North Dakota: A Guide to the Northern Prairie State

by Federal Writers' Project of the Works Progress Administration for the State of North Dakota

ROOSEVELT REGIONAL STATE PARKS

Season: Open year round. June to September most favorable period.

Tourist Information: State Historical Society of North Dakota, Liberty Memorial Building, Bismarck, N. Dak.

Admission: Free.

Transportation:

North Park. Entrances: E. entrance, US 85 (see Tour 4); N. entrance—less desirable—dirt road from Arnegard (see Tour 4). Branch of Great Northern Ry., Fairview, Mont., to Watford City; Carpenter Bus Line from Williston.

Roads: 14 m. gravel and scoria highway; 10 m. horse or hike trail. No guide service.

South Park. Entrances: E. entrance, W. entrance, US 10 (see Tour 8). Main line Northern Pacific Ry. and Northland Greyhound Bus Line to Medora (see Tour 8).

Roads: 10 m. gravel and scoria highway; 10 m. graveled truck trail; 5 m. horse or hike trail.

Guide service: Buddy Ranch, 1.5 m. E. of Medora on US 10.

Accommodations:

North Park. Hotel accommodations at Watford City (see Tour 4); camping and trailer facilities at Squaw Creek Picnic Area (see North Roosevelt Regional State Park Tour below).

South Park. Hotel accommodations at Medora (see Tour 8).

Camping and trailer facilities at camping area in park (see South Roosevelt Regional State Park Tour below).

Meals, cabins, and horses at Buddy Ranch, 1.5 m. E. of Medora. Horse rates for resident guest, $1.50 per day, guide provided with party of 5; for nonresident guest, $1.50 for one-half day, $2.50 per day, guide provided with party of 5.

Climate, clothing, and equipment: Summer tourists should prepare for hot days and cool evenings and for sudden rain or dust storms. Those who expect to tramp in the Badlands should dress for walking through brush and soft, clayey soil. Breeches and high-top boots are in order, the latter serving the additional purpose of protection against snake bite.

Medical service:

North Park. Watford City (see Tour 4).

South Park. Belfield (see Tour 8).

Special regulations: No hunting allowed. Camping permitted at points where facilities are provided. Fires allowed only at points designated.

Warnings: Avoid low places during heavy rainstorms. Horse trails should not be attempted after rains until trail makers have had an opportunity to repair. Use only native horses. Rattlesnakes are encountered only infrequently (see General Information).

Summary of attractions: Badlands views, petrified forests, horseback riding, camping.

Theodore Roosevelt's biographer, Herman Hagedorn, writes:

"Between the prairie lands of North Dakota and the prairie lands of Montana there is a narrow strip of broken country so wild and fantastic in its beauty that it seems as though some unholy demon had carved it to mock the loveliness of God. On both sides of a sinuous river rise ten thousand buttes cut into bizarre shapes by the waters of countless centuries. The hand of man never dared to paint anything as those hills are painted. Olive and lavender, buff, brown, and dazzling white mingle with emerald and flaming scarlet to make a piece of savage splendor that is not without an element of the terrible. The buttes are stark and bare. Only in the clefts are ancient cedars, starved and deformed. In spring there are patches of green grass, an acre here, a hundred acres there, reaching up the slopes from the level bottom-land; but there are regions where for miles and miles no green thing grows, and all creation seems a witch's caldron of gray bubbles tongued with flame, held by some bit of black art forever in suspension."

Here in this broken country, known as the Badlands of the Little Missouri, the Roosevelt Regional State Parks are being developed to preserve parts of the strange area as scenic and recreational centers, and at the same time to establish a memorial to the former President, who as a young man spent part of each year from 1883 to 1886 ranching here. (See Tours 8 and 10.) To view the freakish, tumbled, unearthly valley is to appreciate and at the same time be amused by Gen. Alfred Sully's oft-quoted characterization of the region as "hell with the fires out." It must be remembered that the general received his impressions as he jolted along in a wagon, sick, while his troops fought Sioux through the confused, uncertain terrain all one hot day in August 1864. Others visiting it under more favorable circumstances, especially during the freshness of spring, concede the unparalleled fantasy of the landscape, and agree on its strange, wild, potent beauty. Twenty years after Sully fought the Sioux here Roosevelt wrote, "I grow very fond of this place ... it ... has a desolate, grim beauty, that has a curious fascination for me." Since then many noted travelers and writers have marveled at its beauties and deplored the fact that its attractions have not been made more widely known.

