Frommer's National Parks of the American West - Don Laine [391]
Traveling several miles farther will bring you to the Boicourt Overlook, which affords one of the best views of the badlands in the South Unit.
The next stop is Wind Canyon Trail, a very short walk up to a ridge. You'll have a great view of the Little Missouri River, which did much to create the landscape here. Beyond the river, to the west, is the virtually untouched wilderness of the South Unit. Pause here around sunrise to listen for the call of coyotes in the valley below.
After passing the Beef Corral Pullout and a prairie-dog town, which is just beyond the pullouts on either side of the road, you'll pass the parking lot for the Jones Creek Trail. This is one of two trailheads for the Jones Creek Trail on Scenic Loop Drive. (You passed the other one earlier; it was at the parking area between the Boicourt Overlook and the Wind Canyon Trail pullout.) The trail is 3.7 miles and leads into the heart of the badlands.
The final stop on the Scenic Loop Drive is in Peaceful Valley, shortly before you reach the intersection where you turned off onto the loop. The Peaceful Valley Ranch, which is on the National Historic Register, was established during the heyday of cattle ranching in the 1880s. The tall central section of the ranch house was constructed about 1885. Today, the ranch offers trail rides from May through the end of September (see "Horseback Riding in the Park," below).
THE NORTH UNIT
Fewer visitors take the time to travel to the park's North Unit, although paved roads provide easy access. There are 24,070 acres in the North Unit, of which 19,410 are designated as wilderness. Stop at the visitor center at the entrance to the unit, and the rangers will help you plan your time.
North Unit Scenic Drive. The 14-mile scenic drive (and State Scenic Byway) travels from the entrance station to the Oxbow Overlook, with plenty of turnouts and interpretive signs along the route. Keep your eyes open for long-horns on the prairie between the entrance and Juniper Campground; these are the same type of cattle raised by ranchers here during Roosevelt's time. At the Oxbow Overlook, you must double back along the same route.
Since less of the North Unit is developed, the thing to do here is to get out of the car at one of the scenic pullouts and take a hike. Whether you go a long or a short distance, you'll be able to see dramatic scenery populated with many bison, elk, and bighorn sheep but few people.
The Little Mo Nature Trail, which starts at Juniper Campground, offers a comfortable, leisurely walk through the Little Missouri River bottom. The trail cuts through woodlands near the river as well as badlands formations and gives you two options. The shorter portion of the loop is only .7 mile, paved, and wheelchair accessible. But you can extend your hike by .4 mile and take the unpaved portion. If you're more adventurous, you'll see additional formations and cross some wildlife trails that (mostly) bison use.
Just across the road from the Juniper Campground entrance road, stop at the Cannonball Concretions Pullout. A short walk reveals the well-named rock formations. Contrasting formations in the area make this stop a photographer's delight. Light doesn't hit the best "cannonball" until late morning.
The Caprock Coulee Nature Trail, 1.5 miles west of Juniper Campground, is another easy, self-guiding nature trail that winds through badlands and dry water gulches, crosses breaks, then finds a welcome interruption in the grassy plains of the park. The total length round-trip is 1.6 miles.
If you want to do something more ambitious, combine the self-guiding nature trail with the Upper Caprock Coulee Trail. Together they run 4.1 miles. (The latter portion is 3.3 miles.) You'll go farther