National Park

21 photos · 2015–2024

21 photographs tagged National Park, 2015–2024.

Stratified badlands formations rise above grassland along Theodore Roosevelt Expressway in North Dakota. — These layered buttes sit within the Little Missouri Badlands, part of the Little Missouri National Grassland in western North Dakota. The banded rock exposed here records roughly 60 million years of sediment deposited by ancient rivers and swamps during the Paleocene epoch, including beds of lignite coal, clay, and sandstone. Erosion from wind and the Little Missouri River has carved the soft rock into the buttes and ridges typical of this terrain. Theodore Roosevelt ranched in this region during the 1880s, an experience that later shaped his views on conservation, and much of the surrounding land is now preserved within Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

Juniper Campground Road winds through Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota, lined with tall trees. — Juniper Campground sits in the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, along the Little Missouri River in western North Dakota. The cottonwood trees lining its access road grow in the river bottomland, where they find enough groundwater to survive in an otherwise arid badlands climate. Congress first protected this land in 1947 as Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park, redesignating it a national park in 1978. The North Unit covers roughly 24,000 acres and sees far fewer visitors than the park's South Unit near Medora.

A bighorn sheep stands on a ridge below towering tan badlands formations in South Dakota. — Bighorn sheep inhabit the eroded cliffs and buttes of Buffalo Gap National Grassland in South Dakota. The grassland surrounds much of Badlands National Park and provides habitat for wildlife adapted to the rugged terrain.

Eroded badlands formations at Buffalo Gap National Grasslands, South Dakota, at sunset. — Buffalo Gap National Grasslands, South Dakota. The grasslands include rugged badlands terrain along the southern edge of the Black Hills region. Much of the area is managed for grazing, wildlife habitat, and dispersed recreation.

Rainbow arcs over eroded badlands formations and grasslands in Buffalo Gap National Grasslands, South Dakota. — A rainbow arcs across a dramatic sky over the Buffalo Gap National Grasslands in South Dakota. This area, managed by the U.S. Forest Service, preserves a vast expanse of mixed-grass prairie and badlands topography. Established in 1960, the grasslands are a remnant of the Great Plains' natural landscape, supporting diverse wildlife and offering opportunities for dispersed recreation. The unique geological formations visible are the result of millions of years of erosion, creating a rugged and visually striking environment.

Eroded badlands formations with layered sedimentary rock at Badlands National Park, South Dakota. — The Badlands Wall formation stretches roughly 60 miles through Badlands National Park, separating the upper prairie from the lower prairie along the White River Valley. These sedimentary layers—bands of volcanic ash, claystone, and sandstone—were deposited between 75 and 28 million years ago and have been eroding at a rate of about an inch per year since the process began roughly 500,000 years ago. The park protects more than 244,000 acres, much of it co-managed with the Oglala Sioux Tribe as part of the adjacent Pine Ridge Reservation's South Unit. Fossil beds within these formations have yielded remains of ancient horses, rhinoceroses, and saber-toothed cats, making the area one of the richest Oligocene fossil deposits in the world.

Yellow sunflowers bloom along Sheep Mountain Road in Badlands National Park, South Dakota. — Sheep Mountain Road climbs through the South Unit of Badlands National Park, also known as the Stronghold Unit, which the National Park Service co-manages with the Oglala Sioux Tribe on land within the Pine Ridge Reservation. The park itself spans roughly 244,000 acres of eroded buttes, pinnacles, and prairie grassland, much of it protected since 1978. Common sunflowers, native to the Great Plains, spread along roadsides and disturbed ground throughout the park each summer, their bloom typically peaking from July into early fall. The gravel route here provides access to some of the more remote overlooks in the South Unit, away from the paved Badlands Loop Road that draws most park visitors.

Gravel road ascending toward eroded butte formations in Badlands National Park's South Unit, South Dakota. — Sheep Mountain Table Road climbs through the South Unit of Badlands National Park, a section co-managed with the Oglala Sioux Tribe under a cooperative agreement reached in 1976. The unpaved route becomes impassable when wet and is closed to vehicles beyond certain points during rain. This part of the park lies within the Pine Ridge Reservation and the Buffalo Gap National Grassland, land of long-standing significance to the Oglala Lakota. Unlike the paved loop road through the park's North Unit, this gravel route draws far fewer visitors, largely due to its remoteness and lack of pavement.

