This National Grassland is Home to North Dakota’s Strangest, Most Bizarre Geological Wonder

Western North Dakota's badlands region encompass nearly three million acres, much of which lies within the million-acre Little Missouri National Grassland - the nation's largest. At the heart of the grassland, you'll find 70,000-acre Theodore Roosevelt National Park: North Dakota's pride and joy. A visit to this part of our incredible state reveals many eye-popping natural wonders, but one, in particular, stands out among the rest.

The Badlands are breathtaking, and you can get the single best front-row seat to them within the national park. It's tough to sum up how amazing this place is; it's named after President Teddy Roosevelt, who fell madly in love with the landscape upon his first visit. I had the same experience, and I'm now obsessed.

But there's a strange and beautiful little wonder within this wonder that's sure to leave you scratching your head: gigantic, nearly perfect "concrete" spheres.

Would you believe me if I told you these weird monoliths are all natural? Probably not, but that's what's so mind-blowing about them: They are real, and they prove that nature is an incredible artist.

Ranging from golf ball-sized to more than 10 feet in diameter, these alien-looking rock formations leave most folks wondering what on earth (literally) could have possibly caused them to form. Amazingly, though, they all tell stories, and we know just how they came to be.

There were two keys to the formation of these bizarre little rock-balls: water and time.

In a nutshell, cannonball concretions - the formal name for this phenomenon - are created by a lengthy erosion process. It's not known exactly how long it takes for them to form, but it is obvious that the larger they are, the older they probably are.

To the layperson meandering through the region, it might look like someone just dropped a whole bunch of random, almost perfectly spherical rocks across the landscape. The landscape itself is already bizarre and beautiful, and the addition of these incredibly unique formations only adds to the overall wonder. To the geology geek meandering through the region, this is a playground unlike any other. The opportunities to observe amazingness are endless.

Please keep in mind, though, that collecting samples is not permitted. I know, it's a bummer, but it's very important. If everyone took a souvenir, we'd soon be out of natural wonders to go around! Leave these strange and beautiful rock formations to themselves and allow future generations to enjoy them as much as we do.

Be sure to check out the official National Park Service website for more information about Theodore Roosevelt National Park, including all the camping, hunting, and hiking information you'll ever need. And be sure to pick up your America the Beautiful Pass before you go so you won't have to waste any time at the park.