Wind Cave National Park hit hard by Dec. 18 wind storm
Crews clear a tree that had fallen in front of the Wind Cave National Park visitor center near some of the park’s vehicles. Only one structure was directly hit by a falling tree and none of the park’s vehicles sustained any damage. (NPS photo)
The Rankin Ridge Nature Trail, the most heavily-used trail at Wind Cave National Park, is littered with fallen trees. This picture is of the trail head parking lot. Park staff say this is one of the heaviest hit areas of the park and that it looks like a “war zone.” Photos by Marcus Heerdt/Fall River County Herald-Star
The lone ponderosa pine tree of which “Lone Pine Point” along NPS Road 5 at Wind Cave National Park was appropriately named, is no longer standing as it was just one of the many casualties of the Dec. 18, 2025, wind storm that led to many fallen trees throughout the Black Hills.
HOT SPRINGS – The word “wind” in the name Wind Cave National Park is highly appropriate after the regionally-devastating wind storm of Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, hit the park hard and crews will be working on cleaning up the damage for a long time to come.
“We are just glad that nobody got hurt,” said Tom Farrell, chief of interpretation for the park during an interview on Jan. 13, 2026.