Sheep Mountain Table sign in Badlands National Park's South Unit grasslands, South Dakota. — Sheep Mountain Table lies in the South Unit of Badlands National Park, a section co-managed with the Oglala Sioux Tribe on land within the Pine Ridge Reservation. The unpaved road to the table climbs through prairie grassland and can become impassable after rain, which limits access to drier months. In early summer, the surrounding grassland fills with wild sunflowers and other blooming plants. Unlike the paved loop road through the park's North Unit, this route remains undeveloped, reflecting the South Unit's more remote management and limited infrastructure.

Unpaved road stretches through mixed-grass prairie with eroded buttes in Badlands National Park, South Dakota. — Badlands National Park's south unit is laced with unpaved roads like this one, which wind through mixed-grass prairie between the park's eroded buttes. The park covers roughly 244,000 acres and was established in 1978, though the striated hills visible along routes near Sheep Mountain have been taking shape for nearly half a million years as wind and water strip away layers of Oligocene-era sediment. This part of the park overlaps the Pine Ridge Reservation and is co-managed with the Oglala Sioux Tribe, whose ancestral homeland extends across the surrounding grasslands. Bighorn sheep and bison range through this section of prairie, and black-footed ferrets were reintroduced to the area in the 1990s after the species was once thought extinct in the wild.

Mixed-grass prairie with water channels and cloudy sky near Badlands National Park, South Dakota. — Badlands National Park spans more than 242,000 acres of mixed-grass prairie and eroded rock formations in southwestern South Dakota. The park was established in 1939, originally as a national monument, before gaining national park status in 1978. Much of the surrounding land outside the park boundary remains in private ranching use, a legacy of homesteading that followed the Homestead Act of 1862. The mixed-grass prairie ecosystem here is considered one of the few large intact examples remaining in North America, supporting native grasses alongside wetland pockets fed by seasonal runoff.

Abandoned wooden shed in yellow wildflower prairie with Badlands buttes and storm clouds, South Dakota. — This weathered wooden shed sits on private land along the edge of Badlands National Park, near the town of Interior, South Dakota. Homestead-era structures like this one are common remnants of the ranching and farming operations that once worked this edge of the prairie before much of the land was absorbed into the park and surrounding grasslands. The Badlands' mixed-grass prairie supports wildflowers such as yellow sweet clover, which spreads quickly through disturbed soil and roadside margins each summer. Thunderstorms building over the nearby buttes and formations are frequent in the region during the warmer months, as moist air from the plains collides with the elevated terrain of the Badlands Wall.

Green grasslands stretch beneath storm clouds near Badlands National Park, South Dakota. — Badlands National Park sits at the edge of a mixed-grass prairie ecosystem, one of the largest protected tracts of this habitat remaining in the United States. The park's 244,000 acres include roughly 64,000 acres of designated wilderness, where grasslands like these transition into the eroded buttes and spires the park is known for. These prairies support bison, bighorn sheep, and the black-footed ferret, reintroduced here in 1994 after near-extinction. The grasses and wetland pockets also help anchor the fragile, fast-eroding sedimentary rock that defines the surrounding badlands terrain.

Yellow center line marks Highway 44 stretching through Badlands National Park's eroded buttes and grasslands, South Dakota. — Highway 44 runs along the southern edge of Badlands National Park, linking the town of Interior to Rapid City and serving as an alternate route to the more heavily traveled Badlands Loop Road (Highway 240). The park itself was designated in 1978, though the area had been protected as a national monument since 1939. Badlands National Park spans roughly 244,000 acres of mixed-grass prairie and eroded buttes, pinnacles, and spires formed by deposits laid down between 69 and 75 million years ago. Erosion continues to reshape the formations at a rate of about an inch per year, among the fastest in the world.

