Grasslands and Badlands: A view from the scenic drive loop in the southern unit shows a combination of grasslands and badlands found throughout the park. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com 
Bison: A bison grazes in the southern unit of the park. Elk, bighorn sheep, deer and other wild animals can be seen at the park. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.comBy GARY WARREN
Photographer
Formerly of Los Alamos
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is located in the Badlands of North Dakota, which are found in the southwest portion of the state.
The park is divided into three separate sections or units; a southern unit near Medora, ND, a northern unit about seventy miles north, and Teddy Roosevelt’s Elkhorn Ranch, which is situated between the north and south units but about 30 miles to the west.
The Elkhorn Ranch can only be accessed by traveling a 30 mile dirt road. In the north and south units, visitors can enjoy miles of the rugged landscape, wildlife viewing, and bird watching via scenic paved roads.
The north and south units each have campgrounds and miles of hiking trails for the visitors who wish to explore the park farther.
Editor’s note: Longtime Los Alamos photographer Gary Warren and his wife Marilyn are traveling around the country and he shares his photographs, which appear in the ‘Posts from the Road’ series published in the Sunday edition of the Los Alamos Daily Post.
Layers: The badlands landscape consists of layers of different soil deposits over thousands of years. The bluish layer seen in this view of the north unit is bentonitic clay which can be seen in both the north and south units of the park. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Concretions: The north unit road tour has a pull out called ‘Cannonball Concretions’ where there are numerous round rock spheres known as concretions. These unique rock formations measure up to five feet in diameter. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Grasslands: While both the north and south units are made up of rocky badlands, the north unit also has acres and acres of green grasslands. Shown is a herd of bison grazing on the early summer grasses. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Little Missouri: The Little Missouri River flows through both the north and south units of the park. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
