12. Theodore Roosevelt National Park (North Unit)
Over centuries, the Little Missouri River, its tributaries, and the relentless forces of wind and rain have carved deep, rugged canyons through western North Dakota’s plains. Dramatic pyramid-shaped buttes and steep bluffs with bands of red, orange, pink, yellow, gray, and black can be seen along a 14-mile scenic drive that winds from the North Unit’s visitor center to Oxbow Overlook.
Like its counterpart Unit to the south, the area is rich with all sorts of wildlife. Longhorn cattle can be seen drinking water at the bison corral. Golden eagles soar overhead, hunting unwary prairie dogs. Here and there, mule deer (named for their large ears) pause as they graze to watch cars pass by. But for most visitors the tour’s highlight comes when bison, the park’s proudest residents, are seen. Up to 60 million of these massive mammals, standing six feet tall and weighing more than a ton, once roamed the Great Plains. Today these icons of the Old West are scarce; only 100 are found in the park’s North Unit, with about 300 in the South Unit.
13. Little Missouri National Grassland
As Rte. 85 makes its way south, it skirts the eastern border of the Little Missouri National Grassland, one of the largest and most varied of the 20 grasslands found in the West. The region — embracing more than a million acres of open prairie, buttes, and badlands — was overgrazed and abandoned in the drought-stricken Dust Bowl 1930s, but it was later reclaimed for cattle ranching and recreation.
A number of scoria — red knobs — may be seen throughout the area. They are composed of sediment that was baked red by burning lignite coal. You’ll also note a number of petrified wood stumps. These are millions of years old, all that remains of North Dakota’s once-extensive forests of sequoias.
For the best views of the grasslands, follow the Maah Daah Hey Trail, a 96-mile-long horseback riding, hiking, and mountain biking route through the Badlands that joins the North and South Units of Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
14. Theodore Roosevelt National Park (South Unit)
The savage artistry of the Badlands is well displayed at the Painted Canyon Overlook, just north of I-94, where wind and water have shaped rolling hills, undulating plains, and colorful cliffs. When Theodore Roosevelt came here in 1883 on a hunting trip, he was so captivated with the region that he became a principal partner in the Maltese Cross Ranch. Visitors can tour his restored cabin near the Medora visitor center at the park’s entrance.
Motorists on the South Unit’s 36-mile-loop drive will see many romantic reminders of a bygone era, including wild horses racing across the plains. Here, one can choose between the splendid isolation of a land little changed since cowboys rode herd or the Old West festivals and other attractions in nearby Medora. For all its scenic wonders, the park’s greatest gift to visitors may be its sense of endless free space.
