Family Dayhiking the Badlands of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota

The Trip

The Little Missouri River Badlands is a beautiful landscape of eroded buttes, valleys, and canyons accented with lush vegetation. Rolling prairies and high plateaus add to the visual enjoyment for families of kids and adults alike during classic day hikes in remote Theodore Roosevelt National Park where wildlife is abundant. It is common to see bison in the backcountry, sometimes blocking trails, and there are chirping prairie dogs by the thousands. The park is home to wild horses, elk, pronghorn, coyotes -- who may be heard howling near our camp at night -- and hundreds of species of birds, including eagles, falcons, and hawks. Rattlesnakes, too.

Enjoy age-appropriate educational materials about the trip developed and organized by professional educators for your children prior to departure. Kids will learn about the wildlife and wilderness amongst park’s 70,000 acres, almost half of which are in a wilderness area, where most of our hikes lead. Enjoy educational experiences during the trip as we embark on wilderness day hikes on sometimes-rustic trails with few improvements and where bison knock down trail signs and markers. Occasional knee-deep river and stream crossings further add to the adventure -- effort rewarded by camera-clicking vistas. Each afternoon we return to a cozy, car-accessible campsite for cold drinks, a hot meal and, possibly, a campfire.

We will be car-camping in two national park campgrounds and shuttling to trailheads each morning. On a layover day in the middle of the week, our location changes from the North Unit of the park to the South Unit, 70 miles away.

A night at the Medora Musical – a kid favorite -- is included in the trip price. This two-hour musical and variety show sits in the open-air Burning Hills Amphitheatre -- less than 10 miles from our campsite – and is a kaleidoscope of entertainment enjoyed by as many as 2,900 people each summer night.

Theodore Roosevelt credits his time here for creating his interest in conservation. Later as president he established five national parks, 18 national monuments, 150 national forests, and dozens of federal reserves -- 230 million acres in all. America’s legacy to preserve and protect special places didn’t start here, but it influenced a president who did more of it than any other.

Participants on this trip have been enthusiastic about the experience:

"Meticulously planned trip in every aspect."

"Great leaders. Good food, interesting hikes, good base camps, well organized, and a great group of people."

"Everything -- especially hikes and meals were well chosen, and with great attention to detail. It was a fabulous trip overall!"

"I thought this was an excellent trip, a wonderful place to visit. Love the hiking trails, the wildlife, the landscape. Glad we did the Medora Musical -- it added to the cultural experience."

Join us for this popular Sierra Club trip to Theodore Roosevelt National Park in far western North Dakota to wander and wonder in a remote, uncrowded place. Walk through prairie dog towns and detour cross-country around herds of bison. Hike out of a steep canyon to a flat plateau that stretches for miles. Wade across a knee-deep stream. Enjoy long views of the Little Missouri River. Imagine an ancient forest, now petrified. This trip is not for everyone, but if you want a hiking vacation in a sometimes challenging but beautiful place, Day Hiking in the Badlands of Theodore Roosevelt National Park may be the right place for you.

Day 1: Our week in the Little Missouri River Badlands begins midafternoon in Juniper Campground in the Northern Unit of the park. The group campsite is a grassy area with plenty of shade. We bring a large tarp to cover picnic tables and another to protect our elaborate kitchen. Orientation, a reception, and the first of the week’s tasty meals cap the day.

Day 2: The first hike leads into the wilderness on the hilly side of the Buckhorn Trail, 6.2 miles, and features deep canyons, rolling open prairies, and a large prairie dog town.

Day 3: Today’s 6-mile hike will explore park wilderness, either from the Oxbow Overlook or on the South Achenbach Trail.

Day 4: The Caprock Coulee Trail is a 4.2-mile loop that begins as a nature trail but soon becomes more challenging. Part of the hike hugs a ridgeline with long views of the Little Missouri River Valley. After the hike and lunch in the campground, we’ll pack up and drive to Cottonwood Campground in the Southern Unit, where a sturdy open-sided picnic shelter anchors our campsite. There will be time to sightsee in Medora or enjoy views on the Scenic Loop Drive. After dinner, be amazed at the Medora Musical in the Burning Hills Amphitheater, included in the cost of the trip.

