A colorfully striped butte in the foreground overlooks a dark green badlands landscape
The River Bend Overlook offers one of the most popular views in the park's North Unit. NPS Photo / Mark Meyers

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

National Park · North Dakota · National Park Service

When Theodore Roosevelt came to Dakota Territory to hunt bison in 1883, he was a skinny, young, spectacled dude from New York. He could not have imagined how his adventure in this remote and unfamiliar place would forever alter the course of the nation. The rugged landscape and strenuous life that TR experienced here would help shape a conservation policy that we still benefit from today.

Plan your visit

Trails & hiking

Biking · Hiking

Camping

Camping · Backcountry Camping · Group Camping

Site types & reservations: see the official site.

Know before you go

Phone
7016234466
Official site
www.nps.gov
Managed by
National Park Service

Getting there

Directions on Google Maps →

Things to do

Highlights: Colonization and Settlement · Farming and Agriculture · Ranches · Great Depression · Presidents · Westward Expansion · Homesteading · Animals · Birds · Bison · Cats (wild) · Elk · Fish · Horses (wild) · Tortoises and Turtles · Fossils and Paleontology · Petrified Wood · Geology · Mineral Deposits · Grasslands · Prairies · Night Sky · Astronomy · Aurora Borealis · River and Riparian · Rock Landscapes and Features · Buttes · Scenic Views · Wilderness

Activities & features: Auto and ATV · Scenic Driving · Astronomy · Stargazing · Road Biking · Car or Front Country Camping · Horse Camping (see also Horse/Stock Use) · Food · Picnicking · Guided Tours · Self-Guided Tours - Walking · Backcountry Hiking · Front-Country Hiking · Off-Trail Permitted Hiking · Horse Trekking · Horse Camping (see also camping) · Junior Ranger Program · Wildlife Watching · Birdwatching · Park Film · Museum Exhibits · Shopping · Bookstore and Park Store

Photos

  • the Little Missouri River under blue skies
    NPS Photo / Laura Thomas
  • A muddy river bank lined with cottonwood trees and steep buttes
    NPS Photo / Laura Thomas
  • two bull bison collide heads in a dusty battle for dominance
    NPS Photo / Teresina Wheaten
  • the swirling, dusty looking milky way runs vertically though a starry night sky
    NPS Photo / Jeff Zylland
  • a string of bison are silhouetted against the backdrop of hazy blue and yellow badlands
    NPS Photo / Roland and Lisa Honeyman
  • a green prairie hilltop overlooks the badlands, shrouded in shadows
    NPS Photo / Laura Thomas
  • A bugling bull elk and his harem of cows stand on the edge of a butte as the sunlight fades
    NPS Photo / Rolan and Lisa Honeyman
  • a strange looking sand and rock formation stands in a prairie of brown grass
    NPS Photo / Laura Thomas

Nearby parks

Parks of North Dakota

Cross Ranch State ParkFort Stevenson State ParkKnife River Indian Villages National Historic SiteFort Ransom State ParkLake Metigoshe State ParkBeaver Lake State ParkIcelandic State ParkFort Abraham Lincoln State ParkLewis and Clark State ParkLake Sakakawea State ParkGrahams Island State ParkTurtle River State Park

13 parks mapped in North Dakota

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Guides for the trip

All guides →

Sources: National Park Service, Google Places · updated 2026-08-12