Badlands National Park Things to Do

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Our next stop was at Homestead Overlook, where Sue was busy taking this photo of the plant and ravine below while I was taking one (2nd) of her taking a photo! The flat area off in the distance is actually the Conata Basin for which the previous stop was named. This area looked very attractive to early settlers, as explained by the plaque (3rd photo) while other visitors pore over it.

It was only in 1891, after the Lakota Sioux of this area finally lost the war to defend their traditional lands from the US Cavalry, that this land was even considered for homesteading. Although the US Government had offered very attractive enducements to Americans from both the East and South (as well as European settlers) since the end of the Civil War, the high winds, little rainfall, poor soil, and extreme terrain of South Dakota meant that few took up the offer. It was only in 1907 that the coming of railways along with even better government offers of help attracted the first real wave of settlers to the grasslands of Badlands.

In the end, although hundreds of settlers made the attempt to grow crops on the flat lands of the basin, the poor soil soon made them realize that cattle ranching was a more sensible way to use this land, especially since there was fine grazing high above on the tabletops of the Badlands. This resulted in many settlers being bought out because of the acreage required for ranching. The final blow was the dustbowl of the 1930s when the US Government had to help move 85% of the homesteaders out of the area.

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Fifteen minutes after leaving Pinnacles Overlook, we had descended into a valley where we simply had to stop to take a closer look at the colourful formations at Yellow Mounds Overlook. These things were really amazing, with the combination of green, red, yellow, grey and blue colours and the rugged background mountains framing the scene. As it turns out, according to the experts, their greyish tops are the 34 million year old remnants of an eroded river flood plain that had gradually built up quite a layer of sediments during the building of what is now known as the Chadron Formation. The uplifting of this part of North America during the later formation of mountains exposed the seafloor mud to oxygen, causing it turn yellowish due to weathering effects which also resulted in the formation of these numerous small mounds as the seafloor was eroded.

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The park had one final surprise in store for us as we approached Big Badlands Overlook and the Northeast Entrance (or Exit!). Once up on the level ground again we were amazed to come across these eroded rock formations that looked like waves rolling across the plains! It was strange to see such relatively short yet jagged peaks arranged in rows with perfectly flat ground between them. We just had to stop for a closer look, including the closeup of some of the intricate patterns (4th photo) created as these formations continue to erode. In Badlands, there seems to be a surprise around just about every corner!

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Only a few miles after passing through Pinnacles Entrance, you will have to make a decision as to whether to head off to your right on the unpaved Sage Creek Rim road or continue eastward on the paved Badlands Loop Road. The Sage Creek road will eventually take you to state Highway 44 or you can veer off it to the north, eventually returning to just outside Wall.

The main attraction of the Sage Creek Rim road are the thousands of acres of vast open grassy lowlands, teeming with wild Bison as well as the underground 'Roberts Prairie Dog Town'. You are free to hike wherever you wish out in these plains but the trails are unmarked and it is best to keep your distance from the sometimes cantankerous Bison.

We chose to continue the short distance on the Loop Road where we pulled off into Pinnacles Overlook. This view of cars parked on Sage Creek Rim road was taken from there and shows the road looping out to the edge of the cliff before it heads off to the west. With our binoculars, we could see the Bison spread out in the distance on the grasslands. We've seen quite a few of them in Saskatchewan, so decided to stick to the Loop Road.

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Really, the western and eastern sections of the Badlands 'North Unit' are almost like two different parks. While we cruised along the western portion, most of our views were down onto the plains below as well as gently eroded peaks and valleys. However, once we descended beyond White River Valley Overlook the landscape changed entirely to one of multiple jagged peaks now towering above us as the road weaved its way between them. I found these peaks to be more visually spectacular because they are 'in your face' whereas the earlier more distant vistas gave a grander perspective of the vastness of the area. In a way, it was nice to end the trip with a 'bang' instead of a 'whimper'!

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Pinnacles Overlook certainly made for a great first stop in Badlands! We really enjoyed the spectacular views out over the flatlands below as well as into the many sharply eroded gullies leading down to a stand of Juniper trees. The beautifully warm temperatue combined with strong breezes blowing along the cliff-face made this a very memorable stop as we got out to explore as closely as we dared along the edges! According to Parks literature, it has taken about 500,000 years for wind and water to erode these deep cuts in the soft soils of the area.

A few minutes after leaving Yellow Mound Overlook, we had partially climbed back to the flat prairies above when we came across Conata Basin Overlook. It had such a great 'bird's-eye view' of our previous stop that we had to pull over to sample this more distant view of the mounds. It also clearly shows how the Badlands Loop Road twists through this part of the park and there is even a footpath along some of the ridgelines where visitors can be seen hiking for a closer look at the area.

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Panorama Point gave us one last look around from the top of the Badlands before we began to descend into another small valley. It was nice to see the contrast between the relatively flat grasslands above and the jagged valleys that transistioned into the flat basins below, especially with a few wild flowers blowing in the wind.

The colourful and jagged rocks of the third photo provide a good example of how the ground here was built up over the millions of years by differrent coloured layers of sand, silt and clay that solidified into sedimentary rocks. The distant peak, known as 'The Castle' always seemed to be within view as we drove onward, and we were getting closer.