The Ultimate Guide to Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is one of the most underrated national parks in the United States. This travel guide to Theodore Roosevelt National Park has everything you need to plan your trip to these Midwest badlands and to show you that North Dakota is probably better than you expect. In fact, Theodore Roosevelt chose this area for the location of his home ranch in 1883. Roosevelt’s time living and ranching in these badlands is what inspired the conservation policies that remain his greatest legacy. If these badlands were enough to inspire Teddy Roosevelt to create the National Park System, you’re sure to love them too.
Get ready for an epic Wild West adventure with this travel guide to Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
The Basics
Entrance Fee: $25/vehicle. If you’re planning to visit three or more National Parks this year, be sure to pick up an America the Beautiful Pass to save on entrance fees.
Location: Medora & Grassy Butte, ND, USA
Hours & Seasons: 24 hours a day, year-round
Notable Wildlife: Bison, Wild Horses, Prairie Dogs, Prairie Rattlesnakes
Pets: Leashed pets may be walked along roads and road shoulders, sidewalks, parking areas, and in campgrounds and picnic areas.
Related Post: 7 Reasons You Need to Visit Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Getting to Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is located on the western edge of North Dakota near the border of Montana. It’s broken up into three units – the North Unit, the Elkhorn Ranch Unit, and the South Unit. The North Unit is located in Grassy Butte, ND, and the larger, more popular South Unit is located in Medora, ND. The Elkhorn Ranch is located midway between the North and South units. Medora is likely where you’ll want to make your base for this trip. There are no airports in Medora, so you’ll need a car to get there. The closest major city is Bismarck – the capital of North Dakota.
Know Before You Go: The town of Dickinson, ND is the closest place to get groceries or other supplies from big box stores. It’s located 36 minutes outside of Medora.
Getting Around Theodore Roosevelt National Park
You’ll need a car to explore each area of this park. It’s a 70-minute drive from the South Unit to the North Unit of the park. The Elkhorn Ranch Unit is accessed via a gravel road that sometimes requires four-wheel drive and/or a high-clearance vehicle. There is no shuttle service or public transportation available in the park.
Most of the overlooks and trailheads in the South Unit are located along the 36-mile scenic loop drive. The North Unit trailheads and viewpoints are located along a 14-mile out-and-back road.
Fun Fact
You can travel through time in Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The South Unit of the park operates on Mountain time while the North Unit operates on Central time.
Best Time to Visit Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is open 24 hours a day year-round. The weather in the park varies greatly between seasons. Summers can be brutally hot while winters get severely cold. Many activities and accommodations are only open from late May through early September, and peak mosquito season is in July and August. My favorite time to visit the park is in September, after Labor Day.
The best times to visit are in late spring (before Memorial day) and early fall (after Labor Day).
Where to Stay
The best base for your trip to Theodore Roosevelt National Park is the small town of Medora. Located at the entrance of the popular South Unit, this old western town is fully geared toward visitors to the park. No matter where you choose to stay in Medora, you’ll be just minutes from the entrance to the South Unit of the park.
Read More: The Ultimate Travel Guide to Medora
STAYING IN THE PARK
There are two campgrounds located within the park. These are the Cottonwood Campground in the South Unit and Juniper Campground in the North Unit. There are no lodges in the park.
Food & Drinks
There are several picnic areas within the park, but there are no restaurants or food vendors. I recommend bringing lunch and snacks with you into the park and then heading back to Medora for dinner. See the guide linked above for my restaurant recommendations in Medora.
South Unit
The South Unit, located in Medora, is the largest and most popular unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The trailheads and overlooks are located along a scenic, easy-to-drive 36-mile loop road* that will navigate you through the park. This drive is spectacular, with gorgeous views at every turn. Plan at least an hour and a half to make the loop drive and longer if you’d like to hike. As you wind your way through the badlands, keep an eye out for the abundant wildlife that resides here. In addition to the bison and wild horses that you’re likely to spot, prairie dog towns found throughout the park are home to hundreds of prairie dogs.
* Note that as of this writing, the last three miles of the loop drive are closed indefinitely for heavy reconstruction. This is due to road collapse, and there is not yet a planned date for reopening.
Viewpoints
Nearly all of the best views in Theodore Roosevelt National Park are found just off the roadside – no hiking required. If your time in the park is limited, you can easily experience the beauty of the badlands by stopping at the various overlooks and viewpoints along the Scenic Loop Drive.
