7/18/09 & 7/19/09 - Badlands NP, SD











We left Hot Springs and drove to the Cedar Pass campground of Badlands National Park near Interior, South Dakota. We went to the visitors center to get oriented and then went on several short hikes in the park. We also drove the park’s scenic loop. Unlike most national parks it is OK to get off established trails. In fact people are allowed to go anywhere in the park and climb all over the formations. The place is full of highly eroded hills consisting mainly of crumbly bentonite (the stuff kitty litter is made of) that look like miniature alp-like mountains. We also drove to nearby the nearby town of Wall which has an old 1930’s drug store that has expanded into a major tourist trap.