340 THE BAD LANDS OF SOUTH DAKOTA 



a very hard material, which stands out in innumerable minute 

 ridges and accumulates on the surface in fragmentary condition 

 as the clay is washed away. 



To one standing on a high point in the midst of the Bad Lands, 

 a unique view is presented. The bare surfaces are dazzling!}' 

 bright in the sunlight. Mesas and buttes, pinnacles and spires 

 of every variety of form rise to varying heights in intricate con- 

 fusion. Small areas of original plains surface stand as mesas 

 presenting steep walls, deeply notched by canons and with pro- 

 jecting ridges cut into spires and pinnacles, often of considerable 

 altitude. Many of the pinnacles are capped by masses of sand- 

 stone which have protected the underlying clay and left a column 

 standing. A typical general view in the Bad Lands is given 

 on page 338, which also shows some representative pinnacles. 

 The highest features in the region rise from 150 to 300 feet above 

 the valleys. These valleys penetrate far into the Bad Lands, 

 and often contain sufficient soil to sustain a sparse growth of 

 grass. They contain water holes at long intervals, in which 

 limited supplies of water are occasionally preserved far into the 

 autumn, often covered by a thin pellicle of mud which dimin- 

 ishes evaporation. One of the most prominent features in the 

 Bad Lands is the " Great Wall," which extends along the north 

 side of the White River valley for many miles. It is a bare es- 

 carpment descending from a ridge of grass-covered table-land, 

 deeply invaded from the northwest by wide bad-land valleys 

 extending toward the Cheyenne river. 



IS ear the center of the bad-land area rises a prominent rem- 

 nant of the original plain, known as Sheep mountain, named 

 from the mountain sheep, some of which still remain there. Its 

 table-like surface is covered with grass, but its slopes are marked 

 by a wide zone of bad lands, consisting of high, bare cliffs in- 

 tricately canoned and buttressed as shown on page 341. 



Very few roads cross the Bad Lands, but there are a few lines 

 of travel through them, which have served for communication. 

 The greater part of the area lies within the Pine Ridge Indian 

 Reservation. 



The Bad Lands are famous for the large amount of fossil ani- 

 mal remains which they contain. The}' have produced hundreds 

 of tons of fossils of Tertiary animals, and every season the region 

 receives visits from one or more parties of " bone-hunters,' 1 as 

 they are called, from some of the colleges. A trip to the Big Bad 

 Lands is an interesting experience. They may be easily reached 



