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I am calling this Mission Two and Three because job-wise, there have been two different job sites, location-wise, we have been at the same campground since May 19th and this is possibly moving into Mission four as well, but here’s the catch with that one; I will most likely be taking a break from the road and going back home for three weeks while he is on this last minute job. Of course, as is par, nothing is ever set in stone. We aren’t moving until we are moving! But I do have some things that need to be taken care of at home. So, a break is needed.
Williston, N.D.
I have loved this place much more than Texas. Part of the reason this was so much easier to handle was that my grandchildren were able to stay with us for a total of 4 weeks! Two weeks from May into June and two weeks from June into July. That was a huge blessing to me and I hope they were blessed by it too. Covid restrictions have not been as bad in North Dakota, probably because there have not been as many cases here. We were able to visit and play at all of the parks as well as go to a water park several times!
Be forewarned, this post may get long winded as I’m about to tell you all of the things I have found in and around Williston that will probably make you want to visit…. I definitely think you will want to visit! And I’m still trying to get caught up to date on our adventures for this blog. I am going to attempt that with this post. Be prepared, lots of places and lots of pictures are headed your way!
Local Parks
As I mentioned in previous posts, I am a parks person. I simply love them. And Williston does not disappoint! You can visit the Williston ARC (Area Recreation Center) website or just click here to go directly to the parks page. While my grandchildren were visiting, we made it a point to go to a different park every day and then return to our favorites. The parks are maintained with excellency and pride! We were all blown away not just by how many parks there are here, but also by the quality of each park. Every park is above average, everything is clean with well-placed layout and the latest and greatest equipment. We especially loved the inclusive Western Star park that is geared specifically towards children with special needs.
The grandkids gave nicknames to the parks they loved the most. Harmon park became known as the “Sculpture park” due to its many beautifully carved tree trunks. Cote park, which is currently listed as not having a playground but it actually does, they called this one the “Joker park” because the colors are purple, green and grey. The Western Star they dubbed, the “Alien park” because of the space theme and the cute little green guy who welcomes you! Spring Lake Ponds parks, were the “Tall park” and the “Zip Line park”. No there is not an actual zip line here, but rather a great children’s track line. And we also have the “Farmers park” which is formally known as Davidson park which also has a great splash pad the kids loved while they were here.
A few more things about the local parks before I move on. My personal favorite park with or without kids is Spring Lake Ponds. There are two small fishing ponds here with walking trails around them and there is a formal walking trail around the park, I believe it is a mile to a mile and a half. I think the sign says 1.5 miles but my walking app says it’s less than that. You can also walk or drive up to a small bluff that overlooks the ponds. When I’m in the mood to boost my walk, I go for it with this hill, but I love going up there to write or watch an online sermon or just to think. It is very peaceful. This dirt road is located right at the parking lot with the really cool little water wheel that actually is running from time to time.
Water Fun
If swimming is your thing, you are going to love this area! Inclement weather or not there is something for everyone here. Right in town, we found the places mentioned above that have great water fun. The Williston ARC has an amazing indoor water park for all ages. They even have a flowrider in this facility! The staff is mostly teens and young adults as to be expected at a pool. But these kids were wonderful at instructing the grandchildren on how to use the flowrider and improve their skills with it. I am pretty sure if my grandson could have stayed with us all summer just for this one feature, he would have. In addition to the water park, they have a pool where they give lessons, and a third area with an Olympic sized pool. Williston is not lacking when it comes to park and rec activities!
As I said previously, there is a splash pad here at Davidson park that was great fun for the kids. Also, at Spring Lake Park, there is a swim beach. We did not partake of this particular place just because of the lack of time but I often see people enjoying the water here. You can also rent paddle boards here. I have not gotten brave enough to try this and do not see it in my near future either. A swim beach we did go to, however, is located at the Lewis and Clark State Park. This is a cozy little park along the Missouri River. The cost is 7.00 per vehicle. We spent an afternoon here with the kids and with life vests in place, we let them brave the swim beach. The major downside to this is the rocks. The entire beach is made up of small rocks. We found lots of petrified wood here and some really fun rocks if you are into that sort of thing,which of course we all are, but it would have been nice to have had a bit more sand for lounging on, rather than rocks.
If fishing is your type of fun, you will find multitudes of places to fish in and around this area. My husband loves to fish, I on the other hand, love to catch! And so I let him test the waters and throw in his line, if he is having success, I will fish with him, if not, I’m content to read. I’ve done a lot of reading on our fishing trips. I’m not saying there are no fish here, but I will say they seem to be few and far between. He says it’s just because we are used to fishing in Colorado for trout so most of his supplies are geared toward that and he has to buy the right stuff to catch fish here…sounds a little fishy to me. The one time he got into a mess of fish and caught several shiners, I was not with him. He could have been sending me multiple pictures of the same fish. You know, men and their fish tales. I was with him when he lucked out and caught a small walleye one day. He was very excited; it was his first. And I was so very excited for him. Another time, we went fishing with one of his co-workers and that guy caught a northern pike. The teeth were crazy!
