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South Dakota is home to two National Parks, Badlands National Park and Wind Cave National Park and the well known National Monument, Mount Rushmore. There are also several state parks, including Custer State Park, that are worth checking out during your visit.
Though Badlands National Park is a relative small park compared to some of its neighbors, like Glacier National Park, it is a great place to see wildlife, stargaze and open camp.
I find some of those larger parks overwhelming, because you want to see it all but only have so much time in one visit, usually. That’s what I loved about this park, you could spend a day or two and quite literally see it all and really experience the entire park.
There is also some great hiking. These are the top Badlands National Park hikes you must check out during your visit.
Window Trail
The door trail, window trail, Castle trail and Notch trail all start from the same parking lot, which means during the busy summer months, parking can get tricky. This is an easy 0.25 mile round trip with great views and is labelled by the National Park Service as “intricately eroded canyon.”
Door Trail
Another easy trail, this one is 0.75 miles round trip with 0.25 miles of accessible boardwalk at the beginning that provides views of the unique rock formations that make Badlands National Park a popular destination. After the boardwalk you have the open hike policy where you can wander about the rock and spires, with some signposts to guide you along the way. The plant life here is extremely unique mixed in with the multicolored rock.
Castle Trail
This is the longest hike in the park at 10 miles out and back starting in the same parking lot as the Window trail, just across the street and ending at the Fossil Exhibit trailhead. It’s an easy, flat walk and even though its a longer hike it’s not that challenging.
Notch Trail
This was one of my favorite hikes in the whole park. The notch trailhead in the same parking lot as the others but is a very separate trail. The door and window trails are very close to one another and provide some of the same scenery, whereas the Notch trail is it’s own unique place.
It is 1.5 miles round trip with a ladder you need to climb to get up to the main part of the trail and some moderately sketchy narrow trail to navigate. It is one of the best hikes in the park and one of the best places to get off trail and explore all the nooks and crannies in the rock.
Fossil Exhibit Trail
The Fossil exhibit trail is a short trail and an easy hike and is one of the most popular trails for families. This trail is only 0.4 miles round trip and one of the fully accessible boardwalk trails. Dotted along the trail are informative signs that talk about the fossils that have been found in the area and how they date the rocks and what type of rock is found. It’s one of the best things to do if you want to better understand how the area was formed all those millions of years ago.
Saddle Pass trail
This trail connects with both the Castle Trail and the Medicine Root loop and is a steep 0.25 mile round trip trek. It might be short but it is one of the steepest hikes in the park. If you plan to do either the Castle Trail or the Medicine Root loop trail, this one isn’t one I would recommend over those since it all connects anyway and you won’t miss much by skipping it (other than a solid leg workout).
Medicine Root trail
This is a 4-mile round trip, easy trail (I mean most of the hikes in the Badlands are pretty easy walking to be honest) that connects to the Castle trail. One of the longer hiking trails it takes you through a lot of grassland and there, honestly, isn’t a lot to look at.
Cliff Shelf Nature Trail
This short 0.5 mile round trip hike takes you around an area that is vastly different from all the other hikes. There is a lot of boardwalk but the elevation gain is 200 feet, so the trail is considered moderate. It’s not that bad. It has some interesting history and the scent from the juniper trees makes this short walk a must do.
Tips for visiting Badlands National Park
- There’s not a lot of water sources in the park so make sure to have your water bottle (like the CrazyCap Water Purifier – you can read my review on it here) with plenty of water.
- Many of the trails have an open hike policy, which means you can wander off trail and make your own way, just make sure to practice leave no trace principles and stay off sensitive plant life.
- The best time of year to visit is apparently the summer months, however, I would argue that the best time is in the fall, when there are less crowds and the temperatures are not quite so high.
- Entrance fee = $30 per car, good for 7 days or bring along your America the Beautiful pass!
Concluding Thoughts
If the Badlands hikes are not an option for you or does not interest you, there are plenty of other things to see and do. Make sure to stop at the Pinnacles Overlook at night for the best stargazing in the park and take the scenic drive along the Badlands loop road, pulling over to get photos of the colorful rock formations.
You can get great views of the badlands from many of the overlooks and also have the opportunity to see some prairie dogs, bighorn sheep and bison.
Check out my full guide to Badlands National Park for more information on how to plan your trip.
