Boicourt Overlook is a pull-off on the scenic loop of Theodore Roosevelt National Park's south unit, and it gives you a long view down into the valley of the Little Missouri River. The river winds in broad loops through a floor of cottonwoods, with the badlands rising on either side in buttes and ridges banded in grey, tan and rust. From the railing you can often see bison grazing the flats below, their dark shapes small against the pale grass, and prairie dog towns scattered over the slopes.
This is the country that Theodore Roosevelt came to as a young man in the 1880s, when the cattle business boomed along the river. He arrived from New York to hunt bison, grieving after the deaths of his mother and wife on the same day, and the open range and hard life gave him something to hold on to. He ranched here for a few years, until the savage winter of 1886 and 1887 killed much of the cattle on the plains, and he returned east. The experience, he later said, shaped his ideas about conservation, and the park, established in his memory, protects the land he loved. The landscape here is more or less intact, though the bison were nearly wiped out and later reintroduced.
The loop road is a gentle, rolling ride with generous views, and the stretch around the overlook runs along a ridge with long drop-offs to the valley. Speed limits are low, and wildlife is the reason: bison, wild horses, elk, mule deer and pronghorn all use the roadside, and they cross without warning. Summer afternoons are hot and thunderstorms can be violent, so start early. Wind can be strong, and the road surface, though generally smooth, may have frost heaves in spring.
Nothing is sold here. The nearest towns are small: Belfield, some twenty-six kilometres away, has a petrol station and basic supplies, and Medora, near the start of the loop, has more, so fill the tank before you enter. Carry plenty of water and sun protection, and expect little phone signal.
Switch off the engine at the overlook and listen. You will hear wind, birds and maybe the grunt of a bison from the river bottom, which is about all there is, and about all you need.