Badlands National Park

I love the Badlands and will continue to go back every chance I get! There are fossils lying all over the place, which is fun and unusual, and it is one of the few NP that you are allowed to go hiking off the trails – a little scary at first, but you can get away from the people and see some amazing things! I could never live there, but I really enjoy the stark beauty on vacations. The visitor center also has really great information!

You can see how this place got it’s name—it seems like it would not sustain any life whatsoever. However, much of it was quite beautiful and we were often surprised by the amount of wildlife that WAS living there. We saw lots of prarie dogs, mule deer and even, as I had hoped, a bighorn sheep. Also, saw in August 2007, a few flowers blooming, but NO water to be seen anywhere. The rock formations are dramatic and some quite colorful. Some of the rock was even yellow colored. I’ll probably edit this post later and add some more detail. Worth visiting, but make sure you have a reliable vehicle:)

Its appears to be lots of mini grand canyons placed next to each other in a mass grouping. I can only imagine what the pioneers thought when they arrived at the edge of this. Truly awesome.

I was helping my sister get two cars and two kids from CT to CA, and we routed our trip through, among other places, the Badlands. It was so impressive! It was one of the highlights of the trip for me.