State: South Dakota
Location: Badlands National Park
Length, One-Way: 0.2 miles
Trail Type: Out and Back
Elevation Change: 200 feet
Best Season: Spring, Fall
Difficulty: Difficult
Usage: Heavy
Brown Bears of South Dakota
Trail Information
The Saddle Pass Trail is a very short trail, only 0.2 miles one-way, but very steep. This trail connects the middle of the Castle Trail and the Medicine Root Loop to the Badlands Loop Road. The trail is probably the hardest trail in the Park . It is very steep and the soil from the butte is loose and the trail is rock covered. The Saddle Pass Trail is impassable after rains. The trail is traveled by a lot of people, who are tempted by the seemingly easy 200 foot vertical ascent. However this trail is anything but easy. The reward to the hiker is a spectacular view from the top of the buttes to the south. The trailhead and parking area are located two miles west of the Ben Reifel Visitor Center.
Warning: Digging and/or moving fossils or artifacts from their locations in the ground is prohibited by Federal law. This is taken very seriously in Badlands Park. Offenders are prosecuted. Fines range from $50.00 to $250,000 and in severe cases offenders have been jailed.
Directions
From Ben Reifel Visitor Center:
Take Badlands Loop Road about 2 miles northwest (left out of the visitor center) to the Saddle Pass parking area.
