Day 4: Badlands and Beyond

 I am well known for taking too many photos of every aspect of my life, but on the fourth day of our road trip, I outdid myself. I believe this is the most pictures I've ever taken in one place. Despite that, they fail to capture the grandeur and scale of the Badlands.

Monday (Memorial Day) dawned clear and bright. After briefly thinking about exploring some local spots, Mike and I settled on the motel breakfast. It was actually quite tasty and satisfying. It took us a little while to get out of the lobby afterwards because everyone was so friendly and kept asking us about ourselves and making recommendations for places to see.

Bear Country USA was a top favorite, but we'd circle back to that later. 

After chatting with a nice older couple and grabbing some maps, we packed up the room and got checked out. 

I had Bonnie leashed, of course. A few doors over, another older couple was getting ready to hop on their Harleys. They had a tiny poodle mix, and he was running loose. He spotted Bonnie from across the parking lot and came dashing over.

I watched the color drain from the woman's face as she watched her small dog running right at our pit bull. I'm sure she had all kinds of horrible visions going through her head. 

"It's ok! She's friendly!" I called out, just as Bonnie made herself into a pancake, flat on the ground in her version of a play bow.

The relief was instant and the biker lady started cracking up. That was the ice breaker we needed to chat about our respective travels.

When she found out we were from NJ, she said something that would stick with me long after we parted ways. She said, "I love the east coast! Your trees have trees out there!"

Of course, we had noticed the distinct lack of forest west of the Mississippi. People have commented several times on this blog about how green my photos are. But hearing her say that out loud shifted my perspective. When we got home, I had to admit she had a point. We do have a lot of trees out here! I don't think I'll ever take that for granted again.

At about 8:45am, we waved a fond farewell to the motel-that-turned-out-alright and hit the highway once more.

Shortly after that, we hit our second time change. This was my first time in the Mountain Time Zone. Woohoo!

Things were shockingly flat out here, and we passed a few examples of "what people do for fun". I was quite amused by some of the roadside sculptures. There wasn't much else to see.

Flat. No trees.

Dinosaurs seemed to be a theme out here. This makes sense with all the fossil beds in the area.

Runaway stagecoach sculpture.

Some time later... Indians in pursuit. I cackled.

One of many "henges" we saw in our travels. We did not stop at this one, but it was worth a shot out the window.

Eventually, we spotted a scenic pull-off, which gave us a preview of the Badlands. We also ran into one of the couples from the motel! We ended up leap-frogging with them for a good portion of the day, which I found greatly amusing.

Nothing as far as the eye can see.

I love Bonnie's ears in the back seat. The truck was quite dusty by this point.

A preview of exciting things to come. This photo is an excellent summary of South Dakota.

We pulled off the highway and stopped for gas before tackling the scenic drive. I spotted some bison statues near the parking lot and went over for a picture. That's when I realized the ground was teeming with prairie dogs! Hannah had warned me that they can carry the plague so I kept my distance, but they sure were cute! 

Later in the day, we saw several tourist traps that involved paying to see/photograph/feed the prairie dogs. I wanted to shout, "Just go to the gas station!" Those buggers had no fear of people!

Before our main attraction, we made one more quick detour. The Minuteman Missile National Historic Site was just around the corner. Admission was free and the exhibits were very interesting. 

Mike and I would have liked to do the underground bunker tour, but the weather was turning hot already, and I didn't feel comfortable leaving Bonnie in the car for 45 minutes, even with the windows down. 

Instead, we stuck to the main building. The information and perspective were quite sobering given the current state of affairs in our country. 

They call this thing the Peacekeeper.

After touring the missile site, we made our way to the entrance to the Badlands. Mike had his wallet out, ready to pay, when the ranger informed us that Memorial Day admission was free. That was a pleasant surprise!

I will try to do this part of our trip justice, but it's going to be hard. The scenic drive is nearly 40 miles long with 16 overlooks and countless trails along the way. We stopped constantly over the next several hours, but it has been nearly two months now, and the details are a little blurry. I'll let the photos do most of the talking.

We started with the Big Badlands Overlook, which gave us our first real glimpse of the surreal terrain around us. Weirdly, my fear of heights didn't kick in here. While we were very high up with nothing to break a potential fall, I think the lack of trees for scale numbed my senses. This was a relief!