The traveler approaching the Badlands from the rolling prairies on either side suddenly finds himself overlooking a valley cut abruptly into the heart of the plain, a valley filled with a strange welter of bare ridges and hillocks, buttes and domes, pyramids and cones, forming one of the most extraordinary topographies on the surface of the earth. In broad horizontal stripes across the varied shapes of the buttes are the browns, reds, grays, and yellows of the sand and clay laid down centuries ago when during successive ages arms of the sea covered large parts of the North American Continent. Where today the visitor stands and looks out over the naked buttes once lay a mighty sea in which swam monsters whose fossilized skeletons are embedded in the strata laid down by the primordial waters.

Here and there, standing out against the lighter coloring of the sands and clays, are black veins of lignite. Ages ago dense forests, rivaling those of the tropics of today, rose over the swamps of the receding seas. The motorcar speeds through a region where the giant hog, the three-toed horse, and the saber-toothed tiger roamed among lofty trees. The cast-off growth of the forest fell into the swamps below, where, shut away from the air by water and mud, it turned into peat. Centuries later the seas returned to crush it with heavy layers of shale and clay, until pressure and heat drove out most of the volatile oils of the wood, leaving carbon or coal. It is not surprising to find that lignite coal has the same cellular formation as wood, and that it at times bears the imprint of leaves or of whole trunks of trees. The forms of stumps 15 feet in diameter have been found in the coal beds of the State.

Lighting up the dull strata of the buttes are the ever present pinks and reds of scoria—clay burnt into a brick-like shale by the centuries-old fires of burning coal veins. Some of these burning veins still exist in the Badlands, being more easily discoverable in the wintertime, when the heat from combustion causes steam to rise. This burning has been one of the major factors in the production of the present Badlands topography, for as the fires have eaten into the coal veins in the cliffs, the earth has crumbled and been carried away by the rains and streams. These fires were an awesome sight to the Indians, who believed the hills were on fire.

The chief agent, however, in the formation of the Badlands has been the Little Missouri River, which centuries ago began to carve its way down through the soft shales and sandstones with which the early seas had covered the area. Aided by the eroding action of wind, frost, and rain, by huge landslides, and by burning coal veins, the once swift, always silt-laden river and its tributaries have floated away all the age-old clays of the region except these buttes and domes piled in indescribable confusion along the valley floor. The Indians, called the valley "The-place-where-the-hills-look-at-each-other," and the first white explorers, impeded in their travel, named it "bad lands to travel through," a phrase inevitably shortened to Badlands.

Adding to the bizarre coloring of this unusual valley are the blue-gray and silver of the sage, so often remarked by Roosevelt, the light green of the sparse grasses of butte top and valley, and the darker green of the cedars which cling to the shady sides of buttes. Cottonwood, ash, box elder, elm, bull pine, dogwood, and flowering currant grow along the Little Missouri, while gooseberries, buffalo berries, and chokecherries ripen in the gullies. In June the large, white, open flowers of the low-growing gumbo lily, also known as the cowboy lily and the butte primrose, appear in the otherwise barren soil at the foot of the buttes, to be followed shortly by the purple-centered white and lavender Mariposa and creamy white yucca lilies. In midsummer the small, wine-colored flowers of the ball cactus and the large, waxy, lemon-yellow and brown blossoms of the prickly pear cactus show on the drier soil of the buttes, and the scoria lily, with its thistle-like foliage, opens its large, white flower only after sundown. In addition to these striking, gaudy blooms, a great variety of more common North Dakota flowers also appear in the valley of the Little Missouri, especially in the springtime.

When white men first visited the region, it was rich in wild life. Beaver and otter swam the streams, flocks of game birds hid in the breaks, droves of elk, deer, and antelope fed along the Little Missouri, and huge herds of buffalo often darkened the prairie above the valley. In Roosevelt's ranching days game was still abundant, and grizzlies and mountain lions were encountered occasionally. Rocky Mountain, or bighorn, sheep were killed as late as 1906. Bobcats and coyotes are found occasionally even today. The valley harbors more than 300 species of birds, including many game birds and the golden eagle.

On patches of dry grassland here and there, down in the bottoms or up on the buttes, there are prairie-dog towns—areas sometimes as much as a hundred acres in extent, thickly dotted with the small mounds of their cunning inhabitants. Prairie dogs, somewhat larger than good-sized rats, are burrowing rodents allied to the marmot. In digging their burrows they throw the earth up into little mounds, upon which, whenever anything has aroused their curiosity or fear, they sit to chatter, barking like very small dogs, or perhaps more like gray squirrels.

Interesting in connection with any description of the origin of the Badlands is the Sioux legend of their formation. Unknown centuries ago, it is said, the Badlands were a fertile plain, covered with rich grasses and abounding with game. Every autumn the plains tribes came here to get meat for winter and to hold friendly councils beneath the trees which grew along the rivers. Tribes, hostile at other times and in other places, while here greeted each other in peace.

