Erroded clay hills near Fort Yates, North Dakota on Standing Rock
Standing Rock has a fascinating array of soil types and land forms. Covered with rugged buttes, bare bentonite cliffs and plunging draws that ensconce hidden forests of oak and cottonwood, the beautiful vistas spring from a foundation of soil types that manifest themselves through the shape of the landscape and the ecological communities that cover them.
The NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service) under the USDA has up to date soil survey guides at the county level that can be accessed online or in print form at the library. Standing Rock consists of two counties, Sioux in North Dakota and Corson in South Dakota, making it relatively easy to utilize these guides in their entirety since not all Native nation boundaries line up as neatly with county lines as Standing Rock does. You can access them at the links below or at the library.