9 Best Sights in Outside Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Theodore Roosevelt National Park

A huge triceratops—whose complete skull was excavated in 1992 west of Dickinson—greets you at the entrance of this museum, which houses dozens of dinosaur bones, fossilized plants and seashells, and rocks and minerals collected from around the world. The museum, which is part of the greater 12-acre Dickinson Museum Center complex with the Joachim Regional Museum, Prairie Outpost Park, and Pioneer Machinery Hall, has North Dakota's largest dinosaur display.

The French nobleman for whom the chateau is named erected this 26-room hunting cabin in 1883 with his wife, Medora, for whom the town was named. He also built a meatpacking plant and encouraged other cattle ranchers to settle in the area. Though their cattle empire was never realized, the couple hosted extravagant hunting parties and even entertained Theodore Roosevelt during his Dakota ranching days. You can tour the restored chateau between May and October, when weekend history programs and carriage rides are also offered. The site's interpretive center is open year-round.

Built in 1866 near the confluence of the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers, this military post was the site of Sitting Bull's surrender in 1881. In summer, you can take a self-guided tour of the restored officers' quarters as well as the unusual, sometimes humorous, tombstones in the soldiers' cemetery. The site grounds and adjoining Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center are open year-round.

Built by John Jacob Astor's American Fur Company, the fort was the most important fur and bison hide trading center on the upper Missouri River between 1828 and 1867. Walk around the reconstructed grounds, which include the Trade House, teepees, and the reconstructed palisade and three-story bastions of Fort Union. Follow the easy 1-mile trail to Bodmer Overlook, named for the artist Karl Bodmer, who painted the fort from this vantage point in the early 1830s. June sees a traditional Rendezvous, with fur-trade reenactors and period music, crafts, and other demonstrations. In early August, the site also hosts a Native American arts showcase and a traditional powwow.

This is the largest and most diverse of 19 national grasslands in the western United States, spanning a million acres in western North Dakota. It takes three hours to complete a self-guided 58-mile driving tour known as the Custer Auto Trail, beginning and ending in Medora. The best time to see wildlife is in early morning or late afternoon. Don't forget a camera and binoculars. In addition to stretches of the lengthy Maah Daah Hey Trail, which runs through the grasslands, there are seven designated trails, and back-country hiking is permitted. Little Missouri Grassland trails are open to all nonmotorized activities, including horseback riding and cycling as well as hiking. For a copy of the driving tour and trail maps, contact the U.S. Forest Service office in Dickinson or the South Unit Visitor Center.

Called Makoshika or "Bad Land" by the Sioux, the Little Missouri State Park has unusual land formations that create the state's most awe-inspiring scenery. The beehive-shaped rock formations resulted from the erosion of sedimentary rock deposited millions of years ago by streams flowing from the Rocky Mountains. Undeveloped and rugged, this wilderness area has both primitive and modern camping and 50 miles of horse trails.

This museum features six galleries and rotating exhibits, hosts special events, and is dedicated to the horse culture of the plains.

This museum in Bowman, south of the national park's South Unit, has permanent and changing exhibits on local paleontology, geology, and archaeology as well as anthropology and history.

Known as the "Enchanted Highway," this self-guided 30-mile driving tour east of Dickinson features seven giant metal sculptures designed by a local artist, including a 51-foot Teddy Roosevelt. Massive sculptures include a deer crossing, grasshopper family, pheasants on the prairie, a 150-foot-long gaggle of geese, and a tin family with a 45-foot father, 44-foot mother, and 23-foot son.