Friday, June 7, 2013

Badlands National Park

The great plains - aptly named - as there are all crisp lines on the horizon, everywhere you look. The horizon is grass and sky, rocks and sky, mountains and sky, but never trees and sky. The rocks of the Badlands are very weird, rising up out of mile after mile of grassy plain. We also visited a pioneer, sod-buster, sod home, built only 100 years ago. Settlers paid $18 for 160 acres, which were theirs if they stayed at least 5 years - most did not. Another time, another place - the treatment of the Indians in the whole "homestead" process was pretty shabby. The western part of the Badlands Park is more high prairie, with lots of space for prairie dogs and bison. Here are some images from the day.