Petrified Forest Loop - reviews,open hours,photo spots,things to do | WanderBoat AI Trip Planner

This place is stunning. If you came for TRNP, I seriously think this place is just as scenic, but in a unique way- if you have time and are willing to hike. I came to hike the north trail on 4/3/2024. I did come across two major difficulties- bisons and mud. Bison, yes, it was actually an obstacle. Maybe because of this time of the year grass is limited, they occupied the entire ‘prairie’ where trail passes. When I was hiking in, they were mostly on one side and I was able to hike from a distance while still keep parallel to the trail. When I headed back two hours later, however, they were ALL OVER, and there was literally No pass for me. Their staring at me tells me I couldn’t take chance. I looked up satellite map, my only option was descending to the waists of the dunes and climb along, basically beside and below the grassland where the bisons were, which made the hiking much more difficult. And this was also because the second difficulty- the mud. Snow is melting April and May here, mud is everywhere! And it’s really sticky. I tried my best to pick road, but mannn, check out my shoes(see pic). Many times, on the surface it seemed dry, when you step on it, you sink in 2 inches and underneath the dried and cracked clay, it’s wet, soft and slippery. So, good luck keeping your shoes clean:) Despite the bisons scared me and the mud bothered me, it’s still so WORTH it to make it to here!!

Yang SongYang Song

00

Theodore Roosevelt National Park southern unit is an amazing place to visit. If you do, you should make sure you visit the Petrified Forest Loop. This is really easy to get to from the I-94. The road is really good, even though a dirt road, and fine for even a small saloon. The walk from the car park is quite easy and not as far to the petrified forest as you might think. I would highly recommend going clockwise around the loop or even just going left and out to the forest then back the same way. Depending on how much you want to do, you can spend an hour or a few hours here. I would definitely recommend including this on any trip to the National Park

Andy SmithAndy Smith

00

I would not recommend driving to this if there is a lot of rain as the roads are all dirt and gravel, but in good weather it is a nice scenic route. The hike out to see the Petrified Forests are a little long, but they are definitely worth it. There are lots of petrified trees and beautiful scenery all around. Make sure to bring plenty of water as the hike is all in the Sun. We brought four cups of water per person (2 bottles) with us, and that was still not enough. Also, you may want to use sunscreen.

Ross Tanner CurryRoss Tanner Curry

00

It was a nice hike. The petrified wood was really cool. We did the north loop out and back. The scenery was beautiful. warning Seriously keep your eyes peeled for bison. As we were coming back up the trail, there was a large bull walking the same trail. He was behind a large clump of brush just around the bend. We didn't see him until we were right up on him, like 20 ft, and he let us know he did not appreciate it. DO NOT PET THE FLUFFY COWS!!! Stay alert and give them lots of space to move on.

Erin BrownErin Brown

00

Kids (all under 13) enjoyed the hike. The only problem with this trail and the majority of all the trails in Medora are they seem to be geared towards horseback. This trail loop was like 12 miles long, which would be perfect for horseback but no so much for a family hike. Kids had fun exploring the petrified areas as well as the hills and mud holes. We went about 3.5 miles in and turned around to get back to the trailhead. Unless your kids are hardcore you'll be looking at the same scenery twice.

Cameron ErcinkCameron Ercink

00

Clearly I didn’t do my research! Entrance was 5-7 miles of gravel road. Passable but very dusty. We hiked in about a half mile because we were short on time and didn’t get to see any petrified forest. Heading back going west on I94 requires more dirt roads as there is no entrance to I94 west from this part of the park. Plan on at least 2 - 3 hours to visit here from Medora.

Tracy CunninghamTracy Cunningham

00