Road Trip Report: Makoshika State Park
So, we continue down the road from Pompey’s Pillar. We drive over to Glendive, MT. This is not a big town, to say the least, but there were some dinosaurs we found there. Okay, we didn’t really find them, but we observed some dinosaur remains that were discovered before our arrival. My kids would say that a dinosaur rolled into town in a blue Honda Odyssey. However, I’m not much of a dinosaur. My daughter wrote a story for school that starred an elderly man in his 50s. That one hurt a little.
Back on point…. this park is pronounced ma-KO-shih-kuh. This is a place where you can see the evidence of some of the digs that they did for dinosaur bones. The rock formations and landscape are very unique. I would say that if you want to see the badlands on a smaller scale, this is the place to visit. Here is the address if you want to use your phone to find it: 1301 Snyder Avenue, Glendive, MT 59330
This is another place where we pulled off the road to stretch our legs and see something we had not seen. If you want to see the badlands on a small scale, this is the place to do it. First, we hooked up with our tour guide.
Personally, I thought he looked a little condescending. I mean he just looked down on us and stared strangely at me. I don’t think he even blinked….scary! Okay, so this is the welcoming center that has some interesting artifacts. That is not a real person. I wish someone had told me that about 10 minutes ago…. boy, that was an awkward conversation. (I’m not that weird…. just make weird jokes.)
Second, we shed some teeth. I look at these animals and think there were some really big critters that wandered around here. On the one hand, it would be really cool to ride a mammoth, but then I really don’t like riding horses. So, I doubt that would ever be one of my pastimes. However, if I lived back in the day…. I am sure I would have given it a try.
We head outside and start walking around to explore the park. We went on a hike on a few trails, but we did not have time to explore more of the park. Here are some of the interesting rock layers that we saw. I believe we were on the Gunners Ridge trail. You can see it on the map here.
You can visit the Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks site here. We liked this one below.
We had our kids stand behind it and then we gook a pic. It was pretty neat. The pictures below are from that same trail. The rocks and the landscape are just amazing. Here are some pics along the way. The rock formations, the erosion, and the dried-up water beds are neat to examine. I think neat is an official tourist term. You should look it up in a hipster dictionary. I am sure it is right up there with nifty, gee, or gosh! I think those expressions are making a comeback!
Next, we decided to head up the road a bit and tried to find another place to explore. We meant to hike the Kinney Coulee Trailhead, but we overshot it because the sign for the parking lot was down on our side of the road. However, on the way back, we saw the hike, but had to press on to Dickinson, ND to get to our hotel, and so we never stopped.
On the bright side, we ended up going way past it, on a gravel road, and almost did some unintentional off-roading. There was one hill I wished we had the Runner. I thought we might get stuck, but the Odyssey Adventure Vehicle made it up in two runs. I don’t think anyone had to close their eyes, but we made it with no damage. The views are amazing. I cannot impress upon you enough: if you want to see the badlands on a small scale, this is the place to do it! I think I am sensing a theme here….
The photos in the gallery below do not do it justice. This is definitely a Paulie’s Pick for a road trip! I think we will head back here and do some more exploring in the future. The day was a bit hazy, but man…. the views! If you want to see the badlands on a small scale, this is the place to do it…. Did I say that already?…. Really neato (official geological term) landscapes and views. Not to mention some pretty hikes…. AND if you love frisbee golf, they have a course throughout the park.
Have you been there? Any hikes you recommend? Did you try the frisbee golf? Leave a comment and let others know about your experience in the park!
Thanks again for reading! If you want to buy a guy a cup of coffee, click here! Otherwise, until we meet again, may the Lord’s blessing and peace be upon you.
