By Scott Shephard

I spent parts of two days camping in NW Nebraska near a place called “Toadstool Geologic Park and Campground.” The campground is set on a very flat part of Nebraska but is nestled up against an area that South and North Dakotans would call “Badlands,” which, if you ask me, is an unkind term given how photogenic Badlands can be.

I had sent my drone up just after a very hazy sunrise and accidentally pointed the camera straight down, and this is what I found. From ground level, you can see clear evidence of erosional forces but from the air in angular light the erosion reveals an almost intentional sculptural result.

Such are the forces of nature.

For the sake of a more “normal” view of these same structures, here’s a photo I took of the same general location from a lower angle and another one that shows the general setting of this unusual campground.

Mavic 2 Pro 5 frame HDR