Exhibit Trail

Badlands National Park, located in southwestern South Dakota, is a dramatic landscape of sharply eroded buttes, pinnacles, and spires blended with expansive mixed-grass prairie. It’s one of the most striking and geologically rich parks in the U.S., offering a mix of ancient fossil beds, panoramic views, and thriving wildlife.  The Badlands are an area of sharply eroded buttes, pinnacles, and spires that cover the western part of both North and South Dakota.  However, Badlands National Park is located in the southwestern corner of South Dakota.  The western entrance to the Park is less than an hour from Rapid City, and is a gateway to 242,756 acres of uniquely eroded features and wide open grass prairie.

Badlands National Park offers a range of short, scenic hiking trails that showcase the park’s iconic spires, canyons, and layered rock formations. Most trails are easily accessible from Badlands Loop Road (Highway 240) and offer something for all skill levels. The Fossil Exhibit trail is a short and easy hike along a boardwalk near Norbeck Pass in Badlands National Park.  In prehistoric times, this area was covered by the ocean, then eventually because an inland swamp as the water receded and began to reform North America.  Many fossils are found in this area and the short trail tells the ancient history of the Badlands and the animals that roamed here through a series of exhibits on the walkway.  There are outstanding views in all directions with many interesting rock formations on this trail.