Planning a trip to Badlands National Park

With its rugged terrain, extreme temperatures, and lack of water, the Lakota people were the first to call this part of South Dakota “mako sica,” or “land bad.” Nineteenth-century French trappers, too, referred to the region as “mauvaises terres a traverser,” or “bad lands to travel across” because of the frustrating, maze-like landscape of spires, pinnacles, and hoodoos. Today, those same features, in addition to the park’s wide-open grasslands, draw more than a million visitors every year to marvel and learn about the park’s 75 million years of geological history.

Planning a trip to Badlands National Park

• Getting to Badlands National Park
• Timing your visit to Badlands National Park
• Things to do in Badlands National Park
• Hiking in Badlands National Park
• Staying in and around Badlands
• Eating in and around Badlands
• How many days for Badlands

Getting to Bandlands National Park

Most visitors to Badlands National Park fly into Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP). A perfect place for an overnight stay, explore what Rapid City, aka the Gateway to the Black Hills, has to offer: the Journey Museum and Learning Center, The City of Presidents bronze statue collection in downtown, graffiti-filled Art Alley, and engaging Reptile Gardens, one of the largest reptile collections in the world and home to Maniac, the largest crocodile in the Northern Hemisphere. It’s a must-see, especially around feeding time!

From Rapid City, make the one-hour drive along Highway 44 to the northeast entrance. Or better yet, take the slightly longer drive along Interstate 90 and consider making the following stops on the way:

Ellsworth Air Force Base
North of Rapid City, visit Ellsworth Air Force Base, home to the country’s biggest bombers. The base tour includes a stop at an official underground Minuteman missile silo. Because of security restrictions, the base tour is only available to U.S. citizens and resident aliens. You must show a Real ID-compliant driver’s license, military ID, or passport. Just outside the base, visit the South Dakota Air and Space Museum to see Cold War artifacts, aircraft, missiles, and more. The museum is free.

Wall Drug
When an owner goes to the trouble of posting 290 signs up and down the highway inviting you to visit, how can you not go? Wall Drug is the name of a collection of gift shops, restaurants, and photo op statues that encompass an entire block in the town of Wall. Started in 1931 by Ted and Dorothy Hustead with the promise of “free ice water” to thirsty Badlands visitors, it’s become one of the country’s favorite roadside attractions. Make sure to take your photo atop the famed jackalope.

Minuteman Missile Visitor Center
Continue on Interstate 90 to the Minuteman Missile Visitor Center where you can learn about South Dakota’s fascinating role in the Cold War. Did you know that there were 150 nuclear missiles in South Dakota that—if deployed—could have reached halfway around the world in 30 minutes?

Badlands National Park is divided into three units: the North Unit, the Stronghold (also called South), and Palmer Creek Units, which are within the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Unless you’re a backcountry adventurer, you’ll likely stick to the North Unit.

Things to do in Badlands National Park

The park offers something for everyone including hikers, amateur geologists, dinosaur lovers, and stargazers.

Visitor centers
Located in the southeastern corner of the North Unit, Ben Reifel Visitor Center is the main hub in the park. Here, you’ll find a 23-minute introductory movie, ranger talk schedules, a gift shop, informative displays,  and a paleontology lab (summer only) where you can see actual scientists working on fossils. The paleontologists are happy to answer questions and discuss their work. During the summer, the center is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; in the winter, hours are shortened to between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.; during the shoulder seasons, the center is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.  There are rock formations close to the visitor center where car-weary visitors can climb. Just remember, the rules of gravity are in effect in the Badlands. Be careful not to fall!

The White River Visitor Center is located in the Stronghold Unit. Both the Stronghold and Palmer Creek Units are co-administered by the National Park Service and the Oglala Lakota Nation. This visitor center features displays pertaining to Native American culture, and Native American artists often sell artwork in front of the center. It’s generally open from Memorial Day through Labor day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Badlands Loop Road
The Badlands Loop Road is a bit of a misnomer, as it really doesn’t circle through the park. It can be considered a loop road if you include Sage Creek Rim Road and Highway 44. If you’re driving just the portion of the road within the park, plan on spending at least three hours, which includes time at viewpoints.

Almost all the overlooks along the Badlands Loop Road are worth stopping to view the dramatic landscape and learn more about the natural and human history of the area. At the Pinnacles Overlook, you’ll often find bighorn sheep. Other highlights include the colorful Yellow Mounds and Roberts Prairie Dog Town, where you’ll see hundreds of prairie dogs poking their heads from their holes.  