Day 5: Most of today’s challenging 9.6-mile hike is in the Theodore Roosevelt Wilderness within the park. The Lone Tree Loop presents many of the park’s scenic landscapes, including Big Plateau. After climbing out of chiseled canyons, Big Plateau looms flat as a plate to the horizon. We will cross the Little Missouri River twice and, depending on conditions, it could be ankle- to knee-deep.

Day 6: The Scenic Loop Drive will take us to the Lower Talkington and Jones Creek trails for a 4.5-mile point-to-point hike across rolling prairie below high ridges. Bison and wild horses are frequently in the area.

Day 7: A 45-minute drive to the remote northwest corner of the park will lead to a 10.3-mile loop that features two sections of the Petrified Forest separated by several miles of rugged wilderness. The Petrified Forest has remnants of trees that were 12 feet in diameter and more than 100 feet tall. The trail follows the Big Plateau for a few miles, where bison, deer, and pronghorn graze.

Day 8: We will enjoy another morning of perked coffee and a hot breakfast before the journey home begins.

Note: As with all Sierra Club trips, the itinerary is subject to change depending on weather, trail conditions, wildlife, and other issues out of the leaders’ control.

Getting There

Theodore Roosevelt National Park is composed of three separate units in an isolated corner of western North Dakota. The North Unit, where our trip starts, is 50 miles north of I-94 on U.S. Highway 85, about 15 miles south of Watford City and 70 miles south of Williston. The Williston airport has limited commercial service to Minneapolis and Denver. Amtrak stops in Williston.

The South Unit is adjacent to Medora along I-94. The closest airport is in Dickinson, about 45 minutes east of the South Unit but most people use the busier airport in Bismarck, about two hours east of the South Unit. The roster will be shared with participants to encourage car-sharing. Please do not make non-refundable travel arrangements until notified to do so by the trip leaders.

Accommodations and Food

This is a car-camping trip with day hikes based at two national park group campgrounds. The campsites are grassy shaded areas with picnic tables under a tarp or open-sided shelter. Water is on-site and flush toilets are nearby. The trip price includes highly rated meals, beginning with dinner on day one through breakfast on day eight. We provide all the cooking equipment, except for personal plates, bowls, cups, and utensils. One of the benefits of car camping is that the kitchen can be more elaborate, starting with percolated coffee each morning (in addition to other morning drinks), and including coolers of fresh food and cold drinks. The menu is vegetarian-friendly; however, if you avoid dairy products, grains or nuts, this trip is not for you. We follow the Sierra Club tradition that everyone helps cook and clean.

Trip Difficulty

To appreciate this outing, hikers should be in good physical condition and enjoy challenging day hikes that range from rolling prairie to rugged and steep. If conditions are dry, the Little Missouri River can be crossed on stepping stones. If it does rain, the river could be knee-deep and some of the trails may be impassable due to slippery bentonitic clay. Grazing bison may block a trail requiring an off-trail detour, which can include steep slopes and creek crossings. Prairie rattlesnakes make their home here and we give them a wide berth. Typical temperatures in early September range from the 70s to 80s, with overnight lows in the 40s and 50s, but conditions may be hotter, colder, wetter, and drier than expected.

Equipment and Clothing

Participants need their own personal camping gear, including a waterproof tent, sleeping bag rated at 32 degrees or below, reliable raingear, daypack, and well-broken-in, lugged-soled boots. Binoculars will be helpful to see distant wildlife. A detailed equipment list will be shared with the group.

References

• National Geographic/Trails Illustrated Map of Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
• Novey, Levi, Explore! Theodore Roosevelt National Park. A Falcon Guide.
• Park website: https://www.nps.gov/thro/index.htm/
• Medora Musical: http://medora.com/do/entertainment/medora-musical/
• Caraher, William and Bret Weber, The Bakken: An Archaeology of an Industrial Landscape.

Conservation

The boom, bust, and now partial recovery of oil extraction from the Bakken formation is on the doorstep of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The boom brought tens of thousands of jobs to the area with an increase of traffic, noise, and dust to the region. Gas flares and 24-hour operation contributes to light pollution obscuring the formerly dark nights of North Dakota. None of this is evident in the park -- there is no drilling in the park -- but this special place is not immune to the activity of neighbors and the potential environmental concerns that accompany fracking.

We will discuss these local environmental issues, as well as other national park threats and the Sierra Club response.

Sierra Club National Outings is an equal-opportunity provider and when applicable will operate under permits obtained from U.S. federal land agencies.