From Columbus, MT to Dickinson, ND

We were going to stop at Miles City, MT Walmart for the night, but since it was still early and it’s suppose to be windy tomorrow, we decided to go on in to North Dakota.

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We stopped at Miles City to fill fuel and wash the front of our coach. There were so many bugs on our windshield we could barely see!
          
              On to North Dakota            

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While in Dickinson, this time we are able to stay at a friend's place. (Thank you!!) We're meeting family for a 100th birthday party this weekend.

Sully Creek State Park near Medora, ND

Sully Creek State Park is 3 miles south of Medora in a valley by the Missouri River. About a quarter-mile of gravel road, some washboard areas. There is a daily entrance fee of $5.00 and a nightly camping fee of $12. There are also prices for horses (equestrian camping area). No hookups, but they do have a dump and water. The water was not turned on yet when we were there. There is a shower house. There are four camping areas; Whitetail Flats, Cedar and Little Muddy Breaks and an area for tents. Whitetail Flats has five pull-through sites, no trees. Some sites have picnic tables and a fire pit. Cedar is for vehicles less than 40 feet long and less than 10 feet tall, sites with trees. Little Muddy Breaks sites have corrals for horses. I believe they were back-in sites also. The tent area is along the outside area of Whitetail Flats. We had 4G Verizon service with our booster.

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The Medora area is known for the Badlands and the Medora Musical and Pitchfork Fondue. The Bully Pulpit Golf Course (ranked one of America’s 100 greatest public golf courses) is south of town. The Maah Daah Hey Trail starts at Sully Creek State Park and goes about 100 miles north to the north unit of the park near Watford City. You can enter Theodore Roosevelt National Park south unit at Medora. Only a couple of businesses were open now.

       

For more pictures, please click here. I took pictures of most of the sites. If any of our links don’t work, please let us know.

Camels Hump Lake, Sentinel Butte, ND

Camels Hump Lake is off exit 10 off I-94. There is about 3/4 mile of decent gravel road from the highway turnoff. I can’t find much information on the internet for it, but we know of it since we’re from Dickinson, which is about 50 miles east. There’s a couple of roads around the lake. We take the second one in. There are three campsites and picnic tables in this area. We haven’t taken the other roads, so I don’t know if there are tables there or not.

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It’s a free spot. There is a boat launch there. There was a couple kayaking and one boating. People on the other side were fishing. For fishing, they ask not to use live bait. While sitting on the shore, we had a otter swim by; wasn’t bothered by us talking to him at all. We had Verizon 3G 1-2 bar service. It’s right off interstate, so there is highway noise.

         

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Itch-Kep-Pe Park, Columbus, MT–free for 10 days

Itch-Kep-Pe Park is a free city park in Columbus, Montana that we found at freecampsites.net. You can stay there 10 days in a 30-day period. It is along the Yellowstone River south of town. There are 30 tent and trailer campsites, restrooms, trash dumpsters and drinking water. Most sites have picnic tables and fire rings. There are two camping areas 1/2 mile apart. In the first area the sites are suited more for tents and smaller rigs, but we did find one right beside the river, #10, in the first loop. The second loop has back-ins and pull-throughs but the road has a lot of ruts. The campground has spots with trees and some without. 

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We had Verizon 4G 4 bar service, 4 TV channels. There is a train about 1/4 mile from the campground that runs throughout the day, and blows its whistle going through. Lots of geese, and we saw a beaver in the water and a bald eagle.

 I took pictures of most of the sites. For more pictures, please click here.

From Henry’s Lake, ID to Columbus, MT

We crossed in to Montana, then in to a short part of Yellowstone, and then back out again. There were lots of signs to watch for animals on the road, but we didn’t see any. We were back in in snow and rock hills. There was an area of rough roads and an area of gusty winds. Going further east you get in to the rolling plains, less altitude and no snow. We stopped at Bozeman Walmart overnight with a few other RVs and then went on to the Columbus city campground.


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Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center in West Yellowstone

We stopped at the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center in West Yellowstone this morning on our way to Bozeman. The Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center is an AZA accredited Not-for-Profit, wildlife park and educational facility. All the animals at the Grizzly & Wolf Discover Center are unable to survive in the wild and serve as ambassadors for their wild counterparts. It cost $13 per adult admission. There is also a gift shop next door. Lots of informational boards are throughout the area.

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You’re able to walk around and see the wolves and raptors. The grizzly bears take turns coming out of their dens into their habitat area. They hide snacks under the rocks and the bears find them. There is also a waterfall and pool area that they were playing in. There is a daily schedule on their website, and you get a copy when you get there, of which animals are where. There are eight grizzly bears. Sam is the largest and he is kept by himself, mostly for the safely of the other ones.

      

They also have a Chat and Enrichment with the wolves, where they talk about the wolves and hide food in the habitat area and you can watch them find it. There are six wolves, three different packs.

   

We also saw two hawks, a golden eagle and peregrine falcon. There are naturalist programs with the raptors, but we didn’t get there early enough for them. They also have Keeper Kids for ages 5-12 and Keeper Crew for ages 13-17 to help hide the food for the bears.

   

For more pictures of the Discover Center, please click here. If any of the links in our blog posts don’t work, please let us know.