| Theodore Roosevelt National Park | |
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IUCN Category II (National Park)
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| Location | Billings County & McKenzie County, North Dakota, USA |
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| Nearest city | Medora |
| Coordinates | 46°58′0″N 103°27′0″W / 46.966667°N 103.45°WCoordinates: 46°58′0″N 103°27′0″W / 46.966667°N 103.45°W |
| Area | 70,448 acres (285 km²) |
| Established | November 10, 1978 |
| Visitors | 435,359 (in 2006) |
| Governing body | National Park Service |
Established in 1978, Theodore Roosevelt National Park is a United States National Park comprising three geographically separated areas of badlands in western North Dakota. The park was named for U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt, who owned and worked for a few years on a ranch now preserved in the park. The park covers 110 square miles (285 km²) of land in three sections: the North Unit, the South Unit, and the Elkhorn Ranch.
The park's larger South Unit lies alongside Interstate 94 near Medora, North Dakota. The smaller North Unit is situated about 80 mi (130 km) north of the South Unit, on U.S. Highway 85, just south of Watford City, North Dakota. Roosevelt's Elkhorn Ranch is located between the North and South units, approximately 20 mi (32 km) west of US 85 and Fairfield, North Dakota. The entire park is contained within the Little Missouri National Grassland, and the Little Missouri River flows through the park. The Maah Daah Hey Trail connects all three units.
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In 1884, after the death of his wife and mother (on the same day), Roosevelt traveled to his North Dakota ranch to rebuild his life and to recover from the tragedy. The badlands were a catharsis for him and although he returned east several times, for most of two years he ranched in the area and noted his experiences in pieces published in eastern newspapers and magazines. Returning east and back into politics, Roosevelt would forever associate himself with the vanishing frontier and the life of the western cowboy.
The Little Missouri Badlands were explored in 1924 to determine possible park sites. Civilian Conservation Corps camps were set up in both of the future park units in 1934. The area was designated the Roosevelt Recreation Demonstration Area in 1935. In 1946 it was transferred to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service as the Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge. It was established as the Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park on April 25, 1947 and finally became a national park in 1978. 29,920 acres (121.1 km²) of the park was preserved as Theodore Roosevelt Wilderness.
Both units of the park have scenic drives, dozens of miles of foot and horse trails and allow back country hiking and camping. There are three automobile campgrounds, two in the South Unit. Bison are usually visible from the scenic drives, often grazing by the roadside.
The park displays spectacular seasonal variations in scenery. Sprouting plants and moisture in the spring accentuates stria of green, blue, red and white. Red "clinker" (a naturally baked rock locally known as "scoria")[1] dominates in the summer and golden brown grasslands in the fall. Winter is almost devoid of color and the landscape is often covered with a thin layer of snow.
The park is well suited to back country hikers and permits can be obtained at either park office. It is possible to hike for days without seeing or hearing another human or evidence of development. 100+ miles of trail make it a fine hiking park. The park units are mostly surrounded by Forest Service grasslands. Sagebrush grows throughout most of the park. The area has very dark skies with excellent star gazing and northern lights displays. However, the conditions are harsh, with little or no natural water, and summer temperatures can stay above 95°F (35°C) and winter temperatures below -20°F (-30°C) for extended periods. The bison can be very dangerous, especially during springtime calving. They have been known to destroy automobiles when drivers get too close.
A large variety of wild animals can be spotted, including; buffalo (bison), elk, pronghorn, prairie dogs, coyotes, wild horses, Bighorn sheep, wild turkey, rattlesnakes, and blacksnakes, and Longhorn. Bison and Bighorn sheep were reintroduced into the South unit in 1956, some 75 years after they had been extirpated.
The entire park has been surrounded with a 7-foot (2.1 m) tall woven wire fence to keep bison separated from commercial livestock. The North Unit was fenced by 1962 when bison were reintroduced there. The park has a capacity for about 500 bison and relies on roundups to keep their population below this number. Captured bison are sold or go to other parks or to Native Americans. Wild horses are kept to a level of about 100 in the park through occasional roundups.
Roosevelt's Elkhorn Ranch is a remote and seldom-visited area of the park not easily accessible by vehicle. The most direct route to the ranch is via US 85 at Fairfield. A system of gravel roads leads approximately 20 miles (32 km) west to the Little Missouri River. Once visitors reach the river, it must be forded (on foot or possibly 4x4, depending on the river's depth). The actual ranch is a one-mile (1.6 km) hike beyond the river. A visitor's log at the trailhead revealed fewer than 20 visitors in the year preceding July 2006. Today almost nothing is left of the ranch. The outlines of the former buildings are surrounded by fences, but even the foundations are gone. With the exception of a National Park Service map and tack board, the site has probably changed very little since Roosevelt's days.
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Theodore Roosevelt National Park [1] is a United States National Park that is located in the North Dakota Badlands. The park is named for the 26th president, Theodore Roosevelt, who was noted for his passionate devotion to the conservation of the nation's natural resources.
The park's 70,448 acres are divided into three units: South Unit, North Unit and the Elkhorn Ranch Unit. The terrain of the park includes badlands, open prairie, hard wood draws. It is home to bison, prairie dogs and many other wildlife species. The Little Missouri River runs through the park.
