Turtle River State Park, North Dakota

"It is easy to love a mountain...But the prairie's charm take more looking." This is a quote from an unknown source. The Turtle River State Park is part of a Tallgrass Prairie where the annual precipitation is 24-40 inches.

The mowed area is my trail.

The Chalet Trailhead and the start of the Moose Head Trail.

A little shelter out in the middle of the prairie, I'm guessing for protection if a thunderstorm were to quickly arise so hikers could take cover.

There are 10 trails throughout the park with the shortest being .2 miles and the longest 2.45 miles. This picture was taken along the Riverview Trail.

Turtle River isn't just flat prairie land but has the Turtle River running through it, hence arrives the parks name. This is a view from a high bank looking down at the river.

Our campsite was part of the park's Riverside campsites exclusively for tents. Something a little different from other campgrounds is just beyond the tree in the background you see a car parked and that is where our Jeep is also. We had to carry our stuff a half football field to our campsite.

The park at no cost lent you a fishing pole and a small amount of tackle, and if you were under 16 years old, you could fish without a license. They said the river was stocked with trout, but I think we could have fished all day and still would not have caught anything.

  A Sunset over the prairie.

About 22 miles West of Grand Forks, ND on U.S. Highway 2  you will find the Turtle River State Park. The park is 784 acres. The opening quote I discovered is accurate. A prairie isn't dull like looking over a field planted with corn. There is a different beauty than what you would get with woodlands or mountains. I'm thankful to have spent a few days here and experience something different.


 In the video below, Aaron is doing a little horseplay with Gypsy, and Gypsy can get a bit rough and do a little nipping. I find the ending of the video funny because in the wrestling he temporarily lost his phone. The panic in his voice kind of tells you how important it is to him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3MziSM1AQk