Events

1880 Train Holiday Express *Spiked*

Experience the magic and a spiked hot cocoa as you take a journey from Hill City to the North Pole! each ticket includes: Train Ride, Spiked Hot Chocolate, Sugar Cookie, Candy Cane, Keepsake thermal cup, Assigned seating in adult only car and a visit with Santa.

This option available on the following trips only:

November 23, 24 - 4:15 pm
December 1, 8, & 15 - 4:15 pm
December 22 – 6:00 pm

Dress for Success: Train cars are enclosed and slightly heated, but the boarding area is outdoors so dress appropriately.

1880 Train Holiday Express

Experience the magic as you take a one hour, round trip journey from Hill City to the North Pole where Santa will board the train and ride back to Hill City, taking time to visit with each child on the way. Passengers enjoy hot cocoa, a sugar cookie and a special story on the way to the North Pole. Santa hands out a special gift to each child on the return trip.

Dress for Success: Train cars are enclosed and slightly heated, but the boarding area is outdoors so dress appropriately.

Holiday Express Dates:

November 23-24, 2018

December 1-2, 8-9, 15-16, 22-23, 2018

See complete schedule and departure times online.

Lakota Nation Invitational

The Lakota Nation Invitational  (LNI) started as a small basketball tournament 42 years ago. Today, the tournament has grown to host 36 basketball teams, bringing 2,500 students and their families to Rapid City. A powwow, cheerleading competitions, wrestling, hand games, various knowledge challenges, art, and fashion shows are part of the long list of other events and activities that keep the week full of activities for spectators.

Learning Forum Series

Join the Journey Museum & Learning Center for its Fall Learning Forum series every Sunday from Oct. 7th through Dec. 16! 

Learning Forums are wide-ranging, thought-provoking presentations

Upcoming topics:

Oct. 7 - The Hiawatha Indian Insane Asylum

 Oct. 14 - Black Holes

Oct. 21 - 150 Years at SDSM&T

Oct. 27 - Bill Groethe Unfiltered

Oct. 28 - Beautiful Horror Stories 

Nov. 4 - Abandoned Rails: The Badlands Route

Nov. 11 - Amazing Science Steve

Dec. 2 - Come Home, South Dakota The George McGovern Story

Dec. 9 - 50 Years of Apollo

Dec. 16 - Muscle Memories

Typical schedule:
2 - 2:45 pm presentation
2:45 - 3 pm Q & A session with presenter(s)

Be sure to visit www.journeymuseum.org for more information on all our programs and events.

Turtle Soup Lecture Series

Feed your mind and your belly with your busy schedule in mind at Turtle Soup! 

Enjoy good stories, good food and good company on select Friday's from Noon - 1 pm. Every Turtle Soup will feature a history lesson on historical figures and events that influenced the Black Hills history and include a featured soup from Angel's Catering.

Turtle Soups are included in a regular admission to the museum or are 1/2 off for members. 

Typical schedule:
12 pm - 12:15 pm - Lunch is served
12:15 pm - 12:45 pm Presentation
12:45 pm - 12:55 pm Q & A

Presented Fridays at noon now April 13th

Upcoming topics:

Oct. 5 - Sitting Bull

Oct. 12 - Tom Sweeney Wants to See You!

Oct. 19 - Dinosaur Park, the Story of Artist Emmet Sullivan

Oct. 26 - The Rockerville Flume

Nov. 2 - "Beneath the Plain The Minuteman Missile On Alert" Film Premier

Nov. 9 - Tootsie South Dakota's State Animal

Nov. 16 - The Magic of Storybook Island

Nov. 30 - Violence in the Black Hills

Dec. 7 - Poker Alice

Dec. 14 - The Oscar Howe Tiospaye

Storybook Island Christmas Nights of Light

Storybook Island gets turned into a winter wonderland during the Christmas Nights of Light event. Check out all of your favorite storybook characters dressed up in lights for the holiday season. 

Hot Cocoa, Apple Cider and cookies from Eileen’s available for additional charge.

Geeks who Drink!

Prepare for the (free!) pub-trivia to rule them all. Think you're a smart-ass? Prove it. Lost Cabin is joining the Geeks Who Drink Pub Quizzes revolution! Teams compete weekly for street cred, swag, beer and prizes. Bring your A game, come up with a solid team name (puns encouraged), and get here early to lock down a seat for South Dakota's first Geeks Who Drink® trivia night.

