wandering Badlands National Park

We spent the entire day today wandering in Badlands. The morning was our walking time and the afternoon was a combination of driving with a bit of walking.

Our morning started with a wonderful breakfast. We're staying at the Circle View Ranch in Interior, South Dakota. I still think that's a very odd name for a town! Our breakfast entrée was eggs covered with a tasty sauce. There were also cinnamon rolls, muffins, granola, and fresh fruit. It was very yummy, and it gave us enough energy to do a lot of wandering.

The trails in the park seem to be either really short or quite long. We started with a couple of short trails, then headed out on the Castle Trail. That trail was a long one; we walked out for a while, then turned back. I liked that trail - maybe I can convince Denise to head back out on the trail again before we leave here.

After our morning walks we turned to the west and drove Badlands Loop Road. We stopped at viewpoints and at occasional wide spots in the road. We walked down little trails and down non-trails too.

The air was quite hazy today. If I looked straight up at the sky then I could see blue but the horizon showed as gray. Denise told me that she heard the haze is coming from the big fires in Washington. I wonder what it will be like tomorrow.

--- Rover