Theodore Roosevelt National Park - Day 2 (South Unit)

 

Sunrise Over the Badlands

Today would be a full day in the park, covering both the South and the North Units. I also was able to spend some time in the South Unit Visitor Center, learning a bit more about Teddy Roosevelt and his time here in the northern plains of North Dakota.

As with any wildlife viewing adventure, you just never know what you may see or have time to set up for photographs.  I made my way out of the campground shortly after 5:00am and immediately saw bison along the road leading to the Scenic Loop Road.  Once on the loop road, a small group of elk ran across the road in front of me, and up into a wooded area.  It happened so fast that there was no time to stop and snap photos.

The one nice thing about being up so early is that for the most part, the only people up and out at the break of dawn are other photographers.  If you're lucky, they will have found something interesting and set up as you make your way around the park . . . providing for an opportunity for you to join in without having to look for animals AND drive.

On my drive through the park, I saw several mule deer and was able to take some photos.  I couldn't believe my eyes, however, as I cleared the curve that lead to the Boicourt Overlook.  There in the ridge were four or five photographers, all with professional DSLR equipment on tripods.  I hoped that I would be able to see and photograph whatever they were viewing. Better yet, there were several pullouts at the overlook, providing a safe place to park and set up.

There was a large band of horses with several stallions.  At first it was difficult to know which one was the alpha, but shortly after sitting back and observing, it became very clear.  This lighter bay colored stallion was battle scarred and somewhat removed from the others, with his lady friend.  As the I watched, a very large younger dark stallion bolted from right to left at a full gallop.  What ensued was pure National Geographic!  They tussled and fought for about ten minutes, with the younger horse leaving the pair to return to his harem.

After a few minutes, he returned to take on the older horse, with the same end result.  As for this day, the older horse retained his mare and the right to mate with her.

It was one of the coolest things I've personally witnessed in the wild.  I had seen photos (frankly much better than these I was able to take) . . . but to see and hear this first hand . . . it was an awesome experience!











After all of that excitement, I headed out of the South Unit of the park with a brief stop at the Visitor Center.  I watched a short film about Teddy Roosevelt and his connection to this region of the United States and took the short walking tour over to the Maltese Cross Ranch House, Roosevelt's first cabin that was originally located out south of the Town of Medora.  It has since been move to the park and fully restored.

Furnished with original items, visitors may take a peek into what was life on the ranch in the late 1800's was like.