CROSS COUNTRY TRIP 2010 - NORTH DAKOTA

We drove through almost 500 miles in Montana, before finally reaching North Dakota. We didn't expect the gorgeous scenery we found in here - it reminded us of The Painted Desert.

There really is a Home on the Range:

We checked in to a little  town named Medora.  The storefronts, and even the town playground, are all in western design.

The city has many family events throughout the summer, including a nightly musical about the west, chuckwagon buffets, concerts, seven museums, horse parades, and more.
After dinner, we visited the nearby Theodore Roosevelt National Park at sunset.

We were treated to a multitude of animals who came out to graze, including mule deer, white tail deer, a badger, an owl and this huge bison, who was only about 30 feet from the road:

This park is named for Teddy Roosevelt, as a tribute to the 26th President, who spent some time here in the Medora area, and grew to love the west.  He purchased two cattle ranches, and enjoyed hunting bison and other large animals.  He often said:"I never would have been President if it had not been for my experiences in North Dakota".   When he arrived here in the ND Badlands, he was all of 98 lbs, and after living the western life and working his ranches, he left a stout fearless man, 30 lbs heavier.  During his visits out west, he became concerned about the damage being done to the land and the wildlife.  He learned of herds of buffalo that were decimated by hide hunters and disease. He witnessed the destruction of some big game species. He had a new appreciation of the pristine wilderness and its wildlife, and after he was elected President, he worked to preserve it - he had the greatest conservation record of any US President:  He established the US Forest Service, proclaimed 18 national monuments, 51 Federal Bird Reservations, 4 National Game Preserves and 150 National Forests.


We drove on through North Dakota, and the central part of the state is mostly barren, and all you see are the tail lights of the car in front of you. These are some of the straightest roads we've seen -  If you hooked up "The Club" to your steering wheel, and set the cruise control, you'd do just fine.

We'll continue east and spend tomorrow night in Minnesota.