than only at the end. There's also road access closer to the falls for anyone who can't manage the walk.
- Time
- 1-1.5 hrs
- Effort
- Easy
- Kids
- Yes, including small ones
Devil's Bathtub
A narrow slot canyon with a rock pool at the bottom, and the most-photographed swimming hole in the Hills. The trail follows and crosses the creek repeatedly. You will get wet feet. Wear shoes you don't mind soaking, or water shoes. It's popular, parking is limited, and it is not the stop for a stroller, a bad knee, or anyone in flip-flops.
- Time
- 1.5-2 hrs
- Effort
- Moderate, wet, some scrambling
- Kids
- Confident walkers only
Savoy
The small settlement roughly mid-canyon and the hub for Spearfish Falls and Roughlock Falls. It's where Spearfish Canyon Lodge is, and it's the only real cluster of anything out there. If you're orienting yourself in the canyon, orient around Savoy.
- Time
- Orientation point
- Effort
- None
- Kids
- Yes
Fall colors
Spearfish Canyon in October is the single best week of the year here and most visitors miss it entirely.
The canyon is unusual for the Black Hills because it's full of birch, aspen and oak mixed into the dark spruce, so instead of a wall of evergreen you get gold and copper and red against deep green, stacked up thousand-foot walls, with a creek running through it. It photographs absurdly well.
Peak is usually somewhere in the first three weeks of October, but it swings a week or two either way depending on the summer's heat and moisture, and it moves up-canyon at a different rate than down. If you're planning a trip around it, plan for early-to-mid October and accept some variance.
What you get in October besides the color: no crowds, cool hiking weather, cheap lodging, and a town that's back to normal. It's the best-value trip to the Black Hills there is.
What there is to eat in the canyon
Very little. That's the honest answer and it's worth planning around.
Spearfish Canyon is national forest for essentially its whole length. There's no strip of restaurants, no gas station every few miles, no cell service you can rely on. Spearfish Canyon Lodge at Savoy is the one place in the middle of the canyon with food service, and Cheyenne Crossing at the top end has historically had a small store and café, but both have limited hours and seasons, and neither should be your dinner plan.
What to do instead: carry water and something to eat for the middle of the day. A sandwich in the car turns a rushed three-hour canyon trip into a relaxed five-hour one. Then eat properly at either end, in Spearfish at the north mouth, or in Lead/Deadwood if you're exiting south.
Coming back into Spearfish
The canyon mouth is at the south edge of town. From the last pullout on 14A to downtown Spearfish is a short drive, minutes, not a journey. You come out of the trees, the road straightens, and you're in town.
That geography is the whole reason this page exists. If you're standing at Roughlock Falls at 4 PM deciding whether to eat in Spearfish or push on to Deadwood, Spearfish is closer, it's the direction most people are already sleeping in, and you don't have to hunt for parking behind a casino.
Most of downtown Spearfish is walkable once you park once. Kitchens here generally run later than people expect for a town this size, we're open until 10 PM Sunday through Thursday and 11 PM Friday and Saturday. There's more on the rest of the town if you've got a second day.
Dinner after a canyon day
Here's the pitch, and it's the only one on this page.
After a day outside you want three things: to sit down, to eat something with substance, and to have a real drink. Killian's Food & Drink is at 539 W Jackson Blvd, steps from downtown, a few minutes from the canyon mouth, and open every day from 11 AM. We've been here since 2012.
It's a scratch kitchen run by Chef Nick Caton. The things that suit a canyon day best:
- Steaks and chops - petite filet, garlic butter sirloin, USDA Choice-or-higher ribeye, espresso-rubbed New York strip with crimini mushroom cream, Moroccan spiced lamb chops with Bordeaux cherry chutney. Every steak and entrée comes with a house salad, a cup of soup, or a cup of house-made black bean bison chili.
- Bison and elk - bison short ribs braised with Moroccan spice on truffle mashed potatoes, and the Dakota Meatloaf made from Rocky Mountain elk and bison. If you want the Black Hills on a plate rather than a generic American dinner, order one of these.
- Burgers - hand-pattied and charbroiled, and you can swap any of them for a bison patty. The Ridge Rider Tatanka Warrior is a bison burger with candied bacon, jalapeños and cheddar.
- Rum-cured trout - on coconut curry Brussels sprouts. Trout, after a day beside a trout creek, is a good ending.
