Badlands & Mount Rushmore

Hay Butte Overlook - This overlook provides a stunning view of the Badlands and surrounding prairie meadows. It’s an excellent spot to observe bison, pronghorn, and the park’s diverse landscapes. Located just a short hike from the Badlands Loop Road, a popular park route.

Purchase once and enjoy access for a full year! Perfect for extended stays and return visits over the next 12 months.

Badlands Wilderness Overlook - Renowned for its distinctive landscapes, including rugged rock formations and deep canyons. This wilderness area hosts a variety of plant and animal life, such as bison, bighorn sheep, and pronghorn. It’s a favored spot for hiking, backpacking, wildlife viewing, and photography.

Roberts Prairie Dog Town - Home to numerous black-tailed prairie dogs. These burrowing rodents from the Great Plains of North America are famous for their “bark” and behavior. Visitors enjoy watching these intriguing animals in their natural habitat at Roberts Prairie Dog Town.

Ancient Hunters Overlook - Named after the ancient tribes that hunted in the Badlands, this site has yielded bison bones and arrowheads. It was likely a butchering field where hunters processed bison carcasses.

Yellow Mounds Overlook - Features unique layered rock formations. The presence of iron oxide in the rock layers gives the Yellow Mounds their distinctive color. These formations provide a fascinating glimpse into the Badlands’ landscapes shaped by millions of years of erosion and weathering.

Conata Basin Overlook - Offers another spectacular view of the park’s yellow paleosols, providing insight into the land’s ancient past. This area was once the bed of a warm, shallow sea. The paleosols visible here are part of the lowest formation in the Badlands: the Pierre Shale.

Homestead Overlook - Lincoln believed the American West held the resources his country needed, though few Americans wanted to settle there. West Coast Natives were cautious of settlers in the unexplored region. Thus, Lincoln signed the Homestead Act, encouraging settlement by offering land to those who would live on and improve it.

Burns Basin Overlook - Overlooks Wilson Burns’ 20th-century farmhouse. Burns demonstrated how homesteaders survived in this challenging environment. As a sheep rancher, he required significant water, which was difficult to access as most groundwater lay several thousand feet deep. Burns cleverly found a government-allocated plot with a freshwater spring.

Prairie Wind Overlook - Unlike previous overlooks, the main attraction here is the gentle, pleasant prairie rather than the badlands. It exemplifies the park’s surprisingly diverse ecosystems.

Big Badlands Overlook - Named by Lakota Chief Spotted Elk (Big Foot). In 1890, the US Army pursued Spotted Elk and 200 Lakota through this route. He was soon captured by the 7th Cavalry. Spotted Elk peacefully surrendered to protect his people. In 1990, Congress apologized but did not compensate the tribe. The Lakota continue to seek the withdrawal of the 20 Medals of Honor awarded to cavalrymen involved in the massacre.

White River Valley Overlook - From this vantage point, you can see The Castle, a magnificent formation and the largest visible from the overlook. Beyond The Castle, the White River Valley stretches endlessly. The White River carved this valley long ago, as its name suggests.

Fossil Exhibit Trail - This trail features interactive exhibits showcasing the park’s fossil heritage, including ancient animal fossils. The wheelchair-accessible trail is suitable for all ages and fitness levels. Visitors can learn about extinct animals like the rhinoceros and three-toed horse and their environment along the trail.

Saddle Pass Trail - This 0.7-mile trail takes less than 30 minutes to hike and offers excellent opportunities for bird watching and sightseeing. Despite its short length, it is one of the steepest in the park, with over 200 feet of elevation gain. Avoid this trail if it has rained recently.

Ben Reifel Visitor Center - A great place to take a break from exploring the Badlands. In addition to a picnic area and standard amenities, it features the Fossil Preparation Lab, where visitors can see what paleontologists do with fossils once they are discovered.

Cliff Shelf Nature Trail - This half-mile loop offers one of the park’s best views. Besides the stunning vista from the top of the loop, visitors can explore one of the Badlands’ lesser-known biomes by walking through a lush juniper forest.

Notch Trail - This trail spans 1.5 miles of challenging terrain for intermediate hikers, including a rope ladder leading to a breathtaking view of the White River Valley. Hikers seeking challenging terrain and spectacular views will enjoy this trail.

