"Travelogue: Badlands National Park, loop road"

(click pics to enlarge)

I remember a particular tourist on one of my many excursions into the Badlands...he wasn't talking to me directly, but speaking loudly to a couple of other people with him...and he said "This place is boring! There's nothing to see or do!"
What a pity his life must be.

In fact, at every turn, the scenery changes. At every angle of the sun the scenery and colors change. There is so much "Life" to be seen that I can't fathom why someone couldn't see it. *sigh*. Welcome to a day's journey along the loop road through Badlands National Park in southwest South Dakota (once again)...

It is an eerie landscape, to be sure...half canyon, half moonscape...and the music I wrote to the video postcard I made 2 years ago befits the mysterious beauty (link at the bottom). And yet, one need only search for info on Chief Big Foot...The Ghost Dance...Wounded Knee...and realize the painful and deeply saddening history that took place right here, and not all that long ago....

When it's warm and dry, it's a veritable wonderland to explore...the summers can get painfully hot, and the winters bitterly cold...but that Badlands soil is something to behold when it gets wet, and travel can easily become impossible...

Creatures like the baby Bighorn above adapt well to the harsh landscape, finding plenty of food to graze on, their sure-footed hooves helping them traverse the landscape with ease...

Too, there are numerous dinosaur fossils that emerge in the silty landscape after heavy rains, and are fully protected and monitored...the likes of T-Rex and Triceratops...I can only imagine what indigenous peoples thought of these huge bones when they saw them many moons ago...

While there is basically the one giant paved loop through this incredible national park, there are many spurs and trails to hike...and within yards you'll be out of sight of roads and traffic, and immediately immerse yourself in a strange but wonderful world.

"Spring Day In The Badlands"
video link

Travelogue: Roosevelt National Park - North Unit

This is one of those magical places far off the beaten path...(click on pics to enlarge)

Few travel through North Dakota as it is, and the majority zip along I-94 through the southern tier. In the far southwest corner along I-94, you'll find the quaint tourist town of Medora, sitting alongside the better known South Unit of Roosevelt National Park.

This was the fabled home away from home ("Elkhorn Ranch") for Teddy Roosevelt, champion of the preservation of wilderness areas. He was very fond of its beauty, and I think you can tell why. If you can't, then "Bully!" to you.

The North Unit, however, is about 70 miles away farther to the north and a little east...much smaller than the South Unit, and far off the beaten interstate path. Remarkably few travelers trek to it, and what a gem they are missing. In a way, it's rather simple in layout: a one-way 14-mile road winds it's way through a breath-taking landscape of ever-changing beauty.

I ran into precious few visitors, as you can tell with my last picture where I took the liberty to lie in the road for a semi-self portrait and a reflecting pool...kinda sorta.

This is part of what is called The Badlands of North Dakota...of course, "THE" Badlands are usually reserved for the South Dakota counterparts. I like to refer to the North Dakota Badlands, though, as the South Dakota Badlands with "hair" because of the more prevalent vegetation...Nature's toupee, in a way.

Always remember that some of the more magical, wonderful places aren't the ones everybody goes to...but the ones they overlook.