"I would not have been President, had it not been for my experience in North Dakota."
- Theodore Roosevelt
If visiting multiple sites in one day, remember that the North Unit is in the Central Time Zone, while the South Unit follows Mountain Time.
An abundance of native grasses provide sustenance for larger grazing animals: bison, elk, pronghorn antelope, white-tailed and mule deer, bighorn sheep and feral horses.
Once land is grazed or disturbed, it becomes prime habitat for prairie dogs to build their towns. The park's prairie dog towns are a great place to find birds feeding on seeds, burrowing owls making their dens, and prairie rattlesnakes or bull snakes living in abandoned burrows. It is not uncommon to see a golden eagle flying overhead, or a porcupine ambling up a tree to snack on the tree bark.
Summers are warm with temperatures in the 80s and 90s (Fahrenheit). Evenings are often cool. Annual precipitation is 15 inches. Winters are cold with brief warming periods.
The South Unit entrance and South Unit (Medora) Visitor Center are located in Medora, just off Interstate 94 (exits 23 & 27) and is 135 miles west of Bismarck, North Dakota.
The Painted Canyon Visitor Center is located 7 miles east of Medora just off I-94 at exit 32. It is open seasonally, from May 1st to mid-November.
The North Unit entrance is located 16 miles south of Watford City along U.S. Highway 85. The distance between Medora at the South Unit and the North Unit is 70 miles via I-94 and U. S. Highway 85.
The Elkhorn Ranch Unit is only accessible via gravel roads and, from the east, a river ford. Check with a ranger at the North or South Unit for current conditions and specific directions.
Air service is available into the western North Dakota towns of Bismarck, Dickinson and Williston.
Bus transportation via Rimrock Inc., Toll Free: 1-800-255-7655, [2] is available along I-94. The bus stops in Medora, three blocks from the park's South Unit entrance.
There is no public bus transportation along Highway 85 and to the North Unit.
Train service via Amtrak is available into Williston, North Dakota.
All permits are good for all units.
It was here in the North Dakota badlands in 1883 that Roosevelt first arrived to hunt bison. Before he left, he had acquired primary interests in the Maltese Cross or Chimney Butte Ranch. Roosevelt thrived on the vigorous outdoor lifestyle, and at the Maltese Cross, actively participated in the life of a working cowboy.
The Maltese Cross Ranch cabin was originally located about seven miles south of Medora in the wooded bottom-lands of the Little Missouri River. At Roosevelt's request ranch managers Sylvane Ferris and Bill Merrifield built a one and one-half story cabin complete with a shingle roof and cellar. Constructed of durable ponderosa pine logs that had been cut and floated down the Little Missouri River, the cabin was considered somewhat of a "mansion" in its day, with wooden floors and three separate rooms (kitchen, living room and Roosevelt's bedroom). The steeply pitched roof, an oddity on the northern plains, created an upstairs sleeping loft for the ranch hands.
A number of items in the cabin today belonged to Theodore Roosevelt. Those that did not are from the same time period and would be typical furnishings of the day.
During Roosevelt's presidency, the Maltese Cross cabin was exhibited in Portland, Oregon and St. Louis. It was then moved to the state capitol grounds in Bismarck. In 1959, the cabin was relocated to its present site and renovated. The most recent preservation work occurred in 2000. His second ranch, the Elkhorn, was located about 35 miles north of Medora.
In 1884 Roosevelt selected the location for a second ranch, naming it the Elkhorn. He purchased the rights to the site, located thirty-five miles north of Medora, from the previous occupant for $400.
Roosevelt's last known visit to the Elkhorn was in 1892. He sold the ranch and buildings to Sylvane Ferris in 1898. Gradually the buildings were stripped of their furnishings and, according to a local stockman, by 1901 "every scrap of the Elkhorn Ranch had disappeared with the exception of a couple of half rotted foundations."
In his writings Theodore Roosevelt often referred to the Elkhorn as his "home ranch". His vivid descriptions of it, and of ranch life, enable his readers to imagine how things must have been.
There is also the option to travel crosscountry off the trails. In order to camp overnight a free permit is required.
More than 40% of the park--close to 30,000 acres--are backcountry wilderness. Hikers and horseback parties who wish to camp overnight in the backcountry must register at either the South or North Unit visitor centers and obtain a free backcountry use permit. A free backcountry guide is also available. In addition to the established trail system, visitors have the opportunity to travel crosscountry in the park.
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Category: Outline articles
   | Theodore Roosevelt National Park - Theodore Roosevelt National Park |
| | Theodore Roosevelt National Park - Theodore Roosevelt National Park (U.S. National Park Service) |
| | Photos of Theodore Roosevelt National Park - Terra Galleria - Theodore Roosevelt National Park Pictures - US National Parks stock photos, fine art prints by QTL |
| | Pictures of Theodore Roosevelt and Badlands National Parks - Pictures of Badlands and Theodore Roosevelt National Park - US National Parks photos - fine art prints and stock photography |
| | Theodore Roosevelt National Park - Theodore Roosevelt National Park - National Parks Gallery |
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