Monday nights from 6 pm to 8 pm.

Scrooge of Deadwood

MURDER MYSTERY DINNER THEATER - - Mystery, Madams, Murder. Business as usual in Deadwood!  Can the spirit of the season touch the heart of the most despicable, ruthless man in town? Share the comedy and tragedy as we find out! Hosted at the Deadwood Comfort Inn, 225 CLIFF ST DWD catered by CHEYENNE CROSSING.  Live dinner music by Marv Barry. Full cash bar available.  Correctly guess the killer for a chance to win a  bottle of Black Hills wine.

Dinner @ 5:30 followed by the play!    RESERVATIONS REQUIRED

Performances are December 7, 8, 14, & 15 only. 

Local Beer Night

Celebrate South Dakota’s growing beer industry at Wobbly Bobby. Each Monday night, get $3 local taps!

Firehouse Brewing Theatre presents: American Buffalo

In a Chicago junk shop, three small-time crooks plot to rob a man of his coin collection, the showpiece of which is a valuable Buffalo nickel. These high-minded grifters fancy themselves businessmen pursuing legitimate free enterprise. But the reality of the three—Donny, the oafish junk shop owner; Bobby, a young junkie Donny has taken under his wing; and “Teach,” a violently paranoid braggart—is that they are merely pawns caught up in their own game of last-chance, dead-end, empty pipe dreams. This fast-paced drama is all aggression and testosterone, with characters wielding words like weapons to intimidate, cajole and manipulate each other. The results are hilarious, powerful and ultimately tragic in a play that’s recognized as a modern masterpiece. 

Performances are Friday and Saturday nights.
Doors open 6:30pm - open seating, performance 7:30pm.
November 23, 24, 30
December 1, 7, 8, 14, 15

History & Hops Trivia Night

Join us on Thursday nights at the Journey Museum and Learning Center for Fun, Family Friendly Trivia! Weekly prizes for the winning team and a season's winners prize package at the end of the year! Admission includes a complimentary beverage of your choice. 

October 18 - Universal Vs. Disney

October 25 - Music 50's & 60's

November 1 - Scary Places & Faces

November 8 - Harry Potter

November 15 - Music 70's & 80's

November 29 - Marvel Comics vs. DC Comics

Devember 6 - Lord of the Rings

December 13 - Music 90's & 2000's

Trivia at Contraband Distillery

Come out Thursday Night starting Oct 4th 2018 and play a little trivia at the areas NEWEST and HOTTEST Bar Contraband Distillery! Try one of there amazing drinks and sit back while we challenge your brains with a little trivia!! Great Prizes given away each night!! Hope to see you Thursday nights at Black hills Contraband!

Saturday Art Markets

We welcome you to join us at our Saturday Art Markets, your weekly holiday one-stop shopping extravaganza! Each Saturday from 12-5 we'll welcome a variety of Local Artists, hot drinks to sip, and the best Saturdays for your holiday shopping pleasure. 

Saturday Art Market Dates
November 17, 24
December 1, 8, 15, 22

Custer State Park Festival of Trees

The Festival of Trees is an opportunity for local businesses, civic organizations, and individuals to display a tree at the Custer State Park Visitor Center through the holiday season. Participants must supply their own tree and decorations, and are encouraged to decorate their tree in a way that promotes their business or services offered.

Tree setup can occur between Friday, November 23, and Sunday, December 26, between the hours of 9:30am and 3:00pm. Space is limited to approximately 20 trees and is on a first-come, first-served basis. If you are interested, please contact the Park Office at (605) 255-4525 for further information (space must be reserved before a tree may be setup). All participants are required to remove their tree between Wednesday, January 2 and 9.

There is no fee to participate in the Custer State Park Festival of Trees; however, a park entrance license is required to enter the park.

Voting on trees will be open Monday, December 17 and take place through Tuesday, January 1, 2019. The winner of “favorite tree” will be announced via Facebook and a press release. A park entrance license is required to enter the park and can be purchased at the Park Office from 8:00am to 4:30pm during the week, or at the Visitor Center open from 9:00am to 4:00pm. In observance of the holidays, the Visitor Center will be closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Winter Trail Rides

Every Thursday, bike rides leave Hay Camp Brewery at 6:15 PM. Either M-hill or Skyline is chosen and the crew rides! Bring your headlamp or let Acme Bicycles know you'll need a loaner.