Thursday August 21 through Friday August 22 2025
I was hoping to visit the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. I wanted to stay one night there. It’s not large so one day should be adequate. There is only dry camping but the place looks worth investigating. But not at the expense of having a mechanical failure away from the main highway 80 miles to the north. So where are we to go? How about a place we’ve been before? How about Lewis and Clark State Park? Sure! Lets go!
On this trip we’ve been through a bizillion little farm towns. They are all agriculture driven so I’m taking a break from writing about them and will only include more significant settlements. As someone said if you’ve seen one you’ve seen ‘um all…… or something like that.
Wolf Point is a city in and the county seat of Roosevelt County Montana. The population was 2,517 at the 2020 census, down 4% from 2,621 in the 2010 Census.It is the largest community on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation and home to Sioux and Assiniboine members. Wolf Point is the home of the annual Wild Horse Stampede, held every year during the second weekend of July. Wolf Point’s Wild Horse Stampede is the oldest rodeo in Montana, and has been called the “Grandaddy of Montana Rodeos”.
Wolf Point also is home of the Wadopana Pow-wow, the oldest traditional pow wow in Montana and always held the first week in August.
Wolf Point began as a trading post in the 1860s, at the confluence of Wolf Creek and the Missouri River. Farming began in the area as early as 1874 with the Civil War pioneer Philip “Sandy” Knorr and John Winn being the first people to plant the first harvest in Northeastern Montana. Philip Knorr, John Winn, Montana Jim Helmer, Hank Cusker, Henry Kirn, Jacob Wirth, and James MacDonald being the first set of pioneers in Wolf Point. The Great Northern Railway arrived in 1887. Wolf Point incorporated in 1915 and became the county seat in 1919.
Culbertson was created in June 1887 following the arrival of the Great Northern Railway, then known as the St. Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba Railway. The town was named after Major Alexander Culbertson, former head of the American Fur Company‘s Fort Union, 23 miles (37 km) to the east.
The settlement of Culbertson followed hard on the heels of the 1886-87 watershed years for the early cattle industry. As a result, the first settlers in the area raised horses for the US Cavalry’s various Montana and Dakota posts. As cattle prices slowly rebounded, the range was once again stocked with cattle, though the second wave of cattlemen utilized hardy English breeds instead of the Texas longhorns of the earlier outfits.
Driving 37 miles east we cross the Montana/North Dakota Border. One thing of significance strikes us- the road is so much smoother in North Dakota than in Montana. Why?- petroleum is big in N.D. and I’ll bet some of those revenues wind up in the road maintenance budget.
Williston is the county seat of Williams County, North Dakota. The 2020 census gave its population as 29,160 souls, making Williston the sixth most populous city in North Dakota. The city’s population nearly doubled between 2010 and 2020, due largely to the North Dakota oil boom.
Williston was founded in 1887 for Daniel Willis James, a merchant and capitalist. The city is at the crossroads of US 2 and US 85, near the confluence of the Yellowstone and Missouri Rivers and at the upper end of the Sakakawea Lake. It is 19 miles from the North Dakota/Montana border.
Not far away is Fort Union Trading Post the most important fur trading post on the upper Missouri River from 1829 to 1867. Its 25 miles from Williston and has been designated as a National Historic Landmark.
We travel south and east of Williston about 20 miles to Lewis and Clark State Park located on the shores of Lake Sakakawea, the third largest man made lake in the United States. We’ve been here once before and this time the park is more beautiful than the first. The sites are nicely spaced in amongst trees. There is a large play area for kids and a huge fenced area to let your mutzos romp in. The views of the lake are amazing. There is a marina for the boat enthusiasts. The only thing that keeps its rating below a 10 is there is no sewer at individual sites. It does have side by side dump station so two rigs can be serviced at once. So we’ll rate the park in the 9.95/9.6ish range. It’s a beauty!
We’ll be here for two nights and we will certainly enjoy our stay! Heading to Minot, ND next. See you there!
Travel With Jil and Mike 