Dogs are not allowed on the trails at the Badlands, but they are allowed in the parking areas, overlooks, and along the roads. There were lots of short walks for Bonnie. Mike and I did some shorter hikes without her, leaving the AC running and the windows cracked.

The road winding deeper into the Badlands.

Pro tip: if you're going to visit the Badlands, sunglasses are a must. I did not know this and I was suffering from the sun glare, even after Mike loaned me his hat.

You can't tell how vast this landscape is.

Splooting.

The next parking lot gave us access to both the Door and Window Trails. There were accessible boardwalks, which I thought were a very nice touch. Mike and I explored both trails, marveling at the difference in geography even in such close proximity. 

There were signs warning of rattlesnakes everywhere, but we did not see any.

This felt like I picture Egypt.

So many nice people offered to take our picture.

You can just wander out into the backcountry here. I would not be brave enough to explore without a marked route, but apparently people do it. 

Looking out the Window Trail.

We did climb some of the tamer formations.

Cliff Shelf was our next stop. This spot stood out because of the greenery (and cacti). We saw some people teetering high up on ledges around us, but I wasn't brave enough to try that. Here, I experienced some vertigo, even though we were safely on flat ground. I think it was the sheer scale of the landscape that triggered something in my inner ear. It was quite unsettling. 

Mike and I talked about what it would have been like to be a pioneer in the olden days, stumbling upon a landscape like this. It has to be completely mind-boggling.

It still is.

I loved the cacti in the foreground.

We paused briefly at the visitor center, and I wanted to check out the gift shop. Frankly, it was an utter zoo, and I ducked out as quickly as I went in. We did not experience crowds elsewhere in the park.

Bonnie also did not have sunglasses.

At Saddle Pass, we ran into another couple who had a corgi named Tilly with them. They hadn't realized that dogs aren't allowed on the trails. They were just walking to each trail head and not going beyond. We got a family photo of them, and they returned the favor.

Not the most flattering photo of me, but I love that the joy is palpable.

At the White River Valley Overlook, I got brave and wandered out onto a narrow ledge with a panoramic view. I was doing ok until I turned around and saw how far I had gone and how itty bitty the path back was. Whoops!

Here we also ran into someone who was doing a cross country move with their dog, an Australian shepherd. I got some candid photos of them and went over to introduce myself and text the photos over. It turned out the dog's name was Ozzy. 

It was the sign I didn't know I was looking for in that moment.

White River Valley

Mike out on the ledge.

Ozzy the Aussie and owner.

In quick succession, we visited Panorama Point, Bunns Basin (swarming with prairie dogs), and Homestead Overlook. Along the way, we passed many bison in the road. The ones in the Badlands had a rough look about them, which makes sense given the lack of vegetation. They were also massive. 

I didn't think bison would be exciting since we technically have them at home and I've ridden the horses past them on multiple occasions. Seeing them in the wild was a different feeling entirely. Of course, all photos were taken from inside the car.

Cars for scale.

Soon, we came to what I think was my favorite part of the Badlands northern unit. The yellow mounds! The yellow mounds owe their color to iron-rich minerals oxidizing over millions of years. Whatever the chemistry, the colors are impossible to appreciate fully in photographs. Just wow.

Bonnie yawns across America.

So cool.

Here we saw lots and lots of meadowlarks! We do not have meadowlarks at home so this was really neat. 

Our final stop in the north unit of the Badlands was the Pinnacles which gave us a dramatic last glance at this part of the park. I think we did the drive in the reverse direction of what people normally do. This vista is what normally welcomes people into the park. I enjoyed viewing it as a sort of last scene.

Our Badlands adventures were far from over, however!

Most people are familiar with the Badlands Scenic Loop. There is also the lesser-known Sage Creek Rim Road, which splits off to the west. This dirt road was reportedly a good place to see some wildlife.

Indeed, we saw countless bison and one whole pronghorn. We would see many more of those later in our trip.

Pretty desolate.

One (1) pronghorn.

The Rim Road took us to the southern unit of the Badlands. This is the side that doesn't get all the mainstream media attention. In fact, we found ourselves completely alone as we drove. We even pulled over to give Bonnie a proper walk.

Nobody else in sight.

I had a very specific destination in mind for us on this leg of the adventure. I had discovered Sheep Mountain Table, the highest point in the park about 3,300 feet above sea level. This flat-topped formation promised an excellent view. The road continued beyond the overlook, but there were many warnings about needing four wheel drive and high ground clearance. 

