#otd in 1939, Badlands National Monument was Established. Today, as a full fledged National Park, Ba
#otd in 1939, Badlands National Monument was Established. Today, as a full fledged National Park, Badlands protects an archaeologically rich region of the American Midwest. Rife with pinnacles and buttes that contain fossils and the largest undisturbed prairie grassland in the United States, Badlands is a pristine and rugged wilderness. It is here that the endangered black-footed ferret dwells along with bison, prairie dogs, and bighorn sheep. Additionally, for more than 11,000 years this land has been used by the Arikara, Lakota, and other Native American tribes. All together, these attributes make Badlands one of the most diverse and captivating additions to the National Park Service. For me, it is a place of realization; in 2016, Badlands was the first stop on a two week long journey across the Midwest and across the Rockies. On that first day of the trip, gazing into the canyons and passageways of the Badlands, and glimpsing my first ever wild bison, it struck me how transformative nature is. How vital. How important. Happy anniversary, Badlands. (at Badlands National Park) https://www.instagram.com/p/BtEVgIOndrN/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=gc0br714s4a -- source link