North Dakota's Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Grassy bluffs and pine-dotted hills loom above a maze of deeply etched canyons, and shale and sandstone cliffs.

Beauty and solitude are as common as wildflowers in North Dakota's 70,000-acre Theodore Roosevelt National Park within the Little Missouri National Grassland refuge just north of I-94 (20 miles west of Dickinson).

Buffalo graze and prairie dogs chatter beside roads that stretch from one scenic turnout to another in the park's north and south units (70 miles apart). Hiking trails in both units wind down hills, where spiny yuccas and groves of fragrant junipers emerge above a blue-green carpet of sagebrush. In the south unit, bridle trails extend from stables at Peaceful Valley Ranch.

Theodore Roosevelt loved this rugged country. In 1883, the future president founded the Maltese Cross Ranch along the cottonwood-shaded banks of the Little Missouri River just south of Medora (40 miles west of Dickinson). Today, his ranch cabin stands near the park's southern portal.

Visitors can camp in the park or retreat in the evenings to Medora's lodgings and restaurants. This little town retains much of its frontier charm, and relives its past nightly at an outdoor western variety show.

National Park Service >>
U.S. National Parks Net >>
Medora >>
Theodore Roosevelt Medora Foundation >>