Badlands National Park

   On our way to and from Wyoming and Montana there is a very good chance we will visit Badlands in southwestern South Dakota. First, there is simple logistics. Headed west, we have probably just driven several hundred miles across South Dakota and we are ready for a break. Headed east, we have probably driven from Devil's Tower or Mt. Rushmore accompanied by thousands of Harley riders going to the annual rally in Sturgis. By rally time, it is quite warm in the Great Plains so we are ready for a break. Cedar Pass Campground in Badlands is a good place to get electric hookups so we can run our Roadtrek's air conditioner.
  Oh, and the scenery and wildlife are pretty good, too.
  This in spite of the opinion of one early traveler that it is a land of unimaginable desolation. French explorers called the country les mauvaises terres, the bad lands. So did the Indians--mako sica. Even famed mountain man Jedediah Smith and his party of trappers were almost destroyed trying to get through the Badlands because, down in there, you can not tell if the next curve in the maze will take you through or to another dead end. Literally dead, that is. General Custer called the Badlands "Hell with the fires burned out."
   Today, travelers arriving via I-90 have a somewhat less threatening experience. Coming from the east, when you exit at Rt. 16A, the golden prairie just seems to roll on to infinity. Then the land suddenly falls away into broken, crumbling rock that has weathered into broken ridges and jagged spires. There are numerous pullouts along the road where you can stop to admire the view before 16A takes you back to I-90 at Wall, SD. If you have not been sleeping all the way from Sioux Falls you will have seen a few hundred signs inviting you to stop at Wall Drugs. Which you should do. Then, by South Dakota standards, it is only a short drive to Rapid City where you can find a motel room.
   Better yet, you might have made reservations at the the Cedar Pass park lodge so you can enjoy the way the light transforms the landscape at sunset and sunrise. Or, of course, you might get a campsite. Try to arrive by mid-afternoon, though, if you are traveling during the Sturgis Rally. Quite a few Harley riders swing through just for a quick look at the Badlands and end up staying. Bikers are more sensitive souls than you might think.
 

Early or late in the day is also best for wildlife viewing.

Archeological evidence suggests Indians have lived here since about 900 A.D. The Ogalala Sioux still do. The site of the Wounded Knee Massacre is just south of the park.

There is a sizable prairie dog town in Badlands. Visitors are cautioned to stay back because they carry the plague--the Black Death that killed a third of Europe in the 14th century. There is a cure today but you still don't want to mess with anything called Black Death.

Rt. 16A makes it easy to take a loop tour through Badlands N.P.

 Wall Drugs once attracted travelers by offering free ice water. Today it is the place to buy souvenirs and huge cinnamon rolls. Plus the chance to hobnob with bikers.