This happy arrangement continued for many years, but one season a fierce tribe came from the mountains to the west and drove the plains tribes from their hunting grounds. Being unsuccessful in their attempts to dislodge the invaders, the plains people finally called a great council and fasted and prayed. Many days passed, however, and no answer came from the Great Spirit, and they began to despair.

Then suddenly a great shudder convulsed the earth, the sky grew black as midnight, and lightning burned jagged through the gloom. Fires hissed from the earth and the once pleasant land rolled and tossed like the waves of the sea, while into its flaming, pitching surface sank the invading tribe, the streams, the trees, and all living things. Then just as suddenly as it had begun, the upheaval and the conflagration ceased, leaving the plain fixed in grotesque waves.

In this way the Great Spirit destroyed the prize that had stirred up strife among his children, and the Badlands were created.

NORTH ROOSEVELT REGIONAL STATE PARK TOUR

East entrance (see Tour 4)—Sperati Point (see Tour 10), 14 m.

The North Roosevelt Regional State Park, which has an area of approximately 40 square miles, presents many of the best Badlands features, including a petrified forest and the remarkable views of the Grand Canyon of the Little Missouri River from Sperati Point.

From the eastern entrance the winding graveled and scoria park highway proceeds in a general westerly direction along the northern side of the LITTLE MISSOURI.

Just inside the entrance are the blue-gray buildings of the permanent CCC CAMP (L), which houses the 200 men assigned to putting trails through the area and building rustic equipment at the picnic and camping areas in the park.

At 1.5 m. is the CHALONER CREEK HORSE TRAIL.

Right on this trail which affords an opportunity for a ride of 5 m. among the buttes and along the edge of the higher land above the brush-filled gullies or breaks. Some parts of the trail are cut through groves of aspen, ash, elm, and cedar on the north side of buttes, while other parts move over the face of the cliffs or on high and narrow ridges with precipitous canyon walls 300 ft. or more in depth dropping on either side. Petrified stumps are along the trail.

The highway, continuing W. more directly than the river, which here makes a deep bend to the S., skirts patches of woodland along the bottoms to reach SQUAW CREEK PICNIC AREA, 5 m., the best-developed camping center in the two parks. This picnic area on the banks of the Little Missouri has excellent grass and shade. Its one-way road leads among aspen, aromatic sumac, oak, poplar, and cottonwood to a number of individual camp sites. In addition to a stone and log shelter and numerous fireplaces, the area has 4 wells and 45 tables. At the east edge of the area a rustic footbridge leads over a little ravine, to clean, grassy picnic grounds.

Northwest of Squaw Creek Picnic Area the road passes along the edge of the breaks overlooking the river to a junction with CEDAR CANYON HORSE TRAIL at 5.8 m.

Left on this 5-mile trail, which is very similar in character to the Chaloner Creek Horse Trail, are lookout points affording excellent views. In spring portions of the trail show a profusion of wild flowers.

The highway proceeds NW. to the junction with a graded road.

Right at this junction on a road disclosing very good views; it leads NW. along the west side of dry SQUAW CREEK to the northern boundary of the park, 6 m. Beyond lies ARNEGARD, 20 m. (see Tour 4), by which the Badlands and the park can be entered from the N.

At 7 m. is CEDAR CANYON LOOKOUT, which commands an exceptionally good view to the S. across the Little Missouri River and beyond, where as far as the eye can reach stretch the tumbled outlines of the buttes.

Northwest of Cedar Canyon the road moves out upon the plateau above the Badlands and then turns W. and SW. in a large arc along the edge of the breaks to SPERATI POINT, 14 m. (see Tour 10), a high shoulder of the plateau, overlooking the spectacular GRAND CANYON OF THE LITTLE MISSOURI. Lying just W. of the bend of the Little Missouri where it turns E. toward the Missouri, the point affords views up and down the canyon, which in places is 600 ft. deep. It is proposed to make this a completely developed recreational center, with cabins, stables, lodge, and a store.

From Sperati Point an unmarked and indefinite trail, which should not be tried without a guide, leads SW.

Left on this trail to a PETRIFIED FOREST, 2 m., one of those Badlands areas, often many acres in extent, which abound with petrified logs and stumps. Petrified stumps are a common sight throughout the valley of the Little Missouri, suggesting that at one time it must have been heavily forested. When the originals of these stone trees died, their trunks, either standing or fallen, soaked up soil water holding mineral matter in solution. As the water evaporated, the mineral matter was left behind, filling the pores of the wood and the tiny cavities produced by decomposition. In time decay removed all the wood and the trees became stone, or, popularly, petrified wood. Some of the logs—for, of course, the trees are not now standing—are as much as 35 ft. in length and 2 ft. in diameter. In some places the soil has been washed and blown away from beneath the stumps, leaving odd formations shaped like toadstools.

