I love this trail area! There are a few different paths to choose from. My favorite path is the one…read morethat runs right along the Missouri River (literally like only a couple feet away). It is well maintained and dog friendly; dog owners are doing a good job of cleaning up after their dogs. It is a super beautiful area. Overall, the trail is a good amount like over two miles (I never go fully to the end due to time, but it is far). Lastly, there's like random educational plaques placed on the trail that teach about the local area (from the waters to the birds to the types of trees). This is a pretty sweet area, one of my favorite places to wander!

Stopped here on a cross country trip to get some exercise and walked a few miles through pretty…read morecottonwood trees with a few views of the river. Traffic noise was constant from the interstate and too much trash along the way. I am afraid this is as good as it gets in this neck of the woods.

What a gem of a park! We camped for one night (could have easily stayed longer if we'd had more…read moretime) and enjoyed fishing and the historic sites. Ranger Austin was a friendly wealth of information and my 5 yo really enjoyed wearing the buffalo head dress he brought over. Our campsite faced the Missouri, which was sweet. However, all of the campsites are pretty close together. If I were to go back, I'd opt for site 1, which faces the river and has a little more space to it as it is close to a parking lot, but not obtrusively so. Also, the bathrooms were spotless and boasted the nicest campground shower I've ever had.

For a state with an abysmal and brutal record (in fact to the present day) of encounters with…read moreindigenous Americans (oh wait, that's not very distinguishing among other states is it?) this state park does quite an excellent job of presenting a rebuilt indigenous people's village. The cultural and linguistic explanations about the native people's way of seeing and thinking is especially noteworthy. The reconstructed "earthlodges" sit on the site of an actual, large settlement of a northern plains tribe from the 1700s. If you tour this site, you'll learn about the spread of smallpox from the Spanish populations further south, up the Mississippi and Missouri rivers, that weakened the entire population even before contact with the european invaders from the east. There are exhibit narratives about a tribal leader traveling to the east to meet with U.S. leaders, however, these narratives omit the brutal part of the european-native confrontation. Notably, the Whitestone massacre from the 1860s, where 300+ women and children at a big harvest camp were brutalized and killed, not too far from this exact site. (A "genocidal" action of the U.S. Army that provides historical precedent for the likes of Boko Haram.) Yes, history is told by the vanquishers, but in this case, a very dedicated woman of indigenous origin has spoken of her heritage through storytelling over many years, and her painstaking, tenacious work has paid off in the quality and insights available at this exhibit. You'll be enriched by insights into the native peoples' worldview. Additionally, I recommend a stop at the visitors center because the media there really brings alive the structures you see in the native village. The military forts at this state park are so predictable...and deceitful (because right to the present, few european americans want to admit and reconcile with the perpetration of atrocities.)

This is easily among my favorite places to camp in NoDak during summer & has one of the few groomed…read morewinter trails. We were able to do a March hike on well-packed snow.The yurt, which is available during winter, books up fast. There's a very detailed and still accurate review below, so, I won't repeat all of that, I'll just say it all still holds true, and the mosquitoes have only multiplied since then! The hiking trails are quite nice & I love the layout being along the water's edge. The water is surprisingly clear, but keep an eye out for erosion, those ledges are no joke.

Cross ranch campground may be my new favorite campground in the local area around Bismarck. It's…read morenot teaming with all the updates like most campgrounds around these days. No annoying street lights. No paved roads, it's just you and nature. Set right against the Missouri river it's beautiful and at night it's almost like you can see every star in the sky. There is no light pollution here at all! There is a little registration store here for purchasing things. You can rent paddle boats and kayaks. There are sites here for rvs, primitive sites for tents, and cabins to rent. This would be a perfect place for a family reunion. This place would be perfect if it just had a more centrally located shower facility.

This park allows every season to shine & winter may very well be the best time to stop be…read more Once the lake freezes over, there's something magical about walking on the water. The landscape is spectacular & we frequently see wildlife. The campground is also pretty good.It's a clean, well-kept park.

Nice upcoming state park. They have planted many trees which are starting to fill out. The camp…read moresites are a bit close together so may lack some privacy on busy weekend. Shower facilities are newer with hot water and water pressure! Oh yeah..... Boat landing and beach area is very nice. Wr are many deer, birds, gophers running around the property. Park is well taken care of. We will be back and fish the big lake some more

A solid state park & a regular stop for our hiking adventures, especially in winter. The staff are…read morealways super friendly & we encounter them frequently in the parking lot that doubles as parking for a trailhead & the gift shop/ ranger station/ equipment rental. The empty check-post is decorated (so cute) for the winter holiday season. It's about halfway between Minot and Bismarck- a convenient midway break on our shopoing trips to Bismarck.

A nice park for what it is. There are a lot of themed hikes, with the trails lit up & marked well…read more Staff are always friendly. I don't think I'd camp here, as there aren't really trees & I don't boat. It is the closest park to my house.