Backpack Trail Guide

Trails / North Dakota / Eastern North Dakota

North Country Trail: Lonetree Wildlife Management Area

Lonetree Wildlife Management Area (Harvey)

The North Country National Scenic Trail runs about 32 miles through Lonetree Wildlife Management Area near Harvey, which the North Country Trail Association calls the state’s largest WMA. The land was originally planned as a storage reservoir for the Garrison Diversion project, and now holds native and restored prairie, woodlands, and wetlands.

The trail here is designed for hiking, though Recreation.gov says any non-motorized travel, including mountain bikes and horses, is allowed. It is marked with yellow Carsonite posts.

The hike

North Dakota Outdoors reported in 2019 that the trail’s route through Lonetree’s prairie was coordinated by Scott Peterson, then the Garrison Diversion habitat biologist there, who called the early plans “basically a vision or a concept.” The NCTA’s West Central page places Lonetree at the eastern end of a section that starts at the trail’s western terminus in Lake Sakakawea State Park and follows the McClusky Canal. Backpacker has suggested a week-long, 135-mile trip from Lake Sakakawea that ends on Lonetree’s prairies.

Hiking Project describes two pieces of the trail inside the WMA. The Jensen Campground to Coal Mine Lake Campground section, about 5.25 to 5.6 miles, climbs Teepee Ring Hill for a “sweeping 360° vista,” follows Sheyenne and Coal Mine lakes, and crosses Highway 14, where the page urges caution, along with a short road walk between the lakes. A separate Valley View hike follows “a gentle, mowed prairie grass trail that traverses mostly virgin prairie,” with some short wet sections; Faul Campground is 3.8 miles west of its start.

A 2009 NCTA report says Game and Fish crews mowed a 10-mile stretch from Jensen Campground past Coal Mine Lake to Faul Campground, and that the trail was then mowed from Faul east to the eastern trailhead, except where it follows minimum-maintenance roads. Sources disagree on whether it is mowed today: Hiking Project says annually, usually by the end of July, while Recreation.gov says it isn’t mowed.

The main planning issue is hunting. Hiking Project says the North Country Trail through Lonetree is closed during deer hunting season and directs hikers to North Dakota Game and Fish (701-324-2211). In 2026, deer gun season runs Nov. 6 to Nov. 22. The NCTA also warns of possible extreme winter weather with limited shelter, and notes that the trail follows gravel roads for long stretches elsewhere in the section.

The NCTA says water can be drawn from nearby water bodies but must be treated. Hiking Project lists pumps at Jensen, Coal Mine Lake, and Faul campgrounds.

Farther east, the same trail crosses the Sheyenne National Grassland, where dispersed camping is allowed.

Tips

Camping

Hiking Project says camping is free at Jensen, Coal Mine Lake, and Faul campgrounds, which have tent sites, pit toilets, fire rings, and water pumps. North Dakota Game and Fish rules limit camping on any WMA to 10 consecutive days, prohibit camping where posted at road entry points, ban mowing vegetation for campsites, and say tents may not be left unless they are in daily use. Lonetree is not on the state’s lists of WMAs that ban overnight camping or close it on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, but rules specific to a WMA are posted at its entrances.

Inside Intel: No camper accounts recommending a specific site at Lonetree were found.

Trail facts

The Lowdown

Cold nights on the Lonetree prairie:

Lonetree's free campgrounds sit in open country by Sheyenne and Coal Mine lakes, and the trail association warns of extreme weather with little shelter. See which sleeping bags testers trust.

See the picks →

Where this comes from

This page draws on the sources below, along with other guides and trip reports. Links go to the original pages.

Before you go: This page is based on published trail guides, trip reports, and reviews, along with official park and agency information where we could find it. It’s meant to help backpackers discover new trails, not to replace current, official information. Conditions, closures, permits, campsites, and water sources change, and some details here may be out of date or wrong. Confirm everything with the managing agency and check current conditions before you head out, and don’t rely on this page alone for safety or navigation. Backcountry travel involves risk.