Backpack Trail Guide

Trails

Top Backpacking Trails in North Dakota

7 routes. Each page shows when we last checked it. Updated October 2026.

North Dakota’s backpacking on this site splits between the western Badlands and the eastern prairie. In the west, the Maah Daah Hey Trail runs 144 miles across the Little Missouri National Grassland, according to the Forest Service, and the site covers it in three multi-day sections from Burning Coal Vein Campground north to the CCC Campground. Theodore Roosevelt National Park adds shorter loops: the Achenbach Trail in the North Unit, with two fords of the Little Missouri River, and the Upper Paddock and Talkington Loop in the South Unit. In the east, the North Country Trail crosses the sand hills and oak savanna of the Sheyenne National Grassland and the prairie and lakes of Lonetree Wildlife Management Area.

Expect steep clay buttes, faint tread where cattle and bison paths split off, and very little drinkable water. In the national park you can camp anywhere that meets its setbacks with a free permit, but there are no established sites and no approved water. On the grasslands, dispersed camping is allowed, though the Maah Daah Hey also crosses private and state land where it isn’t.

Sources cited on the trail pages describe summer heat up to 100 degrees with little shade, wet bentonite clay that turns slick, river crossings that can be impassable in spring or after heavy rain, rattlesnakes, ticks, and bison. In 2026, deer gun season runs Nov. 6 to 22, and a fire restriction order covers the Little Missouri National Grassland through Dec. 31.

Quick picks

Badlands

Eastern North Dakota

Backpacking in North Dakota: common questions

Do you need a permit to backpack in North Dakota?

It depends on who manages the land. Theodore Roosevelt National Park requires a free backcountry permit for any overnight stay, issued at the South Unit Visitor Center in Medora or the North Unit Visitor Center (Painted Canyon doesn't issue them). No trail permit was found for the Maah Daah Hey or for the North Country Trail on the Sheyenne National Grassland or Lonetree Wildlife Management Area, though the Forest Service requires a special use permit for groups of 75 or more. Rules vary by managing agency, so check with the park, the ranger district, or North Dakota Game and Fish before you go.

Can you camp anywhere on North Dakota's national grasslands?

Dispersed camping is allowed on the Dakota Prairie Grasslands for up to 14 days in any 30-day period, at least 100 to 200 feet from lakes and streams, and the Forest Service asks campers to avoid livestock troughs and corrals and never to approach oil and gas well sites. The Maah Daah Hey also crosses private and state land where camping isn't allowed, and the Forest Service map for the Sheyenne National Grassland says its trailheads are day-use only. In Theodore Roosevelt National Park there are no established backcountry sites; camp at least a quarter mile from roads and trailheads, 200 feet from water, and out of sight of roads and trails.

Where do you get water backpacking in North Dakota?

Plan to carry most of it. The National Park Service says no backcountry water in Theodore Roosevelt National Park is approved for drinking, and the trail pages' sources say Badlands rivers and streams clog filters. On the Maah Daah Hey, hikers stock their own caches at trailheads and rely on seasonal campground wells, and as of the Forest Service's July 2026 update, water at Burning Coal Vein Campground is unavailable for maintenance with no restoration date. Confirm well and pump status with the managing agency before you count on it.

Are campfires allowed when backpacking in North Dakota?

Not in the national park backcountry, where the Park Service bans open fires and allows self-contained stoves, which may be restricted during high fire danger. On the Little Missouri National Grassland, the Forest Service lists Fire Restriction Order 01-18-00-26-08 from Sept. 4 through Dec. 31, 2026, and a separate order restricts campfires when fire danger is High or above, with propane stoves among the exceptions. A Dakota Prairie Grasslands firewood order that began Oct. 15, 2026, restricts out-of-state, quarantined-county, and uncertified firewood, and North Dakota Game and Fish bans imported firewood on all wildlife management areas.

When is the best time to backpack in North Dakota?

The trail pages don't point to a single season, but they flag hazards at both ends of the year. BPRoutes, cited on the Maah Daah Hey pages, warns of summer heat up to 100 degrees with little shade, river fords that can be impassable in spring or after heavy rain, and wet bentonite clay that turns sticky and slippery, while the Forest Service says campground wells are shut off in winter. Fall trips overlap hunting seasons, so check river levels, water, and fire restrictions before any trip.

Is it safe to backpack in North Dakota during hunting season?

North Dakota Game and Fish set the 2026 deer gun season from Nov. 6 through Nov. 22, and its tentative calendar lists deer bow season opening Sept. 4 and muzzleloader season Nov. 27. Hiking Project says the North Country Trail through Lonetree Wildlife Management Area is closed during deer hunting season and that hikers unofficially avoid the Sheyenne National Grassland during deer rifle season, though no Game and Fish order was found for either. Hunting is prohibited in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, so check with Game and Fish before a fall trip elsewhere.

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