Sunday, September 24, 2017

Old East Entrance Trail - Theodore Roosevelt National Park


Our August 2017 visit to Theodore Roosevelt National Park continued with an easy walk to the old East Entrance Station. The entrance station was built by Company 2767 of the Civilian Conservation Corps during the 1930's. The station remained the main entrance to the South Unit until Interstate 94 was constructed in the late 1960s when the entrance was moved to the current location in Medora.

To reach the trailhead from the visitor center, drive 6.4 miles on East River Road before continuing straight onto Scenic Loop Drive for another 6.1 miles. A paved pullout loop is located on the right side of the road.

The 0.8 mile round trip hike begins by following the old roadbed for a short distance before branching off to the right to go through the prairie dog town instead of going around it. The old road skirts the prairie dog town along the base of the hills to the northeast before looping back to the old US-10 roadbed and the entrance station.

Trailhead

Old entrance road on left and trail on right

Typical trail conditions before reaching the prairie dog town

Old entrance road along the base of the hills

Enough moisture remains in the ephemeral streambed to allow trees to survive

Hills to the northeast

Typical trail conditions through the prairie dog town

Trail marker is not needed when the ground is visible

Prickly pear cactus on the edge of the prairie dog town

 Black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus)

More prairie dogs

The trail was very easy to follow

A potentially muddy wash has to be crossed to reach the entrance station

Old culvert marks the edge of the old entrance road

Approaching the station from "outside" the fence

Old East Entrance Station

The old entrance pylon supported a park sign

The CCC stone masons were true craftsmen

Several buildings used to stand in this area

Prairie dog lookout

Another CCC culvert

An old prairie dog hole near the stone pylon

Old entrance station from inside the park

Old East Entrance Station

Cactus patch protection

Prairie dog town

Rejoining the old road near the trailhead

An entrance fee of $25 admits all the passengers of a single vehicle for seven days to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Other entrance fee options include a Theodore Roosevelt National Park Annual Park Pass for $50, an Every Kid in a Park 4th Grade Pass for free and a variety of America the Beautiful - National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Passes providing access to most national park, national forest, and BLM fee areas
  • Annual Pass for $80
  • Military Pass for free
  • Lifetime Senior Pass for $80 or $20 annually for those age 62 and older
  • Access Pass for free for visitors with a permanent disability
An entrance fee is not collected at the Painted Canyon Visitor Center.

The park website is https://www.nps.gov/thro.

1 comment:

  1. Nice. It would be helpful to know the route from the East Station to Painted Canyon.

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