Located in South Dakota, Badlands National Park is probably the most famous on our list. There's plenty of hidden treasure to be found — literally. The Badlands are a hot-spot for paleontologists and amateur fossil-hunters, with an abundance of prehistoric relics buried.
Perhaps the Badlands’ most famous former inhabitant is Sue, the world’s largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton ever discovered. Scientists have also unearthed ancient alligators, horses, and rhinos, but everyday visitors make many fossil discoveries in the Badlands, too. Book a campsite at Cedar Pass or Sage Creek Campgrounds, and you could be next!
The Badlands’ biodiversity isn’t confined to the past. This 379-square-mile preserve is home to bighorn sheep, coyote, elk, foxes, and the endangered American bison. Even then, that’s not all there is to see. Perhaps the most awe-inspiring view at the Badlands is the rock formations, with thousands of hills and canyons of beautiful banded rock. Anywhere you look, there’s bound to be something extraordinary waiting in the Badlands!