Skyline Vista
Roundtrip Distance: 0.1 mi (0.16 km)
This will be your first stop along the South Unit’s loop drive. A short, paved path will lead you to this overlook atop a plateau. From here you can look out over the Sheep Creek valley and see the Little Missouri River in the distance.
Wind Canyon
Roundtrip Distance: 0.4 mi (0.6 km)
This is my favorite spot in the South Unit! A short trail along a wind-sculpted canyon ends in a gorgeous overlook of the Little Missouri River.
Favorite Sunset Spot
Wind Canyon is an excellent spot to watch the sun go down over the Little Missouri River. Rangers recommended this overlook for sunset, and it did not disappoint!
Biocourt Overlook
Roundtrip Distance: 0.2 mi (0.3 km)
One way to enjoy this overlook is via the pull-off along the loop drive. If you’d like to stretch your legs a little, you can also hike the short path that leads to another overlook of the badlands below.
Badlands Overlook
There’s no mystery to what this spot is – it’s a viewpoint overlooking the badlands. Simple, yet breathtaking.
Scoria Point Overlook
The red rocks here got their color over time as coal seams caught fire and baked the surrounding earth. This overlook was inaccessible when we visited, so it’s the only viewpoint I haven’t personally seen in this park.
The Scoria Point Overlook is currently inaccessible due to heavy road reconstruction on the last three miles of the loop drive. There is not yet a planned re-opening for this portion of the road.
Painted Canyon
The Painted Canyon is the only portion of the South Unit that isn’t located along the scenic loop drive. It sits just outside the town of Medora and can be accessed without an admission fee. If you’re driving in from east of Medora, make a pit stop here on your way into the park to kick off your national park adventure!
Despite it being slightly separated from the rest of the park, you should absolutely make it a point to stop here! There’s no hiking required to catch the sweeping views of the colorful North Dakota badlands. However, if you are craving a jaunt, there are two trailheads located here as well. One is a short nature loop trail, and the other is a more difficult, two-mile trail that heads down into the badlands and connects to the Upper Paddock Creek Trail.
Hiking Trails
While I love a good scenic drive, it’s always nice to get out and explore the places your car can’t go. In addition to the short hikes listed above, there are twelve trails that can be found throughout the South Unit of the park. You can find the full details for every trail by heading over to the park’s website, but I’ll also highlight the trails we were able to check out during our visit.
If you have the time, I highly recommend getting out on some hikes while you’re here! There are options for all levels and abilities, and hiking can be one of the best ways to ensure you get a little time away from other travelers during your visit. We encountered little to no other hikers while we were on these trails. The peaceful solitude we were able to enjoy as a result is one of my favorite memories from this trip.
Jones Creek Trail
This is a 3.5-mile (5.6 km) trail following a small creek through the prairie. You can choose to stay on this trail or opt to include the two additional trails connected to it. Although it’s listed under the moderate/strenuous section on the NPS website, the portion of this trail that we hiked was entirely flat and an easy, peaceful stroll.
Coal Vein Trail
This is an interesting trail to learn about the geology and ecology of the badlands. The underground coal veins located here caught fire in the 1950s and burned for 26 years, forming the depression that is the Coal Vein Trail today. This hike passes ancient dried-up swamps, layered buttes, juniper trees, overlooks, and grasslands. The inner loop is 0.6 mi (1 km) and the outer loop is 0.8 mi (1.3 km) roundtrip.
Safety Tip: If you’re on a walk, be on the lookout for rattlesnakes! Don’t put your hands or feet in any place you cannot see (such as a hole, in tall grass, or under a rock). Note that rattlesnakes and black widow spiders often reside in prairie dog burrows. We didn’t see any snakes on our visit (if we had, I wouldn’t be writing this because I would have died from sheer terror), but it’s always important to be alert.
Prairie Dog Towns
One of my absolute favorite things about Theodore Roosevelt National Park is the hundreds of prairie dogs you are almost guaranteed to see while you’re here! During the daylight hours, these cute little guys pop up out of their mounds to feast and run around. Their squeaky little “barks” are hilarious, and I never get tired of watching them do their iconic head-poke out of their hole in the ground.
There are several towns located throughout the park, and three of them are just off the side of the road, making them super easy to spot.
I probably don’t have to say this, but I will anyway: prairie dogs might look cute and cuddly, but they’re still wild animals. Please don’t attempt to pet or catch them. And don’t feed them.
Drive carefully! These towns are truly right next to the road, so make sure you watch for any prairie dogs that may have scuttled into the street.