Wildlife
American bison can be seen in almost every part of the North Unit except for the area around the visitor center. As mentioned, you may also see bighorn sheep and prairie dogs, plus black-footed ferrets, bobcats, and pronghorns. Remember to keep at least 100 feet from any wild animal. If the animal is reacting to you, you’re too close! 

Dinosaur finds
About five miles north of the Ben Reifel Visitor Center, the Fossil Discovery Trail is a ¼-mile, paved walk with exhibits, introducing the paleontology of the park.  In the summertime, fossil talks happen here twice a day. Check with the visitor center for times.

Biking
Biking only is allowed on designated paved, gravel, and dirt roads within Badlands National Park. Cyclists should be fairly experienced. On Badlands Loop Road, they’ll find little shoulder and heavy traffic from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Water is not available along the route, so make sure to travel with plenty. For descriptions of particular loops visit nps.gov.

Stargazing
The night sky at Badlands is phenomenally clear. From Memorial Day through Labor Day, an evening ranger program is followed by star viewing at the amphitheater near Cedar Park Campground. Rangers pull out large telescopes and help you find different constellations, stars, and planets, weather permitting. With some luck, you may be able to see the International Space Station passing overhead! Night sky viewing starts around 9:45 p.m. in May, June, and July; in August and September, it starts at 9:15 p.m. 

Staying in and around Badlands

Accommodations for overnight stays in the Badlands are limited. It’s imperative that you make reservations in advance.

Cabins
Cedar Pass Lodge is actually a collection of cabins near the Ben Reifel Visitor Center. The cabin interiors are lined with fallen beetle kill pine from the Black Hills and furnished with handcrafted lodgepole pine furniture from a family-owned company in Montana. Outside, you can lounge in pine deck chairs while you take in views of the Badlands. Pet-friendly cabins are available for an extra fee. Cedar Pass Lodge is open late April through late October.

Other lodging outside of the park includes Badlands Inn and Badlands Budget Host Motel in Interior.

Campgrounds
Cedar Pass Campground offers both tent and RV sites with electric hookups only. Pay showers and flush toilets are available. There are no trees, but each campsite has a shade awning over a picnic table. The campground is open from early April through mid-October.

Sage Creek Campground is a free, primitive campground of 27 first-come, first-served sites on the western side of the North Unit.  There is no water and only vault toilets. The unpaved road to the campground has limited turnarounds for large RVs and is not passable after winter storms and spring rains. Due to overcrowding, changes could be coming to this campground. Check with the visitor center for updates. 

Backcountry camping
You don’t need a permit to camp in the backcountry within the park. Regulations state that you must be a ½ mile and not visible from any road or trail. Make sure not to leave anything in your car except a note on the dash stating when you’ll return. It’s best to park in an overlook, and be sure that you don’t block the road. Pack in all your water; if you find water, it’s not drinkable, even when filtered. Pack out all trash.  

Other camping options outside the park include Badlands/White River KOA, Badlands Interior Campground, and Minuteman RV Park and Lodging. You’ll find more options in Wall and Rapid City.

How many days should you plan to spend in Badlands National Park?

You can spend anywhere from a half day to several days in the park, depending on if you want to hike or if you want to see more than one unit. If you simply want to drive the 22-mile paved portion and the 25-mile gravel portion of  Badlands Loop Road, plan on three hours with stops. Otherwise, book an overnight stay in the cabins or campground, so you can witness both the sunset and the starry night sky.

If you only have one day to experience Badlands National Park, here’s a solid plan:

• Take Interstate 90 from Rapid City and stop at the Minuteman Missile Visitor Center.
• Visit the Ben Reifel Visitor Center in the North Unit and watch the park movie. Check out the paleontology lab, if you’re visiting during the summer.
• Drive to the parking area two miles northeast of the visitor center. You may be able to catch the ranger talk on the Door Trail. Regardless, don’t miss hiking the Notch Trail.
• Backtrack to the visitor center and then head out on Badlands Loop Road, stopping and taking photos at the various viewpoints including Yellow Mounds and Pinnacles Outlook where you may meet some bighorn sheep.
• When the paved road ends, continue on the gravel road. You’ll spot hundreds of prairie dogs at Roberts Prairie Dog Town. Then exit in the park in the northwestern corner. Or depending on your timing, you can double back to Pinnacles Outlook to photograph an unforgettable sunset.

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