How We Had a Good Time in the Badlands

We began our 2020 Roadtrip on a Friday after work and were hiking in the Badlands by 8 am Saturday morning. It was a haul and involved a few hours of driving in the dark but was totally worth it. 

We stayed in Sioux Falls, SD and woke up at 3:15 am to start our westward trek across South Dakota via Interstate 90. Like most things on this stretch of road, anticipation for our destination mounted as the sun rose behind us and we crossed into the Mountain Time Zone. Billboards for Wall Drug, The Firehouse, and Corn Palace acted as the countdown to civilization but we honestly loved crossing this vast farm land, complete with blooming sunflower fields. 

We were greeted at the Badlands National Park entrance by a bighorn sheep grazing in the center median, what a welcome! We then purchased our America the Beautiful annual pass for $80 from the park ranger and headed into the jaw dropping landscape of layered dunes and grassy canyons that are the Badlands. The road wove among these mini mountains for a short while before we got to our first stop, the Notch Trail. 

Since we entered the park through the Northeast entrance, which is less common, there were only around five cars parked at the trail head. This long parking lot is hard to miss as it serves as the trailhead to five different hikes. It’s the first one you come to after entering the park. The Notch Trail is located on the southernmost end. 

All aspects of this 1.5 out and back hike were enjoyable. We hiked between the clay canyon hills exclaiming over our first close-up view of their odd, eroded forms. Then we clambered up the wooden cable ladder with ease and much elation. At the top we took in the view of the canyon gulch and lingered there to really soak it in. Finally, we hiked along the edge of the cliff and out to the cliff “notch” where we were greeted with a fantastic overlook of the Badlands horizon and the cedar grove below. Simply stunning. And this was just one of the many stops we had planned for our day. 

Back at the car we decided to linger in this area just a little while longer to see some of the other views these trails had to offer before heading just a mile or so down the road to stop at the Cliff Shelf Nature Trail. 

The Cliff Shelf hike, an easy 1/2 mile loop, was refreshingly different from the Notch Trail hike. The trail is mostly wooden boardwalks and staircases and takes you through blissfully fragrant cedar grove. Seriously, I love the smell of cedar. Along this trail we saw more wildlife like mule deer and butterflies.

Back in the car, we made a few spontaneous stops to see fossils and prairie dogs before making it to our late breakfast/early lunch time destination, Panorama Point. The view and temperature was perfect as we opened the Corvette’s back hatch to dig into our iceless cooler.

Since we took the effort to plan out the stops we wanted to make in the Badlands ahead of time, our day was stress free. We still pulled over at a few random and amazing outlooks, but with the next destination marked, our day went smoothly and we never had to backtrack.

Here is a link to full Badlands National Park map.

Back in the car, we thoroughly enjoyed the drive on the way to our next selected destination, Yellow Mounds Overlook. The longer we walked around the more we were able to pick out the yellow and red tinges in the soft dirt around us. This was also the first location where we really stopped and studied the ground. It looks soft and like a good rain would weather it away, but it isn’t. It was actually quite solid, its layers of erosion naturally intact in all places creatures haven’t pounded it down to a powder. 

The drive to our final lookout destination was fabulous, taking us alongside and through many of the highest pinnacle cliffs in the Badlands. The final stop, Pinnacles Overlook, had probably the grandest view and definitely the biggest parking lot. Clearly, this is the most popular spot as it is the first lookout you come to if you enter through the Pinnacles Entrance, which is straight south of Wall, South Dakota. 

We did our share of people watching and landscape viewing on the edge of this lookout cliff but we knew our best experiences in the park were already behind us. So, we felt good about exiting the park and leaving the crowds of families to enjoy. At the exit we were greeted by a family of prairie dogs wiggling their butts at us and a long line of cars going the opposite direction. We hit the wide open road in the Buffalo Gap National Grassland and headed to Wall, South Dakota!