PHOTOGRAPHER'S PERSPECTIVE ON LOCATION SERIES: SOUTH DAKOTA

BADLANDS NATIONAL PARK
WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA, USA
Text and image copyright Juli E. Wilcox, all rights reserved

ACCESS
Badlands National Park, 240,000 acres in three units, is located in western South Dakota south of I-90 at exit 131 from the east, exit 110 from the west or 72 miles east of the Rapid City Regional Airport on highway 44. The park is open all-year round; access is by 7-day permit ($10.00 per 4-wheel vehicle, $5.00 per two-wheel vehicle) or by National Parks Pass, and Golden Eagle or Golden Age Passports.

AREA LAYOUT
The north unit is the most heavily traveled with a well-developed 89-mile Badlands Loop that contains pull-offs, scenic overlooks, unique land formations, hiking trails, primitive camping, Cedar Pass Lodge (seasonal), Ben Reifel Visitor Center and a fossil trail where travelers can see fossils left in the ground. The Stronghold and Palmer Creek Units are located on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and managed cooperatively by the Oglala Lakota Sioux and National Park Service.

Photographic opportunities are endless in the Badlands which are within a two or three-hour drive of the Black Hills, Wind Cave National Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, Black Hills National Forest and Custer State Park.

WHAT YOU’LL FIND
Mixed prairie grasses dissolving into a jagged sea-bottom that is the baddest of the Badlands is what you’ll find. It is an ever-eroding arid bone-bed, which may be deceptively green in the spring or during a wet season. Millions of fossilized sea creatures and long-lost mammals, their bodies encased in sandy ash and shale, wait for summer storms to wash them from darkness into light. There, when rains carve clay draws and make the rivers run white, it might as well be on the other side of the moon because it is like no place on earth. It is the western-most part of the state I call home— it is South Dakota.

Over 55 species of grasses, spires of eroding fossil-filled earth, deep ravines and fissures, and panoramas await a macro or wide-angle lens. In a land once roamed by not only dinosaurs but also the ancestors of camels, pigs, horses, rhinos, rodents and big cats, today, expect to find Bison, Pronghorn (antelope), Bighorn Sheep, Mule Deer, Black-tailed Prairie Dogs, Black-billed Magpies, Sharp-tailed Grouse and Western Meadowlarks. One of the rarest mammals on earth, the Black-footed Ferret was re-introduced to the area in 1991 and there may now be over 200 living in the prairie dog burrows on the border of the park and adjacent grasslands.

LIGHT
Except for a half hour in the morning or evening, the light is exceedingly harsh and flat in the Badlands and photography can be challenging. Neutral-density, warming or polarizing filters may be useful for brightening or saturating colors. The colors are also greatly intensified after a rainstorm or on cloudy days. Finding shaded areas with reflected light will reveal beautiful, if somewhat subtle, ochre, earthy, tawny, or rust colors. The grasses add texture, motion and lovely pastel colors depending on the season. Sunsets can be spectacular due to unpolluted air and wide-open spaces. The nights are black and elegant timed exposures producing star trails or even shooting stars may be possible.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS
As with any arid climate, sun protection and water are mandatory for day trips. In the summer, the temperature may exceed 100 degrees in the shade. Long pants and sturdy shoes or boots are recommended for protection from cacti and Prairie Rattlesnakes. Extra caution is advised near the edges of cliffs due to crumbling earth, and travel on unpaved roads during the wet season is highly discouraged.

For further information on Badlands National Park, go to www.nps.gov/badl.

Although a native Floridian, Juli E. Wilcox has lived in South Dakota for 42 years. Her Swedish/German ancestors farmed the North Dakota prairie. She is a speech-language pathologist by day and otherwise a freelance photographer/writer/editor.

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