Saddle Pass Trail

Saddle Pass Trail is approximately 2 miles west of the Ben Reifel Visitor Center on Highway 240 (Badlands Loop Road). The trail is 0.7-miles roundtrip and is one of the Badlands' shorter but more difficult trails in terms of terrain and elevation gain. Here you will climb up rock formations with strikingly colorful red, pink, and deep purple striations. This delicate appearance is deceiving, however, because the rugged trail follows a steep, unevenly eroded gully that can be especially hazardous during or after rainstorms. The trail ends where it connects with the Castle and Medicine Root Loop trails. Despite being one of the shorter trails in the park, Saddle Pass is one of the steepest with approximately 300 feet of elevation change.