We planned a visit to Badlands National Park in 2021, back when we were hiking the Centennial Trail through the Black Hills in South Dakota. The Badlands and Black Hills are quite close to one another. But alas, an early winter storm chased us down the hills and away from South Dakota as fall turned to winter right before our eyes.

So, this year as we were heading west through the northern states, Rusty and I made a pact not to miss this wild and mysterious place called “mako sica” by members of the Lakota tribe, translated to “bad lands.” The Badlands are a lonely-looking place, with peaks, gullies, buttes, and wide prairies that are extremely challenging to cross. But a closer look at this place made us realize that looks can be quite deceiving. The summers are beautiful, teeming with wildflowers and thunder storms, but incredibly hot, and the winters are icy cold and windy. We visited in the fall when we were still able to enjoy the Badlands intricate and enigmatic ecology – tall prairie grasses, wild bison, big horn sheep, prairie dog towns, bald eagles, and a large variety of birds, butterflies, and insects.

We camped at a free Bureau of Land Management (BLM) property just outside the park, with stunning views and scenic overlooks. From our camp chairs on the edge of the “wall” of the Badlands we witnessed the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets, and lots of dirt roads to walk along while taking photos.

We also hiked a few of the Park’s most popular trails, including the Door Trail and Window Trail, easy treks to breaks in the Badland’s Wall, with views of an eroded canyon. Although we were tempted to climb on some of the larger rock formations, the Badlands’ rock is soft and fragile and visitors are required to stay on the trails.

Another hike we loved was Saddle Pass Trail, which started with a very steep and strenuous quarter-mile scramble over the Badlands Wall. At the top we had the amazing view of the White River Valley behind us, while in front of us was a large mesa prairie and a fairly flat, 4-mile loop trail called Medicine Root Loop. Here the Badlands don’t seem so “bad” as there were wildflowers, cactus, and even water along the trail. Animal scat showed signs where animals of all kinds congregate at the water sources that are usually tough to find within the Park.

Of course, Rusty had to find the most difficult trail to hike one day, taking off on a 22-mile-long unmaintained trail through the Sage Creek and Tyree Basins. More than 8 hours later, he arrived back at the van to describe his trek over mountains, along dry washes, through thigh-high prairies grasses and across prairie dog towns. He saw plenty of pronghorns along the way, as well as several bison herds he had to skirt around. And while he was clearly exhausted by his effort, I could tell he was glad to have done it.

The Ben Reifel Visitor Center is located at the east end of the Park, near a developed campground where visitors are welcome to get water, use their dump station, and even take showers. All-in-all, it was a beautiful destination, one of our favorites and we’d love to visit again in the spring, when the Badlands come to life after their hard-hitting winter months. For more information about the Park visit www.nps.gov/badl.