Door Trail - This quarter-mile, fully accessible boardwalk is more of a stroll than a hike. It leads to a break in the Badlands Wall, known as The Door, offering unbeatable views of the landscape beyond. Don’t forget your camera for this one!

Castle Trail - At 5.4 miles, it is the longest-maintained trail in the park. It winds through prairie, Badlands peaks, and various unique formations. This trail is an excellent choice for those wanting to experience the diverse features of the Badlands.

Big Badlands Overlook - A fitting place to conclude, offering one of the park’s best views. This expansive vista overlooks the eastern stretch of the Badlands Wall, revealing beautifully striped rock layers dating back tens of millions of years. For that perfect photo of the Badlands, this is the spot.

Gutzon Borglum Historical Center - To your left is a bust honoring Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor behind Mount Rushmore. Born in Idaho in 1867, Borglum led a complex life. He first gained public attention when the Metropolitan Museum of Art accepted one of his sculptures for display in 1906—the first time they had done so for a living American artist.

Avenue Of Flags - Ahead lies the Avenue of Flags, featuring 56 flags in alphabetical order. While 50 are state flags, the remaining six represent the District of Columbia, the Commonwealths of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands, and the territories of Guam, American Samoa, and the Virgin Islands.

64 Presidential Trail - The Hall of Records was a proposed structure intended to be built near Mount Rushmore National Memorial. It was designed to serve as an archive for important historical documents related to the Presidents depicted on Mount Rushmore, as well as other significant American historical records.

Presidential Trail - This tourist route highlights the history and legacy of former U.S. Presidents. It includes sites and attractions related to several Presidents, including Mount Rushmore National Memorial, which features the carved faces of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.

Badlands & Mount Rushmore

Sculptor’s Studio - Located here is Gutzon Borglum’s studio. Inside, visitors can see a large plaster sculpture showing the original design for Mount Rushmore, which is more intricate than the final version. The original design included fully carved bodies for each of the presidents.

• Easy-to-use app: download Action’s Tour Guide App onto your phone
• Great value: purchase per car, not per person. More affordable than bus or guided tours!
• Engaging storytelling: Uncover unique tales and thrilling history for a memorable journey!
• Perfect narrator: nothing can beat listening to a great voice. Proven with tons of rave reviews!
• Offline maps: no signal, no problem! Works perfectly without cellular or wifi.
• Comprehensive route and stops: See it all, miss nothing, leave no stone unturned!
• Go at your own pace: Start anytime, pause anywhere, enjoy breaks for snacks and photos freely!
• Hands-free: audio stories play on their own based on your location. Easy to use!

• Attraction passes, entry tickets, or reservations

Discover the hidden charm and history of South Dakota with this combined tour of Mount Rushmore and Badlands National Park! Delve into the fascinating story behind one of America’s largest sculptures at Mount Rushmore. Find out who designed it, how it was carved, and why these four presidents were chosen for the monument. Then, journey to the Badlands, where a landscape of otherworldly beauty conceals ancient fossils, geological wonders, and Lakota history.

After booking, check your email to download the separate Audio Tour Guide App by Action, enter your unique password, and access your tour. These steps require a reliable internet/Wi-Fi connection. From there, follow the audio instructions and the route.

Purchase once, and enjoy for a year! Perfect for extended visits and return trips over the next 12 months.

Please note, this is not an entrance ticket. Verify opening hours before your visit.

• How to access: Once you book a tour, you’ll get a confirmation email and text with instructions: • Download the separate tour app by Action • Enter the password • Download the tour MUST DO while in strong wifi/cellular Works offline after download
• How to start touring: Open Action’s separate audio tour guide app once onsite. • If there is just one tour, launch it. • If multiple tour versions exist, launch the one with your planned starting point and direction.
• Go to the starting point No one will meet you at the start. This tour is self-guided Enter the first story’s point and the audio will begin automatically Follow the audio cues to the next story, which will also play automatically. Enjoy hands-free exploring. If you face audio issues, contact support. Stick to the tour route & speed limit for the best experience.
• Travel worry-free: Use the tour app anytime, on any day, and over multiple days. Start and pause the tour whenever you like, taking breaks and exploring side excursions at your own pace. Skip anything you don’t care about or explore bonus content for everything that interests you
• Savings tips: Driving tours: purchase just one tour for everyone in the car
• Buy once, use for one year! Ideal for extended visits and return trips over the next 12 months.

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.