We decided to give it a try and evaluate the road conditions as we went.

The drive up was intensely beautiful. I told Mike that this was the type of trail I could see myself navigating by horse. Some day, maybe...

The table rising before us. We were heading to the top.

This ended up being my favorite part of Day 4. We did briefly run into another couple at the top of the mountain, but we soon went our separate ways. The views were indescribably vast. I felt small in the same way I do when I stand next to the ocean. 

There were two separate overlooks, one on each side of the plateau. Having this entire expanse of wilderness to ourselves was breathtaking. I could have sat there for a very long time. 

While we took in the vistas, flocks of tiny violet-green swallows flitted around us. That is another type of bird we had never seen before. They were adorable.

You can't really tell, but the truck is parked right on the ledge.

We were very high up.

More Bonnie yawning across America.

We did investigate the next stretch of road. It looked reasonable enough to start, but we could tell it had the potential to get gnarly fast. Between the new truck, the lack of cell service, and the rising heat, we decided not to tackle anything we might not be prepared for.

I was satisfied with our exploration of the Badlands, though I could have spent a lot more time there without complaint. We agreed to head back towards civilization. Or at least South Dakota's version of it.

Winding our way back down into the valley.

Knowing that I would probably need sunglasses for the remainder of our trip, we agreed to stop at Wall Drug to see what all the hype was about. Well... we came, we saw, we got anxiety about the crowds, we moved on.

It was worth it to see this guy.

Proof we were there.

The good news about stopping in Wall was that we found the Red Rock Restaurant, which was the perfect place for lunch, and included a shaded outdoor patio. We ate more cheese curds while listening to the genuine cowboys at the table next to us. I had an incredible prime rib sandwich while Mike went with the pulled pork. 

We debated checking out the highly recommended Bear Country USA, but ultimately decided not to risk damage to the brand new truck. It turns out they only had black bears, not grizzlies. We have those at home. Haha. 

After lunch, we made one last push to our final destination. The mountains began to come into view and we started to see trees again as we drove through Sturgis, Lead, and Deadwood.

Tuckered out.

Then it was 5+ miles of winding dirt road through the canyons to the cabin I had rented for the bulk of our trip. 

We arrived and it was stunning. We were greeted by a log cabin with a green roof and wraparound porch. The well maintained yard ran past a fire pit and benches to a beautiful overlook off the side of the mountain. Best of all, there were no other residences in sight. This would be our home away from home for the next four nights.

Bonnie was absolutely thrilled to have free rein of the yard.

Loved the rug!

The view from the yard.

I quickly fell in love with the towering Ponderosa pines.

While I was very pleased with the cabin overall, there were a few drawbacks worth noting. 

There was no air conditioning. This was not a problem during our stay, and I'm guessing the temperatures don't get too high at this elevation, but I was a little concerned at first.

The stairs to the second floor where all the beds are were handcrafted out of presumably local timber. They were very beautiful, and we were warned about them ahead of time, but they would definitely be treacherous to the old, the young, some pets, and anyone with mobility issues. They were narrow, unevenly spaced, and featured large gaps. 

Bonnie fell through them on the first try. I caught her before she got hurt, and she learned to navigate them slowly after that. 

But the worst part was the water. We had been warned that the water was safe, but had a smell that "some people might find off putting". Our cabin in Virginia in April came with a similar warning, but we didn't notice anything amiss.

The South Dakota cabin, on the other hand, was definitely noticeable. The water smelled like rotten eggs. I'm sure it's a common challenge with well water in some areas, but it was enough that I probably wouldn't book this particular cabin again.

We drank bottled water for the next few days, and we were able to get laundry done, but it definitely ruined showering until we hit hotels on the way home. 

Still, I want to be very clear that we really enjoyed our stay in this spot.

On the first night, we headed back into town where we found a quiet corner store stocked with a little bit of everything. We picked up some beer and whiskey, which we enjoyed on the wraparound porch at sunset. 

After four long travel days, it felt good to settle in and do some reading and relaxing before bed. 

That night we slept with the balcony door open and the mountain wind blowing softly around us. The next day, we would start to dig into everything else South Dakota had to offer. I couldn't wait.

Heavenly.

A beautiful sunset.