The Badlands

Out west is the undulating plains, the distant peaks of the mountains a permanent fixture on the western horizon. As you crest a rise, an unusual landscape opens up before you - a maze of eroded rock outcrops and deep gullies.

Spires and ravines of tanned rock, crafted by aeons of wind and rain, are jutted up all around like ancient fortresses. Between the formations, patches of hardy prairie grasses sprout stubbornly from the meagre soil.

The silence is broken only by the occasional mournful call of a bird of prey sailing overhead. One might marvel at the brilliant streaks of red, green and grey minerals banded through the eroded mudstones - nature's artistry made plain.