A good time in the Badlands Apr 28, 2019

A good time in the Badlands

At the close of National Park Week, we arrive at Badlands in South Dakota. Our photo today shows a view from Castle Trail—at 10 miles round trip, it’s the longest marked hike in the park. Spring rain has revived the grasses across the prairie as the sun illuminates the pinnacle rock formations in the distance. Soon, grazing animals such as bison and pronghorn will begin feasting on the fresh crop of grasses. This is also a good time of year to spot some of the dozens of different butterfly species that live in the park and provide a delicate contrast to the park’s rugged landscape.

© Danita Delimont/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Apr 28, 2018National Park Week: Canyonlands National Park, Utah
Apr 28, 2020Happy 800th, Salisbury Cathedral
Apr 28, 2021Coming home to roost
Apr 28, 2022Fox kits
Apr 28, 2023Arbor Day
Apr 28, 2024Last day of National Park Week
Apr 28, 2025Impala in Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana
Apr 28, 2026Spectacled bear resting in tree, Ecuador

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Jul 6, 2020Welcome to the Ring of Fire
Oct 19, 2024International Archaeology Day
Sep 8, 2018It’s oh so quiet
Mar 13, 2021All hail the king of shrubs
Jul 22, 2018Travel Sunday: On the Ganges in Varanasi, India
Aug 30, 2021Behold the perfect cone
Sep 30, 2024Walruses in Svalbard, Norway
Feb 27, 2019A predator at risk
May 14, 2025Porto Flavia, Sardinia, Italy
Nov 23, 2022Fibonacci Day
Mar 20, 2018Celebrating the first day of spring
Feb 16, 2023Horsetail Fall, Yosemite National Park, California
Jan 27, 2026Dalmatian pelicans, Lake Kerkini, Greece
Jan 27, 2022Bluespotted ribbontail ray
Feb 9, 2018Speed skaters in the Gangneung Oval, Pyeongchang, South Korea
Oct 22, 2018We did not invent this, honest
Dec 12, 2025National Poinsettia Day
Jul 4, 2023Happy Independence Day!
May 24, 2024European Day of Parks
Jan 10, 2020League of Nations, 100 years later
Sep 9, 2025A Eurasian red squirrel in Switzerland
Jan 10, 2025Abraham Lake, Alberta, Canada
Oct 22, 2024Palazzo Zuccari, Rome
Jun 30, 2019San Francisco’s City Hall illuminated by the iconic colors of Pride
Mar 27, 2021Blink and you ll miss it
Dec 13, 2025Merced River, Yosemite National Park, California
Jul 10, 2021Celestial Spain
Apr 24, 2026Arbor Day
Jun 29, 2020Goats don t grow on trees
Jun 29, 2022International Day of the Tropics