[TRNP, Jun 16, 2025]

We managed to get out the door about an hour earlier than yesterday. However, that hour was eaten up by the fact that we had to drive that long to the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. For some strange reason, the North Unit is on Central Time, not Mountain Time. So don’t freak out if your phone says it’s an hour later than it actually is.

We saw our first bison of the day right outside the visitor center! I am so glad we stopped to check in with the rangers. An overnight thunderstorm had rolled through, rendering the back end of my desired hike a muddy mess that he recommended we do not attempt. Here’s what we did instead.

1. Oxbow Overlook and Sperati Point via Achenback Trail

With the day’s temperature rapidly increasing, we decided to high-tail it to the end of scenic drive, where our longest hike of the day would be. On the way, we saw our biggest bison jam yet!

At Oxbow overlook, we enjoyed dramatic views of an oxbow bend of the Little MIssouri. These are common along this particular river because of the constant erosion.

A 1.7 mile flat trail through some grasslands lead to a viewpoint of the same oxbow bend but from across the way and a little closer. This trail reminded me a lot of Lathrop Trail in Canyonlands, which is also through grassland to a viewpoint. This one was just a tad greener.

2. River Bend Overlook

The view from this overlook rivaled the one from Oxbow Bend, but I am not sure which is better. A big differentiator here is the shelter built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in 1937. The Caprock Coulee trail goes through here but sadly, we couldn’t do it because of the mud the ranger warned us about. If we were doing the full length of that, we wouldn’t have had to stop here on the drive.

3. Caprock Coulee Nature Trail

Instead of the full-length hike, the ranger recommended we do a 0.8-mile section of it. It was still super pretty and it allowed us to walk among the buttes of the badlands. There were lots of muddy spots here, so I couldn’t imagine what the portion of the trail the ranger warned us about would have been like.

4. Painted Canyon Visitor Center

This visitor center was right off the highway, so it was easy to check out on our way back to Medora. We could see Buck Hill, the last overlook we did yesterday, from here.

We grabbed some lunch and ice cream, then napped. I am not a huge napper but hiking in this heat is definitely getting to me. I couldn’t believe some folks were playing pickleball. Actually, I couldn’t believe there were pickleball courts in the tiny town of Medora in the first place.

In the evening, we decided to have dinner at the one fancy place in town, the restaurant at the Rough Riders Hotel. The hotel was built in 1884 as the Metropolitan Hotel. It was renamed in 1903 to honor Theodore Roosevelt’s volunteer cavalry regiment from the Spanish-American War.

We sat at the bar while waiting for a table, and got to talking with the two other couples. They comprised 4 of the 50 or so year-around residents of Medora! I am not sure I could live in such an isolated place.

Our food was great but the portions were quite large! I had the bison osso bucco, which was quite rich, and Ash had the shrimp. We were stuffed, but it was a great way to celebrate park #50!