Atlantica - 01.09.2000, Síða 33

A T L A N T I C A 31
res mauvaises à traverser” (the lands
that are bad to cross). Despite their
uninviting name, these formations are
a masterpiece of water and wind sculp-
ture. They were formed by the White
River, which eroded a scarp. Numerous
small streams furrowed the scarp face
and they eventually intersected to cre-
ate the Badlands topography. Each
rainstorm over the next five million
years eroded it, and in fact erosion is
so rapid here that the land forms can
change perceptively overnight as a
result of a single thunderstorm.
Millions of years ago the region that is
now arid supported many kinds of ani-
mals. Their remains have been found
all over the Badlands in fossilised form.
Ancestors of the modern day rhinocer-
os, horse, pig, cat, and many other
species have been discovered, but
alas, no dinosaurs.
GHOST DANCERS
For thousands of years, American
Indians used this land for their hunting
grounds. They camped in secluded val-
leys where fresh water and game were
available all year round. Emerging
from the stream banks today are the
stones and charcoal of their campfires,
as well as the arrowheads they used, to
hunt bison, rabbits and other game.
From the top of the Badlands Wall,
they could scan the area for enemies
and wandering herds. By about 1850,
The Great Sioux Nation, including the
Lakota, had displaced the other tribes
in the northern prairie.
At the end of the 19th century, the US
government stripped American Indians
of much of their territory and forced
them to live on reservations. In 1890,
many Sioux became followers of the
Indian prophet Wovoca who predicted
that the white man would vanish and
their hunting grounds would be
About one hour’s drive
from the Badlands is
one of America’s most
famous monuments,
the presidential faces
sculpted in Mount
Rushmore. In 1927
artist Gutzon Borglum
was commissioned to
sculpt the busts of
Presidents George
Washington, Thomas
Jefferson, Theodore
Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln, to represent the first 150 years of American
history. The Black Hills themselves are a beautiful area of forest-covered
mountains, ideal for hiking.
Mt Rushmore, Keystone SD, summer open daily 8 a.m.–10 p.m., winter open daily 8 a.m.–5 p.m.
Famous
Faces
THE TWIN CITIES
The Badlands. Despite their uninviting name, these formations are a masterpiece of water and wind sculpture.
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