Land and cattle. Land and cattle. As far as I could see in any direction. After a 7 hour drive that took me through one town of any size, I pulled into the tiny town of Medora ND on the 19th of July. Medora is now a tourist attraction with many hotels and restaurants. It serves as the gateway to the South Unit of the Theodore Roosevelt NP. One of the reasons the NP was named after the 26th president of the United States is because “Old Four Eyes” as he was known around here, owned two ranches in the area and came to love the land in North Dakota. There are all kinds of stories about the young Roosevelt during his time here. One common theme to the stories is that he really loved this land.
http://www.nps.gov/thro/index.htm
Medora was named for the wife of its founder, a 24 year old French nobleman the Marquis de Mores. You can take a tour of the Chateau he built for his bride.
The town sits on the banks of the Little Missouri River.
You can also visit the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame. I don’t know much about cowboys or rodeo, but I thought I would check it out. I did see a lot of rodeo memorabilia that didn’t mean much to me. Apparently North Dakota has turned out quite a few National Rodeo Champions over the years. YIPEE!!!! There are not only rodeo stars that have been inducted into the hall of fame. One of the categories of inductees is ranchers before 1940. One of the latest inductees in this category is Lettie L Ulhman. She built a 10,000 acre ranch during the depression. You can find a photo of her in the following images.
The South Unit of the Theodore Roosevelt NP contains the “Badlands of North Dakota”. Like the Badlands in South Dakota I found the topography amazing and beautiful.
Another thing this little town is known for is its musical that is performed every night from spring through fall. It is a western themed night of entertainment. I found the performers to be very talented. They come from all over the country. There was even a young man from New York City. I don’t know how he got in there.
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| Theodore Roosevelt NP - ND |
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| Theodore Roosevelt NP - ND |
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| Theodore Roosevelt NP - ND |
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| Theodore Roosevelt NP - ND |
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| Theodore Roosevelt NP |
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| You should have heard the grunt he made when he stuck his tongue out at me |
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| Oh that feels sooooooooo good |
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| I want my mommy |
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| Black-tailed Prairie Dog |
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| Yum Yum Yum |
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| Yeeeeeee Haw |
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| You go girl |
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| Some of Medoras Riffraff |
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| Nice Planter Box |
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| Ranch House from one of Roosevelts Ranches |
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| This is the set before the entertainment began. Notice the elk on the hill behind the set. |
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| Lots of singn' and dancen' |
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