A dense morning fog envelops the Ponderosa pines of the Black Hills in South Dakota, softening the outlines of the forest and muting the green tones of early summer. The moisture-laden air clings to the tall trunks, creating an atmosphere of quiet stillness and mystery. This type of fog commonly forms in the higher elevations near Custer State Park and the Needles Highway, where rapid temperature shifts cause mist to settle among the rugged hillsides and conifer stands, briefly transforming the landscape into an ethereal woodland veil.

A newly paved stretch of Highway 44 cuts through the rugged formations near Scenic, South Dakota, beneath a vivid summer sky. This east–west route skirts the southern boundary of Badlands National Park, where blacktop meets eroded buttes carved by millennia of wind and water. The low-angle view emphasizes the contrast between the engineered precision of the highway and the raw geologic textures of the surrounding landscape—an enduring symbol of travel through one of the Great Plains’ most striking natural corridors.

Amazing storm clouds rolling into Interior, South Dakota at our camp site near the Badlands National Park. It seems every year we get at least one really great thunderstorm when camping.

A lone wooden shed stands among fields of wild grasses and yellow blooms as storm clouds gather near Interior, South Dakota, on the outskirts of Badlands National Park. The layered sky hints at an incoming summer storm sweeping across the plains, with the rugged formations of the Badlands visible on the horizon. The muted colors and boarded windows evoke both isolation and endurance, capturing the tension between human settlement and the vast, unpredictable prairie environment.

An approaching storm looms over the rolling grasslands near Interior, South Dakota, at the edge of Badlands National Park. The layered clouds form dramatic bands above the wetland and open prairie, where a small structure and fence line mark the human presence in this otherwise vast and untamed landscape. From this vantage point near the White River, the eroded formations of the Badlands rise faintly in the distance, emphasizing the contrast between the lush foreground and the arid, sculpted terrain beyond.

A dirt road cuts through the rolling prairie of Indian Creek Drive in the western reaches of Badlands National Park, near the small town of Scenic, South Dakota. Storm clouds build over the mixed-grass plains, casting dramatic light on the green hills and wildflower fields typical of the park’s early summer landscape. This remote section of the Badlands, less traveled than the main loop road, reveals the quieter beauty of the park—where erosion-carved ridges and open grasslands merge under a vast and changeable sky.

Sheep Mountain in South Dakota near the Badlands National Park.

A weathered wooden sign marks the rugged entrance to Sheep Mountain in the southern reaches of Badlands National Park, South Dakota. This remote area, surrounded by the sweeping prairies of Buffalo Gap National Grassland, offers one of the park’s most dramatic and less-visited overlooks. The region sits within Oglala Lakota lands, where erosion has sculpted colorful buttes and steep ridges over millions of years. Accessible by an unpaved road, Sheep Mountain remains a quiet, untamed corner of the Badlands, revealing the deep geologic and cultural layers of the Northern Plains.

The Tatanka Trading Post in Scenic, South Dakota, stands as a weathered relic of roadside commerce along the gateway to Badlands National Park. Once a small but lively hub for travelers and locals, the post’s peeling white paint and simple gabled design speak to decades of wind, sun, and changing times on the Great Plains. The name Tatanka—Lakota for “bison”—reflects the deep cultural ties of the region’s Indigenous heritage and the area’s rugged frontier identity. Today, the building endures as a quiet landmark of rural South Dakota’s layered history.

An old steel truss bridge spans Split Rock Creek near the town of Garretson, South Dakota, carrying a narrow, weathered wooden deck over the rocky gorge below. Built in the early 20th century, this Pratt through truss design reflects an era when such riveted steel frameworks connected small Midwestern towns before the advent of modern concrete spans. Its utilitarian geometry and riveted latticework remain intact, framed by the lush, tree-lined valley of Split Rock Creek—a setting that once hosted flour mills, quarries, and river crossings essential to the region’s early development. The bridge now stands as a quiet relic of rural American engineering, linking history and landscape on the edge of the prairie.

CS36B off of Highway 240 near the Saddle Pass Trailhead. The trail is a short hike up the Badlands Wall giving views of the White River Valley.

Sunflowers found near the Sheep Mountain Overlook trailhead. Sheep mountain has long been one of our favorite spots near the Badlands.

A beautiful rainbow at the Buffalo Gap National Grasslands. We camped here and woke up to this during the sunrise.

Sunrise over our tent at the Buffalo Gap National Grasslands. This Bureau of Land Management spot is one of our absolute favorite camping spots.

A long-forgotten mine entrance lies hidden in the forested slopes near the old gold mining town of Lead, South Dakota. The timber-framed portal, now partially collapsed and overtaken by vegetation, dates back to the late 19th or early 20th century—part of the Black Hills’ extensive network of small exploratory mines that sprang up after the 1876 gold rush. Streams like this one often run through or near these adits, carrying trace minerals that once drew prospectors to the region. Though many of these shafts were short-lived, they remain scattered reminders of South Dakota’s mining heritage and the rugged ambition that once fueled settlement in the Black Hills.

These towering concrete presidential busts sit hidden in the woods near Lead, South Dakota—remnants of a once-ambitious roadside attraction called Presidents Park. Conceived by Texas artist David Adickes and opened in 2003, the park showcased forty-three sculptures, each roughly 20 feet tall, depicting every U.S. president from Washington through George W. Bush. The attraction struggled to draw visitors and closed by 2010, leaving the massive heads stranded in the forest. Over time, nature reclaimed the site, with fallen branches, moss, and pine needles collecting around the statues. Today, the figures stand as haunting relics of early-2000s Americana tourism and the impermanence of grand civic art in private hands.

Gold Run Park in Lead, South Dakota.

Sunset at the Buffalo Gap National Grasslands.

Bighorn Sheep at Buffalo Gap National Grassland in South Dakota.

The North Dakota badlands as seen from the Theodore Roosevelt Expressway.