Elkhorn Ranch Unit
In the years before his presidency, Teddy Roosevelt came to this rugged territory to hunt bison and farm cattle. He built his home ranch here where he lived and worked for a time and where he continued to visit after moving back to New York. Today, only the foundation stones of his cabin remain, but exhibits featuring written passages from Roosevelt about his time on the ranch give you a sense of what his life there was like.
Head over to the park’s website for the full details and history of this unit of the park.
Note: This unit of the park has no visitor centers or facilities. You may need a four-wheel and/or high-clearance vehicle to reach the ranch, particularly after rain or snow.
North Unit
Although the North Unit is smaller and less popular than the South Unit, it was actually my favorite. Because most visitors to Theodore Roosevelt National Park only visit the South Unit, there are usually little to no crowds here, which makes it all the more enjoyable. In fact, you’re likely to see more bison here than humans. This portion of the park is centered around a 14-mile out-and-back road. All of the viewpoints and trailheads are found along the road, much like the South Unit. Some of the best views in this unit are just a short walk from the pull-offs.
The nearest town to the North Unit is Grassy Butte, ND. With few accommodations or dining options in Grassy Butte, I still recommend centering your stay in Medora and simply making the drive to and from the North Unit out of there. The drive between units is about 70 minutes each way. Although the drive is mostly flat and less than exciting, I still fully recommend making your way to this section of the park. We dedicated a full day to exploring the North Unit, but you could certainly do it in less depending on how many hikes you want to complete (or how many pictures you take – we spend a lot of time taking photos).
Viewpoints
There are nine total pull-off spots along the 14-mile North Unit Scenic Drive. Three of these are what, I feel, make the trip up here totally worth it.
Cannonball Concretions
These geological formations are fascinating to look at! They seem entirely unnatural and out of place in contrast to the surroundings. As water seeps through the layered rocks that make up the badlands, it deposits minerals that bind with the sediments around a core. Over time, more and more layers are deposited forming these cannonballs, and erosion eventually exposes them. There are likely even more of these cannonballs under the surface of the buttes that we just can’t see yet!
River Bend Overlook
This is my favorite spot in the entire park! It sits high atop a butte overlooking the badlands and the Little Missouri River. The panoramic view also shows off how north-facing buttes are green and lush while south-facing buttes are dry and brittle from the harsh sun.
Oxbow Overlook
The last stop along the North Unit Scenic Drive is Oxbow Overlook. This final overlook offers a sweeping panoramic view of the Badlands and of an oxbow in the Little Missouri River.
Hiking Trails
Again, I will direct you to the park’s website for full details on all of the hikes in Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Because we had less time to explore this area of the park (and we got totally captivated and carried away with photographing the stunning landscapes here), we weren’t able to hike many trails. We had planned more, so I’m eager to go back and check out some others in the future.
Little Mo Trail
This is an easy trail along the river. It has a paved 0.7 mi (1.1 km) inner loop and an unpaved 1.1 mi (1.8 km) outer loop. While this hike was definitely enjoyable, I would likely prioritize other trails before heading on this one.
Buckhorn Trail
This is an 11.4 mi (18.3 km) trail, but you only need to hike the first 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to reach a prairie dog town. Unlike the South Unit, there aren’t any prairie dog towns that can be reached by car. If you want to spot some prairie dogs in the North Unit, this trail is a good option.
Sperati Point via Achenbach Trail
Beginning at Oxbow Overlook, this is another long hike, clocking in at a whopping 18 miles (30 km). However, hiking just the first 1.5 miles (2.4 km) will lead you to an overlook of the Little Missouri River.
Wildlife
Much like the South Unit, wildlife is abundant here. Most notably, we spotted large herds of bison close to the road (a few of which temporarily impeded traffic on more than one occasion). Near the entrance to the North Unit, you might spot some longhorn cattle. These aren’t native but were brought to the park to mimic Theodore Roosevelt’s time cattle ranching. Although there are several prairie dog towns located throughout this unit as well, they can only be reached via a hike. As noted previously, be sure to keep an eye out for rattlesnakes (ahhhhh!) if you’re out on a walk.
Bison or Buffalo?
While the terms are often used interchangeably, these are two distinctly different animals. Buffalo are native to Africa and Asia (think water buffalo), while bison are native to North America and Europe. Bison have a large hump at their shoulders, a thick coat, and a beard.
You’ll find plenty of bison in North Dakota, but no buffalo.
After spending a few days here, it’s easy to see why this area inspired Theodore Roosevelt’s conservation efforts. Will you be adding this North Dakota park to your bucket list? Let me know in the comments below!
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