South Dakota Badlands

The Badlands of South Dakota are a striking and beautiful area. Every day the ridges and candy-striped cliffs display a different mood and a different aspect of their beauty. It is difficult to lead the spot disappointed. I have a friend who is a fan of Paleontology. "The pink layers are where you find the fossils," they told me. Pink, green, yellow... the variety of hues to be seen in the soil here is astounding.

It rained some of the time I was there. The powdery soil immediately transformed into a one inch layer of slippery, sticky mud. over the dust below. there was a creeping, seeping runoff that slicked into the gullies. Though it didn't rain much you could see in the canyon floor the streams had filled with a thick chocolaty runoff. Erosion in progress. The badlands have been formed this way for millions of years and are still a work in progress. Delicately balanced pillars topple, Baroque, engraved cliff sides collapse leaving a fresh canvas for nature to work on yet again.

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