Badlands National Park: Hiking the Notch Trail

Hiking the Notch Trail at Badlands National Park

The Notch Trail at Badlands National park might be the most fun, and scariest, of all the hikes at the park. it travels through some amazing rock formations before ascending a near vertical ladder. The ladder leads to set of narrow ledges to get into a small canyon before finally ending at an amazing view of the surrounding area.

It is a lot of fun with all the different elements but it is also the most challenging hike so it might not be the right hike for all skill levels. If you are afraid of hikes this really might not be the hike for you. However, if you can handle the ladder and ledges, you should have a really fun time!

Getting Started

The Notch Trail starts at the large parking lot near the visitor center that also includes the Door and Window trails. The first signs that this trail is a little harder than the others are literally the signs. Right at the trailhead are signs warning of the difficulty. This is immediately followed by a rattle snake warning sign. If these don’t scare you off, the start is actually really pretty. it is a walk down a dirt path through some amazing rock formations.

This section of the trail is about a third of a mile and most skill levels should be able to handle this. It is mostly flat up until this point and really worth the exploring even if you don’t do the full trail. That all ends when you come to the ladder that takes you to the top side of the trail.

The Ladder

From the above picture you may think that I am being a little overdramatic about the ladder. That is what I thought as I was making my way up. In all honesty, making my way up the ladder wasn’t really that bad. Coming down was another story.

Coming down the ladder is not fun if you have a healthy fear of heights, like myself. To get down, you have to hold on to the top and just reach your leg down until you find a rung. Then sort of blindly make your way down, one rung at a time. Remember to keep 3 points on the ladder at any given time and just use one foot at a time to search for the next rung.

It isn’t all bad news though, because when you do make it to the top of the ladder the views and terrain become amazing!

Topside

Once on the topside, the trail is really cool. It starts above the canyon below, walking on some ledges that are fairly narrow right next to the edge. There is also a small area that you have to scramble up and around a rock that forms a makeshift staircase. All of the challenging sections are in the first tenth of a mile after climbing the ladder. They are serious but doable if you have hiking experience.

Once you clear these early obstacles, the trail does become much easier. The Notch trail follows what looks like an old river bed and is mostly flat. The sides of the topside are cool rock formations standing tall on either side with a mix of jagged spires and flat towers.

As you get closer to the end of the canyon you will come to a small junction. To the left, there is a really cool canyon. On the right, is the official end of the hike. When I hiked here the trail maker had actually fallen down so I took a detour into the cool canyon before turning back to finish the hike.

The View

If you follow the correct trail, or circle back after the canyon, you will find your way to the final view on the Notch Trail at Badlands National Park. This view is really cool and worth the hike. As you approach, there is a large rock pillar on either side of a large opening. Walking up, you don’t really notice it as first as you are going up a small hill. Then all of a sudden the gap between the pillars starts to take shape.

The final view just expands for what seems like forever. It shows the lower section of the park and South Dakota lands that stretch out as far as the eye can see. The contrast from being surrounded by these giant rock walls in the canyon, and then to see this wide open space is something else. I was shocked, in a good way. I sat there for a long time just admiring the view between the two pillars. It was simply stunning. Now if only there wasn’t that ladder to climb back down!

Video of the Notch Trail Hike at Badlands National Park

I have put this time-lapse video together of the Notch Trail hike at Badlands National Park so other hikers can get a feel of what the hike is like. If you enjoy this video make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel. It is free to subscribe and you will get the latest outdoor content.

Distance and Elevation

If you don’t have the AllTrails app you might want to check it out, I really love mine. It records your progress and is a great way to search for hikes that are nearby and gives you difficulty measurements. According to AllTrails today’s hike was around 1.51 miles and had a total elevation gain of about 135 feet including undulations. That put the high point at around 2794 feet. I was also moving for a total 45 minutes.

I am a Pro member of AllTrails and love it. If you are interested in the platform, please consider using my affiliate link for AllTrails. It gives me a small commission with no extra cost to you.

Effort

This is the tail of two hikes. To begin, it is a very easy hike though some great rock formations for a short bit. Then you come to the ladder. The ladder changes everything. Not only is the ladder a bit challenging for those who are not accustomed to that type of hike, but also the top section above the ladder gets a little dicey with some steep drops next to narrow ledges. If I would have tried this hike 6 years ago when I was just starting hiking I am not sure I would have made it. Luckily, my fear of heights has subsided a bit and I was able to make my way through the hike. However, I am going to list this a hard hike because it was definitely challenging.

Terrain

One word, Ladder!! For the most part the Notch trail is hard rock or hard packed dirt. There is some steep, short rock climbs and some very narrow ledges that you have to walk on that have steep drops right next to them as well. The ladder isn’t that bad to get up but coming down is where you have to reach over with a blind foot hoping to catch the wood plank. The trail is very exposed to sun and weather so it is important to be prepared for the heat and sun of the Badlands.

Finding the Badlands National Park Notch Trail

The Window Trail is found within Badlands National Park. It is the first designed trail after the welcome center coming in from the Interior side of the park. There is an entrance fee for the park or you can use an annual parks pass. Check here for more information on park fees.

Wrapping up the Notch Trail Hike

The Notch Trail hike at Badlands National Park turned into one of my favorite hikes I did at the park. I am not going to lie, as someone who is scared of heights, this was a little nerve racking but turned out to be an amazing hike. The narrow ledges and small scrambles made it exciting. The views throughout the hike are spectacular, and the payoff view at the end is breathtaking. Overall, it was just such an enjoyable hike that packs so much into a small trail.

I have added this hike and all of my hikes to the interactive map page you can find here. If you have any suggestions for hikes or comments feel free to email me at fatmanlittletrails@gmail.com or you can follow me on any of the below social media platforms. Happy Hiking!

Gallery of The Badlands Notch Trail Hike

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