Badlands Conservation Alliance is hosting an outing to western North Dakota on Saturday, April 25, 2026 to celebrate Earth Day. The group will hike a few miles round-trip to the highest natural point in North Dakota. The hike will be led by Dakota Goodhouse, History and Indigenous Studies Instructor at United Tribes Technical College.

A great opportunity to disconnect, get outside and learn the Indigenous history of the area from Dakota Goodhouse. As we celebrate America 250, let’s also continue to learn from our Indigenous partners. This is a free offering from the Badlands Conservation Alliance.

To join the carpool to White Butte, participants will meet at 7:00 AM CT at the Badlands Conservation Alliance office at 1605 E Capitol Ave. It takes 2.5 hours to get to White Butte from Bismarck. We’ll make a brief 15-minute stop in Belfield.

Participants can also meet at the White Butte Trailhead in Slope County, ND. Steeper than an average ND walk, this is an easy to moderately difficult hike.

Hikers must bring their own lunch, snacks, plenty of water, and other gear. Hiking shoes or boots are required. No potable water is available on the trail. Dogs are not allowed. Badlands Conservation Alliance members and non-members are encouraged to join us for the hike. The event is free and open to the public.

The event has limited capacity, so please RSVP by contacting Shannon Straight.

Annual Meeting and Potluck at the BCA office.

Join us in Grand Forks for a screening of Walt Dabney’s film, The History and Future of America’s Public Land, followed by a Q&A session with Dabney, moderated by Valerie Naylor.

Join us in Bismarck for a screening of Walt Dabney’s film, The History and Future of America’s Public Land, followed by a Q&A session with Dabney, moderated by Keith Trego.

Join us in Dickinson for a screening of Walt Dabney’s film, The History and Future of America’s Public Land, followed by a Q&A session with Dabney, moderated by Clay Jenkinson.

Hike a section of the Maah Daah Hey Trail with Walt Dabney and walk across the bridge the Badlands Conservation Corps helped build in June. We’ll also be joined by Beth Ihle, Dakota Prairie Grasslands Supervisor.

We’ll meet at Chimney Park in Medora and leave at 9 a.m. MDT on Sunday, Oct. 12th.

This National Trails Day, join Badlands Conservation Alliance as we participate in trail repair and maintenance operations in Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

To prevent erosion on White Butte, the Badlands Conservation Corps will be working with the Maah Daah Hey Trail Association to place weathered posts and rocks.

Badlands Conservation Alliance is hosting an outing to western North Dakota on Saturday, April 26, 2025 to celebrate Earth Day.

Badlands Conservation Alliance’s annual meeting will be held in Bismarck at the Bismarck Veterans Memorial Public Library on Saturday, November 16th, 2024, from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm CT. The event will celebrate BCA’s 25th anniversary. The annual meeting will feature speaker Michael Barthelemy, Director of Native American Studies at Nueta-Hidatsa-Sahnish College. Barthelemy will speak at 3:00 pm, followed by a question and answer session. This event is free and open to the public, and will include refreshments and door prizes.

RSVP on Facebook.

Join BCA on Friday, August 16th from 4–8 p.m. at Atypical in Minot to savor their honey sumac saison. RSVP on Facebook.

Join BCA at Laughing Sun in Bismarck on Thursday, August 8th from 5–8 p.m. to celebrate the release of their honey lager and discuss conservation issues with Shannon Straight. RSVP on Facebook.

Join us on Saturday, June 1st, 2024 for a hike to celebrate National Trails Day. We'll meet at Peaceful Valley Trailhead at 9:00 AM MDT to hike a five-mile loop in Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

RSVP on Facebook.

Badlands Conservation Alliance is hosting an outing to western North Dakota on Saturday, April 27th, 2024 to celebrate Earth Day. We'll hike 5.5 miles of the Maah Daah Hey Trail in the Little Missouri National Grassland. BCA Executive Director Shannon Straight will be guiding the hike and providing background on the conservation initiatives in the area.

RSVP on Facebook.

We'll meet in the entrance of the North Dakota Heritage Center at 10:30 am on March 9th, 2024. Calvin Grinnell will be speaking as he accompanies us through the exhibit. The event will last for about an hour, although folks are welcome to stay afterwards. The Heritage Center is open until 5 pm on Saturdays. Admission is free.

On Saturday, February 3rd, join Badlands Conservation Alliance for our outing to Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site.

During the outing, we'll stop by the Visitor Center to watch their short film. We'll hike the trail to the river and visit the Earthlodge locations.

Dress warm for an outdoor walk, including hiking shoes, and be sure to pack a lunch.

We'll leave from the BCA office parking lot at 9 AM. Please carpool if possible. The drive is a little over one hour. We'll return late afternoon.

Clay Jenkinson, Theodore Roosevelt Scholar and Historian, will lead the hike from the Elkhorn Ranch parking lot to the site of Roosevelt's Historic Cabin location. The hiking trail is relatively flat, 1.4 miles out-and-back. Mr. Jenkinson will discuss TR and the Badlands, the building of the Elkhorn Ranch, and the Elkhorn as a shrine to American conservation.

Please RSVP if you plan to attend the Sunday, Oct. 15th hike.

You can RSVP on Facebook or by calling the BCA office at (701) 450-1631.

Rooms are available in Medora at Rough Riders Hotel or AmericInn if you plan to stay the night prior, Saturday, Oct. 14th.

Jenn Morelock of Dakota Cyclery will join the outing and has agreed to use one of her 11-person vans to shuttle folks to Elkhorn Ranch from Chimney Park.

Folks can gather in Chimney Park, just past TRNP entrance, between 8:30–9:00 am to carpool together or join the shuttle.

We'll depart shortly after 9:00 am.

The drive from Chimney Park to the Elkhorn Ranch parking lot is slightly over an hour.

Bring water, lunch and snacks; sunscreen, hat, and other sun and bug protection; please check the weather and dress accordingly, including good hiking shoes.

We'll be back in Medora by mid-afternoon.

Saturday, October 7th, 2023, 2 pm to 4:30 pm.

Russell Reid Auditorium at the North Dakota Heritage Center and State Museum.

Tweed Roosevelt will speak at 3 pm, followed by a Q&A moderated by former North Dakota Tourism Director Jim Fuglie, with a reception to follow.

Join us for a meet and greet with Theodore Roosevelt National Park Superintendent Angie Richman on Friday, April 14th, from 2-4 MT, in Dickinson at Hawks Point, 1226 Signal Butte. This is a members-only RSVP event.

Church of the Cross
1004 E Highland Acres Rd
Bismarck, ND

The BCA Annual Meeting and Potluck will be held Oct. 8 in Bismarck, featuring ND Associate Poet Laureate Rick Watson. A native of Mott, Rick lives in Minot. He is a retired professor of communications and a well-known singer of songs and teller of tales of western North Dakota, and friend to Badlands Conservation Alliance. His poetry has appeared on the pages of Wild Badlands and he was recently a featured guest on "The Great American Folk Show."

More on Rick Watson on YouTube.