I want to start off by saying that North Dakota and Montana are the states of trucks. I have only seen trucks and maybe a few cars the entire time that I have been driving around. Last night, I woke up wide awake at midnight to use the restroom but as I stepped out I was blown away by the beauty that befell my eyes. The moon was extremely bright and was sitting perched on top of the hills in front of me in all its glory. Then as my gazed moved further up I was amazed by the night sky that I saw for it has to be one of the clearest and brightest skies I have yet to witness in my life. One could see every single star and the sky was pitch black above the snow speckled hills of the badlands. It wasn't too cold out and no vehicles were on the interstate so I crawled back into my sleeping bag and with the door still open I laid down and looked up at the night sky until I was about to fall asleep and then I closed my door.
I awoke again around 06:30 and as I stepped out it was colder then it had been around midnight. A layer of frost had covered both my vehicle and the inside of my camper. The sun was rising in the sky so after starting my vehicle I took some pictures and then climbed in where I changed into my hiking clothes. With a protein shake in hand I drove into the Theodore Roosevelt National Park. As I followed the drive I immediately came across three big bison whom let me so graciously take their pictures. From there I continued on to see a huge mule deer buck and some does, a bald eagle, some wild horses off in the distance and some more bison.
I finally found one of the trail heads and pulled in to park. The hike I was thinking of doing would only be 1.8 miles so I grabbed my small camel-pack and both lenses to my camera. I took a quick glance at the trial sign before heading out and it showed that there was an 11.4 mile loop called the West Loop that would bring me back to my camper and so a seed was planted in my mind. As I started out it was cold but with the sun still coming up I knew it would warm up. Immediately, I came across a group of mule deer with a huge buck. As the females jumped away they looked like rabbits jumping up and down and with the thick brush one could only see their ears and head popping up! It was so hilarious to see that I started laughing out loud. A little while later I would come across another large buck.
The trail itself was moderately flat, dipping down only when it crossed the very deep and dried up creeks. It was a small narrow trail used by the local bison and wildlife due to the abundance of tracks and scat that I saw. Thankfully the land was flat and expansive so I could walk where ever I chose. Snow covered the ground in some areas but was never above my boot. The view I had was constantly changing from a petrified swamp, to hills, valleys and a very rugged landscape. My eyes were constantly scanning the horizon and my feet kept going until what was going to be a small 1.8 mile walk turned into a 11.4 mile hike throughout the park.
I never tired and many a time I regretted not taking a picture of the trail map for I was not quite sure if I was indeed on the right trail and was basically winging it. I knew it was a loop and that at the intersections I should just need to keep going right and it would bring me back around. Thankfully I was right though a few times I worried that I was going further away. During the entire hike I saw so much wildlife such as: three wild horses that I noticed when I reached the top of a hill and scanned the landscape to see them off on a plateau with one looking right at me, lots of mule deer, bison, a rabbit, eagles, hawks, prairie dog colonies (they were loud and it felt odd to be walking thru there town as they yelled at me and scurried into their burrows), a lone coyote and a snowy owl. As I took all of them in and as I walked I would stop and take in the peaceful silence for it was a true silence where one hears nothing but their own breathing. This park has truly surprised me!
Before I left the park I called my mom up to let her know where I was and that I really had no plan. From the park, I drove East to the Enchanted Highway that has the largest scrap metal sculptures in the world. The drive was boring until I got to that highway for there was nothing to look at and one could see all the way to the horizon. I thought Oklahoma was vast but North Dakota is even more vast. As I drove, my best friend Stacie called me and we spoke for over an hour during which my phone dropped the call at least eight times. By 15:00 it was black out and felt like midnight. My first camping spot I missed due to talking to Stacie, the second, I couldn't see in the dark and finally the third was a rest area out of my way that wound up not being a rest area but basically a pull out on the side of the road near Buffalo, South Dakota. I pulled in and before heading to bed for the night I spoke to my mom and also a really good friend of mine.
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