Badlands Boondocking Area: Free Camping on the Rim at Wall, SD

Quick facts

• Where: Badlands Boondocking Area, 24260 SD-240, Wall, SD 57790. Buffalo Gap National Grassland, on the rim just north of the Badlands National Park boundary.
• Cost: free.
• Type: dispersed camping. No hookups, no dump station, no water.
• Road in: gravel and dirt, rough in places. It's a loop with a south and a north entrance. Use the south one.
• Big rigs: we did it with a 40-foot fifth wheel, entering and leaving from the south.
• Starlink: worked perfectly. It's all open sky.
• Cell: some signal, but not much.
• Stay limit: we didn't see a posted sign.
• When we stayed: five nights in summer 2026, starting in a heat wave.

We'd wanted to camp at The Wall since the day we started RV life. It's one of those spots you see in other people's videos and file away for someday. We finally drove almost 600 miles from Des Moines in one day to get there, with no reservation, hoping there'd be a spot left. We planned two nights. We stayed five, and it's still our favorite boondocking spot so far.

Getting in: take the south entrance

The road is gravel and dirt, and it's rough in places. It loops back to the main road, so there's an entrance at each end.

The south side is the better road. Before we committed the rig, we drove the north side in the truck. It has a few steep spots we honestly weren't sure our big RV would make. So we came in from the south, found our spot, and when it was time to go we looped back and left through the south again instead of trying the north.

If you're in anything long or heavy, do the same: scout the part you're unsure about with your tow vehicle first.

Where to park

You can't park on the cliff side of the road anymore, so don't plan around a spot right on the edge, even if you've seen one in older videos.

The good news is that you don't need it. Parked on the other side of the road, you can still get a great view of the formations. It depends on which spot you pick, so drive the road slowly before you choose.

Starlink, cell, and solar

Starlink worked beautifully. It's open grassland, so nothing blocks the sky.

Cell signal was there, but only a little. If you need to work, bring Starlink or plan on being patient.

The same open sky is great for solar. We had a 105-degree heat wave on our first days, and our panels ran the air conditioner and charged the batteries at the same time. We wrote about how that went in our Badlands heat wave solar test.

What to watch out for

Wind and dust. It gets really windy out there. If you're in a tent, you'll probably have a bad time. In a rig, the bigger risk is leaving windows open. We left a couple open while we hiked the Notch Trail, a storm came through, and when we got back there was a fine layer of dust on everything inside. Close your windows any time you leave the RV, even for a short trip and even if the forecast says the rain is hours away.

Storms. They build fast and they don't care what the forecast said.

Mice. We had two get in. One of our underbelly guards had come off in transit and left an open path straight up into the rig. Check your underbelly and block every entry point before you settle in. Our guide to getting rid of mice in an RV has everything we've learned.

Cattle. This is open range. We came back from a drive to find cows with calves around the RV, and a whole herd standing on the gravel road along the edge of the cliff. Give them room, move slowly, and never get between a cow and her calf.

Critters at your feet. One night Nathan found a black widow on our entry steps. There were rattlesnake warning signs all over the park too. Look before you put a hand or foot somewhere, especially after dark.

Heat. We got a heat advisory with a high of 105, and the rim is open grassland with nowhere to hide from the sun.

What's nearby

The park entrance was about five minutes from our spot, which is a ridiculous thing to say about a free campsite. The town of Wall, with Wall Drug and its free ice water, is a short drive the other way.

The hike we came for was the Notch Trail, with its log ladder. We finally did it on day four and a storm chased us off the ridge.

Our videos from the Badlands

1. 600 miles to the Badlands with no reservation
2. 105 degrees: can solar run an RV air conditioner?
3. Hiking the Notch Trail and the storm that beat us home