Teddy Roosevelt first came to this area of western North Dakota in the early 1880’s to hunt and then to ranch. And when his wife and mother tragically died on the same day in New York City, he came here to grieve his loss and put his broken life back together in this broken land. He found peace, tranquility, and adventure here, as well as hard physical work, as he tried to eke out a successful ranching business in this beautiful but, at times, inhospitable land. And he attributed his growing passion for land preservation over the course of his presidency and his life to his many trips to this unusual area.
This remote park is made up of two separate units with a terrain that combines rugged badlands, sweeping grasslands and the remains of a petrified forest. The Little Missouri River winds its way through the entire park. The views in the park are magnificent, and there is a resident herd of bison and another of wild horses that roam freely in the park. We are excited to add the Theodore Roosevelt National Park to Timberline’s list of tours in our lesser visited national parks.