The visitor centre at Cedar Pass is the park's front door, and it is named for Ben Reifel, a Brule Lakota from the Rosebud Reservation who rose to become a US congressman for South Dakota in the 1960s, one of the first Native Americans elected in that era. It sits at a gap in the Badlands Wall where a road, a creek and a handful of old buildings all squeeze through, and from the car park you can see the first great pinnacles rising behind the lodge.
It is a useful stop for a rider. Inside there is an exhibit on the geology and a collection of fossils, a cafe in the lodge nearby, a bookshop, rangers to ask about the weather and road conditions, and toilets and drinking water that are worth taking seriously in a place with little shade. Outside, trails lead into the formations. The Door, Window and Notch trails are short and each gives a different view of the layered rock, and the Notch includes a log ladder and a drop, so it suits steady feet. Take care on the clay: it is dry and crumbly in sunshine and as slick as grease after rain.
The Badlands Loop Road is a satisfying ride, and this is its midpoint. It is a fairly straight, flowing road with long views, passing from the pinnacles in the east to the open prairie in the west, with a handful of pull-outs. The speed limit is modest and enforced by rangers, and the prairie dogs, bison and bighorn sheep are all quite capable of stepping into the road. Wind from the west can be strong, and summer storms bring hail. Cedar Pass Lodge has cabins and a restaurant, open in season, and the campground is nearby.
Fuel is not available at the visitor centre. Interior, a few kilometres east, is tiny, and Wall, off Interstate 90, has several stations, motels and the famous drugstore with its signs stretching hundreds of miles in each direction. Kadoka, to the west along the interstate, and Philip are smaller. Check your tank before you enter, and carry water. The park is open all year, though winter brings snow and the occasional closure, and the entry fee is payable at the gate. The light at the end of the day, when the ridges turn red and the shadows fill the gullies, is the best reason to stay for sunset.