Tales from Above and Below: Wind Cave to the Badlands

Wild West Adventure: From the Sacred Wind Cave to the Rugged Badlands

Table of Contents

1. Wind Cave National Park – Legends, Layers, and Wildlife
2. Badlands National Park – Storms, Fossils, and Free-Range Hiking

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Stop #1: Wind Cave National Park

After our patriotic visit to Mount Rushmore National Memorial—which we covered in our last post Exploring Bighorn National Forest, Devil’s Tower, and Mount Rushmore—we rolled south into the Black Hills for our next stop: Wind Cave National Park.

We woke up that morning ready for an underground adventure, only to learn our scheduled cave tour had been canceled due to a broken elevator. But we’re not ones to let a little hiccup throw us off. The day turned out to be filled with unexpected discoveries and a deeper appreciation for the stories beneath our feet.

Just outside the visitor center, we joined a ranger talk beneath swaying pines where we heard a powerful Lakota legend. The ranger shared the story of the last Lakota woman on Earth, and the eagle, revered by Plains tribes. In the tale, the eagle gives up his power to become a man, helping repopulate the Earth. The sacred natural entrance to Wind Cave—a small 8×10-inch hole in the ground—is where that transformation is said to begin.

Inside, a virtual tour helped us imagine what we’d missed underground. Formed by compacted seashells turned to limestone, then dissolved over time by acidic water, Wind Cave is one of the most intricate cave systems in the world. It has hundreds of miles of narrow passages—all layered vertically in one square mile, like stacked spaghetti.

Then we had a surprise encounter with none other than Theodore Roosevelt. He (well, a very convincing reenactor) shared stories about signing Wind Cave into national park status in 1903, making it one of the nation’s earliest protected lands. Of course, we posed for a photo with the big man himself.

As we drove out, the grasslands around Wind Cave came alive with wildlife. We spotted a coyote crossing the road, a town of prairie dogs chirping nearby, and a herd of pronghorn antelope grazing in the distance. The Black Hills were delivering the magic.

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Stop #2: Badlands National Park

From the peaceful prairie of Wind Cave, we pointed the Sequoia east toward Badlands National Park. We arrived just in time to batten down the hatches for one of the wildest storms of the trip. Wind gusts hit 60 mph, and we clocked over half an inch of rain overnight. Inside the Micro Minnie, it felt like we were riding out a squall at sea.

During the chaos, Austin sprang into action when a nearby camper’s pop-up canopy broke loose and nearly smashed into her car. He rescued it just in time and helped secure her campsite for the night. Between the howling wind and snapping guy lines, it was a wild night—but one that makes a great campfire story now.

The next morning, the skies cleared and we made our way to the Fossil Exhibit Trail for a ranger-led fossil talk. We learned that over 400 fossils were discovered last year alone—many by tourists like us! There’s even a working fossil lab inside the visitor center, where paleontologists clean, identify, and study bones uncovered in the park. You never know when a fossil could be hiding right under your hiking boot.

After that, we hit the Door Trail, which quickly became a favorite for the kids. The best part? You don’t have to stick to a designated trail. It’s off-trail hiking paradise, and the kids took full advantage—climbing sharp ridges, leaping between formations, and darting through natural alleys in the rock. It felt like exploring another planet.

We grabbed lunch back at camp, then set out for a scenic driving loop through the park. We stopped at nearly every overlook. From the vibrant striping of eroded hills to wildlife like bison and bighorn sheep, the views were stunning and surreal. The Badlands’ eerie beauty is something you truly have to see to believe.

Before heading back for dinner, we made one last spontaneous stop at the Conata Picnic Area, where the kids begged for more climbing time. With golden light setting the formations aglow, we let them run wild one last time in South Dakota’s rocky wonderland.

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