Hi there!
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is made up of several “units” that are located in different areas of the park.
The more popular South Unit is more conveniently located right off the interstate (I-94), and it’s around 70 miles away by car from the North Unit!
The South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park is the popular unit, and it’s the most convenient area of Theodore Roosevelt National Park to visit.
It is conveniently located off of the interstate, I-94.
There is even one section of the South Unit that doubles as an I-94 rest area!
The “Old West town” of Medora ND is the “gateway town” to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. This is a small town.
The nearest “big town” (aka town with chain hotels and Walmart) is the city of Dickinson ND.
Dickinson ND to Theodore Roosevelt South Unit is around a 40 minute drive.
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is in Western North Dakota.
The National Park Service quotes Theodore Roosevelt as saying:
I have always said I never would have been president if it had not been for my experiences in North Dakota.
You will get a sense of the North Dakota badlands that Theodore Roosevelt experienced by visiting the South Unit. (Be sure to stop by the Maltese Cross Cabin near the visitor center!)
But to gain a greater appreciation, you will want to consider visiting the North Unit and/or the Elkhorn Ranch Unit too to do all of the things in Theodore Roosevelt National Park!
Best things to do in South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park
1. South Unit Scenic Drive
If you will be going to the main area of the South Unit (aka the national park entry), then it is a given to drive the Scenic Drive when you are in the South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
The scenic drive is the main road that goes through the South Unit!
So basically, just get yourself on the Scenic Drive!
It will be a scenic drive just driving through Theodore Roosevelt National Park in the South Unit.
In its current state, the South Unit Scenic Drive is an out-and-back drive because there is a portion of the South Unit Scenic Drive that is closed. (It previously was a 36 mile scenic loop drive in the South Unit.) It is now listed as a 48 mile drive round trip. See current updates.
You will start by passing some smaller scenic overlooks like Medora Overlook and Skyline Vista Trail that will give you views of civilization including views of the town of Medora and I-94.
Then you will keep going to get deeper into the North Dakota badlands!
You can drive all the way to the Badlands Overlook, and this will be the last stop. And then you will turn around and drive back the way you came.
The National Park Service was officially recommending giving yourself around 1.5 hours to drive the 36 mile scenic loop drive. For a 48-mile out-and-back drive, you may want at least 2 hours.
But of course, that does depend on how many stops you make and what you want to do along the way! With stops, you will want to add in a possible 1-2 hours.
If you see something you like (and there’s parking nearby!) then you can stop the car, get out, and walk around and you might find rock formations that you like!
👆 There is one bathroom located near the end of the Scenic Drive. You can make it a short walk to these rock formations near the bathroom.
👆 North Dakota hoodoos of the South Unit! How to walk to the hidden caprocks in the South Unit
And you also do have a chance to see buffalo as you are driving through the South Unit too!
🌞
And you will also pass by some prairie dog towns as you are driving.
If you see tons of mounds of dirt in an open field, it’s a prairie dog town!
Roll your windows down so that you can hear the prairie dogs!
You might even see some horses as you are driving!
While it’s possible to see wildlife from your car while driving, if hiking to potentially seeing wildlife sounds like your idea of a good time in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, then you also might like Old East Entrance Trail to hike to a prairie dog town.
If you can’t see the video above, you can watch the South Unit video on youtube.
And on the Jones Creek Trail you have a chance to see prairie dogs, horses, and buffalo… maybe!
If you can’t see the video above, you can watch the South Unit video on youtube.
How to (maybe!) see wildlife in Theodore Roosevelt National Park:
- Cottonwood Campground… maybe see buffalo?!
- Ekblom Trail… maybe see buffalo?!
- Jones Creek Trail… maybe see buffalo, horses, and prairie dogs?!
- Badlands Spur Trail… maybe see horses?!
- Old East Entrance Trail… maybe see prairie dogs?!
- North Unit Scenic Drive… probably see buffalo!
Aside from a chance to see wildlife while driving along the South Unit Scenic Drive, there are also number of “official” stops (aka named stops) that you can make along the way.
The popular spots on the South Unit Scenic Drive are coming up next on the list. You will see signs for these stops as you are driving the Scenic Drive.
2. Wind Canyon Trail
The short Wind Canyon Trail leads to one of the popular overlooks in the South Unit.
You can walk around for 5-10 minutes to take in the views of Wind Canyon and the Little Missouri River.
Wind Canyon Trail is also known as a sunset spot in the South Unit.
3. Boicourt Trail
Right near the Boicourt Overlook, you’ll see a sign for the Boicourt Trail.
There’s a paved trail that you can walk out for a few minutes to get views of the North Dakota badlands.
At the end of the paved trail, there’s a dirt trail.
You can take this dirt trail to go further for more views of the badlands.
You will be hiking with views of the badlands! It’s just a few minutes until you reach the end of the ridge trail.
4. Buck Hill Overlook
Buck Hill is another one of the popular overlooks in the South Unit.
There’s a short but steep hill to get to the top of Buck Hill from the parking lot.
Once at the top, you can see vast views of the North Dakota badlands.
You can also take the trail to walk out further to get more vast views of the badlands.
You will be hiking with views of the badlands!
Outer area of South Unit #1
5. Painted Canyon
The Painted Canyon area is considered to be in the South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, but it is outside the main area. (The main area being the South Unit Scenic Drive.)
The Painted Canyon Overlook is one of the easiest overlooks to access in Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
That’s because Painted Canyon is the spot that is the I-94 rest area.
You’ll drive right on into this “rest area” and the Painted Canyon Overlook is like right there.
If you want to give yourself time, then there are also 2 hiking trails that you can do from here.
The shorter one is the Painted Canyon Nature Trail. This starts off to the left as you are facing the canyon.
The longer one is the Painted Canyon Trail.
This starts off to the right as you are facing the canyon. This will take you deeper into the “painted canyon” and you have a chance to get a close up look at some unique rock formations.
Outer area of South Unit #2
6. Petrified Forest
The Petrified Forest area is also considered to be in the South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, but it is also outside the main area.
You will get to see petrified wood with the backdrop of the North Dakota badlands.
It requires hiking to see the petrified wood in Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
The Petrified Forest loop trail is around 10 miles long. You can make it a shorter hike by hiking just part of it. You can hike to the north or to the south as a 3 mile round trip hike.
I made it a shorter hike on the Petrified Forest Trail to the north.
Getting to the Petrified Forest Trail included a google maps fail when coming from the Elkhorn Ranch Unit.
It was telling me to turn down a “road” that had a clear sign that said no cars allowed. But eventually I did manage to get there so it was overall fine.
If you will be driving by a Theodore Roosevelt National Park visitor center (like the main South Unit visitor center or Painted Canyon visitor center), you can pick up the national park newsletter and it will provide you with printed directions on how to get there.
And those are some ideas for how to spend your time in Theodore Roosevelt National Park South Unit!
See more for beyond your visit to the South Unit
- Things to do in Theodore Roosevelt National Park
- North Unit
- Why visit the Elkhorn Ranch Unit?!
- Best hikes in Theodore Roosevelt National Park
- Things to do in Badlands National Park (South Dakota)
- Things to do in Devils Tower National Monument (Wyoming)
- Best places to visit in South Dakota
HAPPY SPENDING TIME IN THE SOUTH UNIT!
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