Theodore Roosevelt National Park

I had no idea what I was doing.  Writing this blurb in 2022 it’s quite comical to think back on.  I’m finally at a National Park for the first time and I had no idea what to expect.

On the drive in I saw the weirdest monument called “Geese in Flight”.  It was in the middle of nowhere but man was it cool in person.

Once I got to the park I drove around a bit just to see what the place was like and saw my first prairie dogs!

My hike on my full day in the park is one of my favorites to tell this day.  I had no experience on ‘going for a hike’ so I went and found a ranger to get some ideas what I should be doing in the park.  After chatting for a bit about my skill level he pointed in a generally eastern direction and said “hike that way about a mile and you should run across the Maah Daah Hey Trail and just follow that until you want to turn around”.

That seemed like a great idea so I followed his directions exactly… which meant fording a river and trekking through open prairie.  And it was awesome!  I’ve never felt so remote in my life.  I think this experience helped set the stage for the journeys to come.