Sheyenne National Grassland

Sheyenne National Grassland

Portion of the North Country Trail 

Loaded up the family (including the 4, 6 and 8 year old as well as the two dogs) and headed 3 hours north up Interstate 29 to the Sheyenne National Grasslands. We got a bit lost as we hadn’t planned out the exact trailhead, instead relying on memory and google maps, but eventually headed down a fun to drive dirt road where we crossed over the trail. The road was a fun off road bonus to the day but would be a mess of mud if it had been a wet spring this year. We ended up parking on the back side of a dirt bike course where we saw several off road vehicles out for some Saturday fun. We didn’t have time to drive further and see what was ahead but I am curious and will have to go further up the road next time. 

To get there: Hwy 18 to 27 to County Rd. 4 to 64th St (left)

Difficulty: Easy

Distance: up to you!

I had expected the Sheyenne National Grasslands to be a wide open expanse of prairie grasses with horizon as far as the eye can see. It was a pleasant surprise to see mounds, hills and hollows. The trail snakes around bends, over hills, and through stands of trees; making you excited to see what is just over that ridge or around that next corner. It was early April so the plants were just starting to bud out, there is no doubt the vegetation will be a blossoming blaze of beauty in a month; however, our experience with the region is that you will trade being tick bait to witness that blooming. 

We hopped out of the car and headed down the trail as far as we could manage. We hiked in for an hour and then found a nice flat grassy area to have a picnic. I had packed in a simple loaf of bread, some peanut butter and snack bar goodness. Instead of resting, the kids found a nice sized hill and practiced running down in with gleeful lopsided grins as big as the tongue dangling happiness the dogs exuded while chasing them along. Once we gave everyone a significant drink, (the dogs could easily consume a liter each time they drink) we heading back on the trail. The trail is very well worn, with two grooves about the size of an ATV, it does intersect with several other trails and dirt roads but it is also ridiculously well marked; you can often see the next trail marker while standing at the current one. There are also mile markers we were hiking around mile markers 22-24. We yo-yoed nearly 5 miles spending 4 hours total including frequent kid breaks and our picnic. This was the first hike that our 4 year old had to hoof it the whole way as she out grew her kid carry pack. She whined a bit and passed out as soon as she got in the car at the end, but she made it!

It was a nice easy trail with a decent variety of scenery and terrain to keep everyone entertained. There was a broken down windmill fairly early on, as well as a water pond that must be the new well as it had solar panels. This could easily be a watering hole if you needed a fill though it would need to be treated. With a little planning you could hit a dirt road and make a loop out of it. I look forward to heading back to this trail and exploring more sections in the future and I think this could easily be a great weekend camp option. I believe it is a camp at large park but will need to do some research. Dogs are allowed off leash and ours had a blast.