SOUTH ROOSEVELT REGIONAL STATE PARK TOUR

East entrance (see Tour 8)—Hell's Hole—West entrance (see Tour 8), 10 m.

The South Roosevelt Regional State Park comprises an area of approximately 90 square miles, lying along the Little Missouri just N. of US 10. In addition to the fantastic beauty of the Badlands buttes, it contains a petrified forest, and one of the largest burning coal mines in the Badlands.

From the eastern entrance the route leads NW. over the broad, pale-pink ribbon of the graveled and scoria park highway.

HELL'S HOLE (L), 4 m., was named for a burning coal mine once situated in this valley. The mine burned out, causing the earth to crumble and destroy a tiny lake which lay under the cliff.

At 7 m. three trails form a triangle on a level area adjacent to the LITTLE MISSOURI RIVER. Here it is proposed to develop a recreational center with full tourist accommodations, including cabins, store, lodge, and stables. At the north end of the proposed area is the old PEACEFUL VALLEY RANCH, which served tourists many years. It has been acquired by the park, and the ranch house and corrals are to be preserved as a recreational center. At Peaceful Valley Ranch are the junctions with an unimproved trail, a graveled truck trail, and an unmarked and indefinite horse trail.

1. Right from the ranch on the unimproved trail to PADDOCK CREEK, 0.4 m., which like all the creeks here is dry except in rainy seasons. Up the creek, one on the L. bank at 1 m. and the other on the R. at 1.5 m. are the mounds of two PRAIRIE-DOG TOWNS.

2. Right from the ranch on the truck trail which crosses JONES CREEK, 0.8 m., and turns E. just before reaching CATHEDRAL BUTTE, 2 m., an old landmark on the trail.

Left from Cathedral Butte 0.5 m. on an unimproved trail to WIND CANYON, a narrow, deep valley leading down to a broad elbow of the Little Missouri. Its name was suggested by the striking examples of erosion by winds, which, whipping at the buttes for centuries, have worn them into odd shapes. From Wind Canyon the trail passes NW. along the river to SHELL BUTTE, 0.8 m., a high butte into which the river has cut deeply, revealing large deposits of marine shells.

East of Cathedral Butte on the main side route following the truck trail for about a mile and then NE. across JUEL CREEK, 3.3 m., to GOD'S GARDENS (R), 4.5 m., an unusually attractive stretch of butte and lowland, from which the road leads NW. across GOVERNMENT CREEK, 5.3 m., where to the R., one on either side of the creek, are two PRAIRIE-DOG TOWNS. At the crossing of Government Creek is the junction with an unimproved trail (do not follow without guide).

Right on this trail 3 m. to a BURNING COAL MINE, which is one of the largest in the Badlands. The burning of the coal causes cracks to form in the earth above the vein; one guide says he has brought water to a boil in 15 min. by placing it above one of these cracks. As the vein is consumed, the earth crumbles and falls, and the rains carry it away to the streams.

Amid some of the finest Badlands scenery the truck trail continues in a general northwesterly direction to the north boundary of the park, 10 m.

3. Left from the ranch on the unmarked and indefinite horse trail to a PETRIFIED FOREST, 5.5 m., considered one of the best examples of a petrified forest (see North Roosevelt Regional State Park Tour above) in the Badlands. The trip to this forest, which makes a nice day's outing, requires a guide.

Southwest of Peaceful Valley Ranch, the route runs along the east bank of the winding, shallow Little Missouri to a CAMPING AREA (R), 8 m., sheltered by trees along the stream. It is furnished with tables, fireplaces, and wells, and several individual camping spaces have been developed along the road that circles through it.

At 8.5 m. the route fords the river—a passage which in times of high water cannot be effected by motorcars—and, turning SW. along the western bank, reaches a permanent CCC CAMP (L), 9 m., with its low, trim, slate-blue buildings lying next the stream on a level piece of bottom land overshadowed by lofty buttes.

At 9.5 m., is a junction with a graveled road leading uphill away from the river.

Right on this trail is a PICNIC SHELTER, 0.5 m., built over a spring and provided with a fireplace.

Right from this shelter 5 m. on a marked HORSE TRAIL, which winds among the buttes in a figure eight. At some points on the trail the tops of Square (Flat Top) and Sentinel Buttes (see Tour 8) are visible far away to the SW. At the center of the figure eight, forming a pleasant place for lunch, is a clump of trees with a spring flowing down over little sandstone terraces.

At 9.8 m. is the sandstone portal of the west entrance, beyond which is the junction with US 10 (see Tour 8), 10 m.