North Dakota
North Dakota is a beautiful state with much to offer and we tried to hit the highlights. The two largest cities, Fargo and Bismarck, were stops on our journey. We also stopped in Medora to visit the Theodore Roosevelt National Park. I was hoping for some cool weather, but only Fargo gave us that. Bismarck and Medora had highs 90 and above. Not exactly what we expected.
Driving in North Dakota brought some challenges as well. For instance, the speed limit on highways was 80 mph. As we were towing a camper and it was windy, we kept our speed around 65. It felt as if the big trucks passing us on the road were moving us all over the place. Additionally, the wind as we traveled east to west was brutal.
Fargo
Downtown Fargo was nice. We had lunch in an area with many restaurants. There was some kind of festival occurring with vendors and music. However, our puppy was in our camper so we just had lunch and kept our time there short.
Lindenwood Campground
Lindenwood is a city park and its campground was our favorite in the state! We had two nights in a water and electric site that was right on the river for only $30 a night. Most importantly, there was shade on our site and a huge wooded park to walk or ride bikes.
The river is the Red River and we were camping in the Red River Valley. This dates me, but I remember a song from my childhood, “The Red River Valley.” I had always thought it was about an area in the southwest. Not so though! We saw many fishing while we we there and one person caught a really big fish.
A trip Across the River
The Red River separates North Dakota and Minnesota and the land just beyond the river from our campsite is Moorhead, Minnesota. A fellow camper at a previous campground suggested we check out the Hjemkomst Center there.
The center houses a vessel that is a full sized replica of an actual Viking boat which was constructed over many years by Robert Asp. Asp was a guidance counselor and Moorhead resident of Scandinavian descent. There is a large population of Scandinavians in Minnesota. He built the ship in an abandoned potato warehouse. His dream was to sail it to Norway.
Asp died before it could be sailed, but some of his family members pulled together a crew of twelve and made the dangerous 6,000 mile journey from Lake Superior to Norway. They were hailed as heros when they reached their destination. The ship is magnificent and the story fascinating.
There is also a reproduction of a an ancient Norwegian church and a tour that explained a lot about the actual church and how it was used in ancient times. It was so worth the time to visit this center.
Along the Road to Bismarck
I marked my map to be sure we visited the world’s largest buffalo, which was right along the path to Bismarck. It was worth the stop in Jamestown for the buffalo and especially for the Frontier Village. More photos are on our Big Guy Tiny Trailer Facebook page for anyone interested.
The North Dakota countryside traveling west was beautiful, but extremely windy.
Bismark
Bismark was a one-night stop. I love to see the architecture of capital buildings, so we checked it out before heading to our campground. It was the weekend and it was closed, but I walked the grounds. It is an impressive building and more modern looking than most. Tours are offered when it is open and I wish we could have taken one.
General Sibley Campground
General Sibley is a city park and it was great for our one night stay. We had a very large electric only site near a very nice bathhouse and it was only $25 a night. It was quite hot, but very windy in Bismarck.
Medora
Medora was the highlight of our trip to North Dakota. It is a teeny, tiny, town that appears to be exclusively dedicated to serving visitors to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. We loved the Fudge and Ice Cream Depot with its local ice cream flavors of Juneberry and Huckleberry. It has large patio seating so we could take our dog.
As the photo below from the hill by the amphitheater shows, Medora is very small.
The Medora Musical
A major highlight of our trip was the Medora Musical. Frankly, I was not expecting much, but it was excellent! We have seen several Broadway shows and this equaled them in talent and professionalism. An added plus was that it was outside on an evening that was beautiful and a comfortable temperature. It was magical!
The guest performer that night was Markus Monroe, a very funny young man from New York. He would do a little of his comedy routine and then he would juggle. The juggling became progressively more difficult. It was an engaging routine.
Medora Campground
We had a little shade at the campground and overall it was nice, but the sites were very small and dusty.
Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Our campground was a five minute drive to the National Park gate, so it was very convenient. We visited late one afternoon and early the next day so we avoided the extreme heat and crowds.
We saw our first buffalo in the wild at this park. They were at several different areas of the park.
I finally have an understanding of the term, “badlands”. Before, I always thought it was an area that was dangerous because of the people there. I had no idea it was land that was so treacherous to cross.
Prairie dogs were in several areas of the park and they were interesting to watch.
We were in the park for an incredibly beautiful sunset!
North Dakota Food
We had several great meals, including pizza pictured below from Dempsey’s Brewery and Pub. It has nice outdoor seating, so it worked while traveling with our dog. Additionally, we had excellent meals with outdoor seating at Boots Bar and Grill and the Farmhouse Cafe in Medora. Sadly, we waited too long for reservations for Medora’s Pitchfork Steak Fondue. But, everyone we spoke to who tried it, loved it. So, if we are there in the future, we will be sure to try it.
In conclusion
Lastly, North Dakota was a blast! Hopefully, we will make it back there sometime. If interested in posts for other states, check out States Visited, a Campsite Resource.
Happy trails!
