North Dakota

This was a longer miles/driving day, which means we didn’t get many photos. We came into North Dakota from South Dakota so we didn’t experience the far eastern side of the state. Honestly the area through Jamestown, Carrington and Harvey had a somewhat familiar look of Iowa or Eastern South Dakota. As we got closer to Minot, the rolling hillsides were green. They looked almost like mowed yards but it was prairie grass. Beautiful. 

From Minot to Medora the landscape changed. Medora is in the heart of the Badlands and Theodore Roosevelt National Park. This is a captivating area. It has majestic cliffs combined with clumps of tall Ponderosa pines. We spent several hours in the historic area of Medora taking it all in. 

We walked the streets, checking out the historic buildings and grazing the gift shops. The Rough Rider hotel was rebuilt to replicate the original hotel where Teddy Roosevelt stayed. The lobby was very stately and would have been extremely luxurious in the late 1800s.

We enjoyed the perfect weather with a picnic lunch outside while listening to live music. Another free outdoor music venue! The light breeze felt like silk gliding over our skin. Oh we have been blessed with idyllic weather on this trip!

We capped off the afternoon with a one hour one-man play on Theodore Roosevelt. It was in the charming, comfortable Old Town Theater. We were entertained and educated on the life of TR. 

After Medora we headed over the border into Montana, passing through the lush grasslands of western North Dakota. North Dakota surprised me. Beautiful in the summer.