Black Hills & Badlands Journey

An exciting adventure led by naturalists from
the Audubon Center of the North Woods

Black Hills & Badlands Journey, June 22-28, 2008.

Join us for this naturalist-led, ‘off-the-beaten path’ exploration for adventurous travelers who want to observe and understand the dramatic wildlife and learn about this amazing land of contrasts. Focus on the wildlife, geology, and other landforms.

Designed for the adventurous traveler who wants to walk the landscape, take time to observe and understand the dramatic wildlife and learn the amazing geologic story of this land of contrasts. This tour will focus on the wildlife, geology, and other landforms of these two beautiful and unique locations.

We will hike each day, but determine the distances depending on the participant’s abilities and interests. We take people off the “beaten path”, where you get a better sense of the place and can observe animal behavior more easily away from the road.

Expect to see pronghorn, bison, prairie dogs, mule deer and possibly coyote and burrowing owls - as well as numerous grassland bird species. And that's just in the Badlands.

The Black Hills are a spectacular contrast to the Badlands. Soaring rock pinnacles, quiet mountain streams, thick pine forests are the setting for our hikes. On Wildlife Loop Drive we are likely to see some of the biggest herds of bison, and other mammal species found in the more open, rolling hills. Mountain goats and big horn sheep are two new species we might see in this area.

Each trip we take to the Badlands and Black Hills is different from the previous one, but each is fantastic in its own way, and people always go home inspired by these treasures hidden in the middle of the continent. And it’s not fools gold.

HIGHLIGHTS:

• Hike among the bison and prairie dogs in
  Badlands National Park
• Go deep into the heart of the Black Hills with
  a tour of Wind Cave
• Explore Custer State Park’s Wildlife Loop
• Visit Bear Butte, the site of vision quests, and
  where Crazy Horse got his name
• Visit the Mamoth Site Museum, home to
  Ice Age fossils
• View Mt.Rushmore and the Needles, a
  dramatic geologic formation
• Hike up Harney Peak, for the more seasoned
  hiker. For the more casual hiker, shorter hikes
  throughout the heart of the Black Hills

For more info or to register, contact the Audubon Center of the North Woods, 888-404-7743, www.audubon-center.org.