Our 50th State!

Recently Joel went camping with some friends up in Utah. When he came home he told me that he was in the mood to do a longer road trip. So we looked at a map and quickly decided that the time had come to finally tick our 50th State off our bucket list. We packed, loaded up the car, and headed out a few days later.

Years ago Joel read about a campaign that the Fargo-Moorhead Visitors Center started. It is called, “Save the Best for Last”. According to their website, “Travel Ambassadors at the Fargo-Moorhead Visitors Center noticed a trend in travelers looking to travel all 50 states. North Dakota was often the last to be checked off their list! So, from what one might say is an embarrassing fact, the Best for Last Club was born.

Since 2013, the Best for Last Club has become a hit with travelers looking for the best way to visit all 50 states. Shoot, people have started to purposely “save” their visit to North Dakota for last or changed their travel plans to visit the Fargo-Moorhead Visitors Center and be welcomed into the Best for Last Club.”

After Joel read about this we became those people who purposely “save” their visit to North Dakota for last. And the employees at the visitor center were so sweet and seemed genuinely happy to hear our story.

Members of the Best for Last Club receive free t-shirts, certificates, and a whole bunch of congratulations from the team there. Oh, and we were one of THREE couples (yup, we weren’t the only ones) that were there to join the club that afternoon.

A roadtrip with Joel wouldn’t be complete without seeing some quirky roadside attractions. First up, in Fargo, we have the World’s longest single piece of siding. I took a picture so you could be amazed with me.

It took us four long days to drive here and, after one night in Fargo, we turned around to begin our drive home. Yes, in case you hadn’t noticed, we’re a bit crazy. Feeling like we might not make it back to North Dakota anytime soon, we chose to drive home by going across the whole state – you know, to really immerse ourselves in the North Dakota experience. Halfway across we stopped in Jamestown, which has a cute little Frontier Village with some more quirky things to see, like, this guy!

One of the main attractions in Jamestown, and the reason we stopped here, is the world’s largest buffalo. “The “world’s largest buffalo” is actually the World’s Largest Buffalo Monument, a 26-foot-tall, 60-ton concrete sculpture of an American Bison named Dakota Thunder, located in Jamestown, North Dakota. This popular roadside attraction, created by sculptor Elmer Petersen in 1959, stands at Frontier Village and is a major tourist draw for the city.” – North Dakota Travel and Tourism Guide

We were surprised to learn that Louis L’Amour, a popular author of Western novels, and Peggy Lee, a jazz and blues singer who was a major star in the 1950s, were born here.

“Louis Dearborn L’Amour was an American novelist and short story writer. His books consisted primarily of Western novels, though he called his work “frontier stories”. His most widely known Western fiction works include Last of the Breed, Hondo, Shalako, and the Sackett series. Born: March 22, 1908, Jamestown, ND Died: June 10, 1988 (age 80 years), Los Angeles, CA.” – Wikipedia

As we drove away from Jamestown we discovered that North Dakota actually has an entire highway full of really big sculptures. “The Enchanted Highway begins at Exit 72 on I-94 near Gladstone and terminates 32 miles down the road in the small town of Regent. Beginning with “Geese in Flight” at Exit 72, large metal sculptures are placed along the county highway, each with a parking area and kiosk except “Geese in Flight,” which is viewable from adjacent interstate. Sculptures include “World’s Largest Tin Family,” “Teddy Rides Again,” “Pheasants on the Prairie,” “Grasshoppers in the Field,” “Deer Crossing” and “Fisherman’s Dream.” – North Dakota Travel & Tourism Guide

In the parking lot next to the Deer Crossing sculpture is a maze that is made for people to enjoy. Oh, and it was about as tall as our car.

Our last stop in North Dakota was the Theodore Roosevelt National Park. “The park is comprised of three separate areas of land. The North and South Units feature scenic drives, wildlife viewing, hiking, visitor centers, ranger-led programs and much more. The undeveloped Elkhorn Ranch Unit preserves the site of Roosevelt’s “home ranch” in a remote area along the Little Missouri River.” – Theodore Roosevelt National Park

“Theodore Roosevelt is often considered the “conservationist president.” Conservation increasingly became one of Roosevelt’s main concerns. After becoming president in 1901, Roosevelt used his authority to protect wildlife and public lands by creating the United States Forest Service (USFS) and establishing 150 national forests, 51 federal bird reserves, 4 national game preserves, 5 national parks, and 18 national monuments…” – U.S. National Park Service

We didn’t realize, until we read about it at the Visitor Center, that this park was not one of the parks that Roosevelt established.

Theodore Roosevelt National Park “was established in 1947 as a national memorial park to honor President Roosevelt and to provide a place for us to experience his beloved Badlands in our own ways.” – National Park Service

This park provided us with some great views of animals; the prairie dogs and bison were easy to spot as we drove through the park.

“Prairie-dogs are abundant…; they are in shape like little woodchucks, and are the most noisy and inquisitive animals imaginable. They are never found singly, but always in towns of several hundred inhabitants; and these towns are found in all kinds of places where the country is flat and treeless.”  Theodore Roosevelt

“Originally named “petits chiens,” or “little dogs,” by early French explorers, these highly social animals are not really dogs, but rodents. They are members of the Sciuridae or squirrel family, closely related to ground squirrels, chipmunks, woodchucks and marmots.” – National Park Service

The National Park Service has some great information about prairie dogs. To learn more, click this link.

“The American bison or buffalo (Bison bison), is the largest mammal on the North American continent. This magnificent creature, which is a member of the cow family Bovidae, was given its common name by early French explorers who called them “les boeufs,” meaning oxen. Throughout the years, the name went through several changes from “buffle” to “buffelo” and finally to its present “buffalo.” Bison is the correct scientific and common name, but buffalo is widely used and accepted.” – National Park Service

“They can run up to 35 miles per hour, jump 6 feet vertically, and pivot quickly. When bison are in the road, be patient, stay in your vehicle, and observe them quietly.” – National Park Service

Click here to learn more about the American bison.

We observed all these bison from comfort and safety of our car. Because, again, they can run fast and, apparently, jump high. (yikes!)

We were short on time (after getting stuck in “traffic” at the bison crossing) but still made time for a quick walk to see one of the main vistas at the south end of the park.

The park listed the Skyline Vista walk as “a flat, paved nature trail that ends at a scenic vista with the badlands visible in the distance.” And they were right!

We didn’t make it to the north unit of the park, however, here is a picture from the National Park Service. It looks, and was described as, more rugged. It is also much more remote. “There are no services, restaurants, or lodging options in the park. Watford City, ND, is the North Unit’s nearest community, about 15 miles (24 km) north of the park entrance on Highway 85.” – National Park Service

We ended up driving 3,600 miles (5,793 km) from Las Vegas to North Dakota and back. It took us through nine States over ten days….all for a free t-shirt.

Once we got home and began putting this post together we realized, yet again, how lucky we are that we get to see and do so much during our travels.