And a real drink. The bar makes its own grenadine, bitters, michelada mix and local honey syrup, and ages two cocktails in barrels, a Barrelled-in-Bond Old Fashioned and the Verde Y Reposado. There are 17 rotating drafts including Crow Peak, brewed here in Spearfish, plus gluten-free beer, a full non-alcoholic beer list and mocktails if you're driving back to Deadwood. If you get in early, check happy hour; on a weekend, check whether there's live music.
Everyone in your group can eat, too, gluten-free buns and gluten-free fries by request, GF-marked entrées, a house-made bean patty, zucchini noodles and a portobella stack. See gluten-free options for the detail, including the honest bit: all items are prepared in one kitchen, and vegan, vegetarian and gluten free items are subject to possible cross-contamination.
Practicalities
- Hiking clothes are fine. Boots, dusty jeans, a fleece, completely normal here. Nobody will look twice. This is a Black Hills town, not a resort.
- Parking. Downtown Spearfish parking is free and easy compared with anywhere else you'll drive that week. Park once and walk.
- Kitchen hours. Open 11 AM every day. Close 10 PM Sunday-Thursday, 11 PM Friday-Saturday. Come earlier than closing if you want to sit and not rush.
- When the canyon crowd arrives. People who started the drive mid-morning tend to come off the trails between 4 and 6 PM and hit town shortly after. If you want a quiet table, come before 5:30 or after 8.
- Groups. Parties of 8 or more are subject to an automatic 18% gratuity. Call (605) 717-1255 ahead if there are a lot of you.
- Cell service. Patchy to nonexistent in the canyon. Screenshot your directions and pick your dinner plan before you drive in.
Frequently asked questions
How long does the Spearfish Canyon drive take?
About 45 minutes each way without stopping, roughly 20 miles of Highway 14A from Spearfish to Cheyenne Crossing. With the waterfall stops, allow three to five hours. The loop back through Lead and Deadwood on Highway 85 adds about an hour.
What's the best waterfall in Spearfish Canyon?
Roughlock Falls, if you're picking one. It's a wide, layered falls reached by an easy creekside path that's beautiful the whole way, and it works for most fitness levels and small children. Bridal Veil Falls is the easiest, visible from a pullout with no walking at all.
Is there anywhere to eat in Spearfish Canyon?
Almost nothing. The canyon is national forest for most of its length. Spearfish Canyon Lodge at Savoy has food service and Cheyenne Crossing sits at the south end, but hours and seasons are limited. Carry water and a snack, and plan a real meal in Spearfish or Deadwood.
When are the fall colors in Spearfish Canyon?
Usually the first three weeks of October, though it shifts a week either way with the weather. The canyon's birch, aspen and oak turn gold and red against the spruce. October is also the quietest and cheapest time to visit the Black Hills.
Is Devil's Bathtub hard to get to?
It's moderate and it's wet. The trail crosses the creek repeatedly, so plan on soaked shoes, and there's some scrambling near the end. Fine for confident walkers, not suited to strollers, flip-flops or bad knees. Parking is limited and fills up in summer.
How far is Spearfish Canyon from downtown Spearfish?
The canyon mouth is at the south edge of town, a matter of minutes from downtown. That's why most people who spend the day in the canyon come back into Spearfish to eat rather than driving on to Deadwood.
Do I need to change clothes before dinner in Spearfish?
No. Hiking boots and trail dust are normal in downtown Spearfish, including at Killian's. Come as you are, we'd rather you eat while you're hungry than drive back to a hotel first.
Is the Spearfish Canyon road paved?
Yes. Highway 14A is fully paved two-lane road the entire way, with gentle grades and low speeds. No high-clearance or four-wheel-drive vehicle is needed. Winter is the exception, check road and weather conditions before driving it after a storm.
Come out of the canyon, drive five minutes, sit down. We're at 539 W Jackson Blvd, open every day at 11 AM, and there's a barrel-aged Old Fashioned with your name on it.
Killian's Food & Drink
539 W Jackson Blvd, Spearfish, SD 57783 · (605) 717-1255
Mon-Thu 11 AM-10 PM · Fri-Sat 11 AM-11 PM · Sun 11 AM-10 PM
Parties of 8 or more are subject to an automatic 18% gratuity. All items are prepared in one kitchen. Vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free items are subject to possible cross-contamination.