Ben Reifel Visitor Center

The newly renovated Visitor Center offers an indoor theater, interactive exhibits, orientation films, a bookstore, and a paleontology lab where people work on fossils while you watch! This is the main facility in the north area of the park. You can speak with rangers, explore museum exhibits, check out the Fossil Preparation Lab, or visit the Badlands Natural History Association bookstore. You'll see how striking geologic deposits contain one of the world's richest fossil beds. Ancient mammals such as the rhino, horse, and saber-toothed cat once roamed here. The park's 244,000 acres protect an expanse of mixed-grass prairie where bison, bighorn sheep, prairie dogs, and black-footed ferrets live today. Check the park activity guide or bulletin boards for special events.