Castle Trail — Attraction in Kadoka

This was the highlight of Badlands for me. If you only have half a day (or you move slowly), by all means, you should see the overlooks along the scenic drive (especially White River, Burns Basin, Pinnacles, and Hay Butte). But if you have enough time to see the heavy hitter overlooks and have 4-6 hours to spare, do yourself a favor and hike the Medicine Root / Castle Trail Loop (in that order).

The terrain is mostly flat, and on the Medicine Root Trail you will see beautiful rolling prairies with imposing rock formations off in the distance before reaching the Castle Trail, where you will walk through stunning valleys surrounded by incredible rock formations above you and deep, imposing canyons beneath you. This is a wonderfully enjoyable hike that won't leave you feeling exhausted by the time it is over, and it is one of the best places to experience the beauty of Badlands...

We hiked the east section of the Castle Trail from this trailhead in June 2024. It was perfect temperature for hiking with mid-70°. This is a really fun trail & it is not crowded!

We hiked out-and-back for a total of about 2 miles in about 1 hour, through relatively flat terrain. It was magical walking through the unique rock formations and the waist-high grass. Note that the ubiquitous Yellow sweetclover (Melilotus officinalis) is a common exotic, invasive species at Badlands National Park. We found beautiful prickly pear cactus in bloom along the way.

We also experienced the other sections of this trail by driving to two other trailheads. The middle section of the trail is easily accessed from the Medicine Root Trailhead along the National Park Rd, and the far western section of the trail is accessed from the trailhead along the western section of Hwy 240.

Highly...

This was a really great hike. We did the Castle trail from the trailhead to Fossil trail and on the way back we split off onto the Medicine root trail until it joined back up with the Castle trail. It was a little over 11 miles, and while it was pretty flat, it was moderately challenging due to the length. The views were breathtaking. We also were able to find several toads (it had rained the night before) and saw deer and several...