badland
Barren rocky expanse
Badland refers to rough, eroded terrain characterized by steep gullies, sparse vegetation, and exposed rock formations—land too rugged for farming or easy travel.
Usually plural: the badlands of South Dakota.
The term suggests desolate, inhospitable country shaped by water and wind erosion.
Figuratively, any difficult or dangerous territory: navigating the badlands of corporate politics.
Folk magic tradition
- butteIsolated flat-topped hill
- mesaFlat-topped steep-sided elevation
- pinnacleUtmost summit or spire
- gullyChannel carved by flowing water
ravine · canyon · erosion · sediment · clay · shale · siltstone · sandstone
Bleak and abandoned
- aridDevoid of water
- parchedExtremely dry or thirsty
- inhospitableUnwelcoming, harsh to visitors
- bleakDreary and without cheer
wasteland · lifeless · stark · dusty · sere · droughty · sterile · sparse
Sparsely populated wilderness areas
- hikingRecreational trail walking
- trekkingLong-distance foot travel
- explorationTraveling through unknown regions
- remoteDistant or controller
wilderness · rugged · challenging · isolated · primitive · survival · overlanding · off-trail
Twenty-sixth American president
- Painted DesertColorful Arizona geological region
- AlbertaWestern Canadian province
- SaskatchewanCanadian prairie province
- MontanaNorthwestern state, fourth-largest
hoodoo
Folk magic tradition
gully · ravine · canyon · erosion · sediment · clay · shale · siltstone · sandstone · strata
desolate
Bleak and abandoned
- aridDevoid of water
- parchedExtremely dry or thirsty
- inhospitableUnwelcoming, harsh to visitors
bleak · wasteland · lifeless · stark · dusty · sere · droughty · sterile · sparse · desiccated
backcountry
Sparsely populated wilderness areas
- hikingRecreational trail walking
- trekkingLong-distance foot travel
- explorationTraveling through unknown regions
remote · wilderness · rugged · challenging · isolated · primitive · survival · overlanding · off-trail · expedition
Theodore Roosevelt
Twenty-sixth American president
- Painted DesertColorful Arizona geological region
- AlbertaWestern Canadian province
- SaskatchewanCanadian prairie province
- landformsmountain, cliff, valley, volcano, mountain ridge
badlandfertile plain
Productive level farmland
farmland · arable land · fertile plains · cropland · breadbasket
badlandflatland
Level, unvaried terrain
plain · lowland · valley floor · parkland · grassland
badlandparadise
Ideal, blissful place
Eden · promised land · land of plenty · oasis · green belt
- the BadlandsArid, heavily eroded region
- Badlands National ParkProtected eroded prairie landscape