Yellow center line marks a highway stretching through Badlands National Park's eroded buttes and grasslands in South Dakota. — Badlands Loop Road, designated South Dakota Highway 240, winds roughly 31 miles between Interstate 90 near Wall and the town of Interior. The two-lane route passes directly through the park's eroded buttes and pinnacles, formations built from layers of sediment deposited over about 75 million years and shaped by erosion over the last half-million years. Badlands National Park covers 244,000 acres, including the 64,000-acre Badlands Wilderness Area, one of the largest mixed-grass prairie wildernesses in the United States. The National Park Service built the road to provide access to overlooks such as Pinnacles and Yellow Mounds without requiring visitors to leave their vehicles.

Devil's Tower rises above grasslands and ponderosa pine forest under a starry sky in northeastern Wyoming. — Devil's Tower rises 867 feet above the surrounding grasslands of northeastern Wyoming, formed from an igneous intrusion that eroded into its columnar shape over millions of years. President Theodore Roosevelt designated it the first national monument in the United States in 1906. The Lakota, Cheyenne, and Kiowa hold the formation sacred and know it by names such as Bear Lodge, tied to origin stories about its fluted sides. Ponderosa pine forests and mixed-grass prairie surround the tower's base, habitat that supports deer, prairie dogs, and a range of raptors. Climbers have summited the rock since 1893, and it remains a popular technical climbing destination today.

Belle Fourche River winds through grassland with red rock formations and pine forest near Devil's Tower, Wyoming. — The Belle Fourche River flows through a landscape of red rock formations and pine forests in eastern Wyoming, near Devil's Tower National Monument. This river is the longest "all-water" river in the United States, meaning it is a river that flows entirely within the U.S. and is not a tributary to any other river. The Belle Fourche River has historically been important for agriculture and ranching in the region, with irrigation projects utilizing its waters since the early 20th century. Today, the area surrounding the river, including the nearby national monument, is a popular destination for camping and outdoor activities.

Black cow grazing beside Belle Fourche River with red rock formations of Devil's Tower National Monument behind. — A lone cow grazes near the Belle Fourche River, with the distinctive red rock formations of Devil's Tower National Monument in the background. The Belle Fourche River, the longest river in South Dakota, flows through Wyoming and is a vital water source for the region's agriculture and wildlife. Devil's Tower, a laccolithic butte composed of igneous rock, was designated the first national monument in the United States in 1906. Cattle ranching has been a significant part of the economic and cultural landscape of this area for over a century, with the river providing essential grazing land.

White teepee tent at KOA campground with red rock formations of Devil's Tower National Monument in background, Wyoming. — A teepee tent is situated at the KOA campground near Devil's Tower National Monument in Wyoming. The teepee, a traditional dwelling of many Indigenous Plains tribes, is a modern accommodation offered at the campground. Devil's Tower, a prominent geological formation, was designated the United States' first national monument in 1906. The surrounding landscape features striking red rock formations and sparse vegetation, characteristic of the semi-arid climate of the region.

La Sal Mountains rise above red desert terrain at Arches National Park, Utah. — Arches National Park lies just north of Moab in eastern Utah, bordered by the Colorado River. The La Sal Mountains rise beyond the park's boundary to over 12,000 feet, ranking as Utah's second-highest range and formed roughly 25 to 28 million years ago by intrusions of molten rock that never reached the surface. The park protects more than 2,000 recorded natural stone arches across roughly 76,000 acres, a product of erosion working on an ancient underground salt bed that caused the overlying rock to buckle and fracture. Formations near the Garden of Eden and the Windows section owe their spires and hoodoos to Entrada sandstone, where softer layers wore away and left harder rock standing.

West Baptism River winds through coniferous forest in Superior National Forest, Minnesota. — The West Baptism River flows through the Superior National Forest near Isabella, Minnesota. This waterway is part of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, a protected region known for its pristine lakes and rivers. The forest itself is a significant ecological area, supporting diverse wildlife and showcasing the natural beauty of the North Shore region. The river's name is believed to originate from early European explorers or missionaries who may have performed baptisms in its waters.

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