Horizon, Scenery and Stars
Written: Jan 30 '01 (Updated Jan 30 '01)
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Pros: Unobstructed views every direction one looks and a beautiful night sky replete with stars.
Cons: August can be brutal month to visit with its 100 degree heat.
The Bottom Line: The Badlands National Park is a great family vacation. It not only offers breathtaking scenery, but also provides a feeling of awe at how big the sky can be.
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| crayzlaurie's Full Review: Badlands National Park |
I have resided in northern Wisconsin for eight years and am thankful for the beauty of the tall pine forests that surround me. Tall pines reaching high in the sky when I look northward. Towering pines when I look to the south. Majestic pines when I turn my gaze toward the east and west. Another words, NO HORIZON! The Badlands was a perfect remedy for this feeling of claustrophobia I feel here in northern Wisconsin. In the Badlands I looked to the north and was amazed that I could see for miles and miles into the distance. I viewed the scene to the south and was unsure as to when exactly the land and sky begin and end. To the east and west I beheld an unobstructed view of land and sky. Truly a magnificent horizon no matter which direction I turned my head.
My family and I had a fantastic week camping in this land of horizon. We hiked on trails that snaked up and around rock formations. Amongst these formations, we marveled at the knarled and stunted trees hanging precipitously from the rock faces against a backdrop of brilliant blue sky. We hiked along trails cut through prairie grasses and Russian sage that are home to the buffalo that roam the Badlands. We also hiked along a dried creek bed strewn with rocks polished smooth by the waters that flow during times of rain.
We camped at two vastly different campgrounds within the park. One provided water, a nearby restaurant and crowds, while the other had only a few people willing to roast in the 100 degree August sun, no potable water nor civilization near. Though the conditions were severe, the rustic campground was by far the most memorable. We saw buffalo during the day and a breathtaking sky replete with stars at night. One evening while sleeping out under the stars to witness the Perseid meteor shower, we heard a lone coyote howl and then others join in. Millions of stars enveloping us, the earthy smell of sage and grasses and the haunting howl of coyotes will be a treasured family memory. That, and of course, the horizon!
Recommended:
Yes
Best time to go: June-August
Recommended for: Anybody
Review Topic: Overview
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Epinions.com ID:
crayzlaurie
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Reviews written: 1
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