Day 3: Badlands

This morning was filled with....sleeping in and cooking an excellent breakfast.  Our adventures took us to the Ben Riffel Visitor Center, seeing the sights and some free-range hiking.

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"After waking up to a picture perfect campfire breakfast of eggs, hashbrowns and bacon, we were ready to begin day 3 of the trip. After experiencing the beauty of the Badlands for the first time yesterday, I was thoroughly excited to explore the park. We trekked throughout the park looking for fossils and wildlife for a couple hours and then returned home to a dinner of sloppy joes. All in all, it was another great day and I cannot wait for what tomorrow holds." -Derek Scholes


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Tent City

 

"Hanging out under the South Dakotan sky with some of my best friends and sponsors that are both knowledgable and kind is awesome. Time of my life here." -Jake Letner

This morning we went to the visitor center and looked at all the fossils and the information they had. It was pretty cool. For lunch we drove out to a picnic area and on the way, we saw atleast one hundred bison. For some reason they all decided to cross to the road when we were driving through. After lunch we went searching for fossils and i found a jaw bone with a tooth in it, it was awsome. I am so excited for the next few days.~Emilee Sandberg



Our Badlands Home



So since I didnt get to write, ill just combine all of the fun interesting things into this one post. We suffered through a horrific storm that made out tent collapse then got all of our stuff wet. that sucked becuase we then had to sleep in the van which wasnt the most comfortable thing you could thing of. then we went and drove to the badlands after we stopped at ashfalls which was really cool because they had like these species of animals that you would never think about from about 5 milion years ago like a saber-toothed rodent.  then we arrived at the badlands! ever since then we've just been hanging out. today for breakfast we had a deluxe breakfast becase ITS MY BIRTHDAY! (: and then we went to a random spot and at the park and just started climbing away. Me chelsea jake and derek ended up getting caked in mud. but oh well it was worth it! then we ate lunch and went on a hike to find fossils and stuff. i found a really cool femur fossil but it was actually a bone. We unfortunately aren't for sure about what animal it is from. Along with the femur i found a hip socket, a tibia, and just another chunk of leg bone. And now just recently we went swimming in the freezing cold pool (which was only 70 degrees) and now eating sloppy joes! sounds like a good birthday to me!! - Lizzy Willis! <3



Gotta a little muddy on our first hike



Well, this has been one amazing adventure! Our drive to the KOA was accompanied by cold winds and rain, which stopped once we pulled to our sites. Every thing else has been just as perfect! From our camp-cooked meals to our fun-filled evening campfires...we are having fun! So many things we learned in Earth science and biology have come to life as we get into the "wild" and actually find fossils, flora, and fauna. Right now I'm eating some peach cobbler made for Lizzie's birthday. It's topped with vanilla icecream to boot! Now that's roughing it! (: Sister lorrie

Good Day in the Badlands.  Always something new to see and experience.  A bit muddy, which has the consistency of creamy peanut butter...muddy shoes, muddy pants and shorts, muddy legs....the gift that keeps on giving on day long..."Christmas Vacation" movie reference, meaning that it is really tough to scrape off.  I, for once in my life, did not fall or get muddy....I probably just jinked myself. ~Mary Packard :-)



A BigHorn Sheep Family, we saw 13 in all





My Birthday Fossil, The Distal end of a Mammalian Femur...Best Present Ever!!!!!


A great first day in the Badlands. We took a wonderful hike through the formations, climbing the tall peaks like curious monkeys, and it was amazing. Humbling to see such magnificent sights. ~ Heidi L. Warlop

You've heard the old Joke, right? " Why did the Bison cross the road..."

Today was a day of sight-seeing. We got to explore the Badlands, and may have got a bit dirty on the way. The ground out here isn't very sturdy, so there was alot of slipping and sliding when trying to climb around. I really enjoyed the Yellow Mounds, where it was easy to climb and the view was great. The bison looked funny because all of their fur was falling off. It was persistently cold and windy, but not when we went hiking. We went down into this area beneath all of the mountains and got to search for fossils (although I never found any). Oh but I did find a gall on a plant which I never had seen before, so I felt pretty proud! The climbing around was fun and the sights are unbelievable. I hope more exploring tomorrow will be cleaner, but just as exciting. ~Ashley Willis