Bear Butte State Park

Bear Butte rises about 1,250 feet above the plains near Sturgis, South Dakota, formed as a laccolith when magma pushed up and cooled without reaching the surface. Known to the Lakota as Mato Paha and to the Cheyenne as Noahvose, it is a sacred site used for prayer, fasting, and ceremony; visitors on its trail will often see small cloth bundles and prayer flags tied to trees, left by Native worshippers, and are asked not to disturb them. A summit trail climbs about 1,000 feet in elevation for views over the northern Black Hills. The town of Sturgis nearby is famous for its annual motorcycle rally.