Having told you all of this, there are many places here both formal and informal for fishing. Among the ones we have been to is the Lewis and Clark State Park. While we were here, hubby took his small one-person pontoon boat, nicknamed “The Yacht” out around the marina but was unsuccessful. They encourage these smaller boats and kayaks to stay within the protected marina as there is a potential to get swept into a stronger current in the river and have a difficult time getting back.
Another place he likes to go to is a set of ponds located in the Lewis and Clark Wildlife Management Area. You follow a road called Shooting Range Road, and yes, it does end at a public shooting range, if you’d like to partake of that too. These ponds are popular! Really popular! On a good day it will be difficult to find a place to park on the very narrow land bridge between the two ponds. This is the location that the Northern Pike was caught at.
We have fished at the Spring Lake Ponds several times with no success. He has even taken the yacht out here to no avail. The reason we believe this is such a difficult pond to catch fish at is because they are shallow and a lot of the fish die in the winter and must be restocked each Spring. We are not sure of the last date these ponds were stocked but if we believe the posted signs, it’s been a verrrrryyyyy long time.
One of his favorite places to fish is along the Little Muddy River, this is where the walleye and shiners were caught. The river runs along the east side of Williston and there are several locations to fish at where the roads cross the river. These are all informal fishing locations where people have created dirt parking lots. However, there is a formal boat launch area but there are more people fishing on the other side of the highway at one of the informal fishing spots. I've done my best to drop pins for you here, here, here, here, and here.
A few more places we have been to in this area are Blacktail Dam, he took the yacht out here but caught no fish, it is a really beautiful spot for a picnic though. One major note for going to Blacktail Dam, DO NOT just google it and rely on google maps to get you there. Use the map only to get you as far as turning off of Hwy. 85 onto 69th St. NW. (or us my link above). After that toss your phone aside and follow the signs, if you foolishly trust google maps after I tell you this, you WILL end up in the middle of a farmer’s field, ask me how I know!
We went to Epping Dam. This is a nice little lake, but again, no fish were to be had here. Cottonwood lake, we did not fish here but drove out there, and Kettle lake. We did not fish here either, but interesting fact:
This is actually a pretty neat place, even if I did have visions of drowning as my truck brakes failed and we slide down into the dark depths of this kettle. It is located in a depression in the earth and as I eluded, you must drive down a steep hill to get to it. It is small and round and had I not been so freaked out; I might have taken some cool pictures of it. Maybe I’ll brave it again on another day, or at least go to the top of the hill and photograph it!
National Park
Of course, I am not going to tell you about Williston without mentioning the fabulous National Park nearby! 60 miles south of Williston is the beautiful Theodore Roosevelt National Park. At least the north entrance is located here. The south entrance is located about another 60 miles further down the road and to the west. This is a unique park in that it is divided in two sections, a North and a South. Each area has unique features as well as similar features. We have been to both sides and have a preference to the North. We have visited this side twice so far. If you have a chance to go it’s a must. The views are stunning! There are many hiking trails located throughout both sides and there are buffalo on both sides as well that can come up right next to your vehicle. Not that we wanted them there, they were just in the road as we drove through. They are majestic animals.
Historical Sites (day trip)
There are tons of historic sites around this area, of course because the town sits right on the Missouri River which was the fastest means of travel back in the day. Everything here is very much Lewis and Clark related, to the point that it is a running joke between hubby and me: "Hey this is the Lewis and Clark (fill in the blank)!" "Really? I can't believe they were here too!" Anyway, a couple of places worth noting are Fort Buford State Historic site located at the Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center (pro-tip: watch the movie they offer, it's great history) and the Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site. If you take kids to Fort Union, be sure to do the Junior Ranger activity! We had a lot of fun.
Minot (day trip):
We drove over to Minot with the soul intention of taking the kids to the Roosevelt Park Zoo. This is a small zoo but it will forever be a remembered zoo. During our visit we were treated to the monkeys going crazy, (Just so you know, I really wanted to say going ape there, moms have dumb dad jokes too). Those monkeys were hilarious. It was so incredibly loud! This is a darling little park and well worth the trip.
Bismarck (weekend trip):
While here, we’ve managed to take a couple of weekends to go a bit further down the road. We made it over to Bismarck while the grandchildren were here. We went to the Garrison Dam National Fish Hatchery. They have lots of tanks full of different kinds of fish as you would expect, but we were all impressed by the large Paddlefish in the Sturgeon house. The kids also had a blast feeding the trout and painting rocks for the rock garden here.
While in Bismarck we also visited the Dakota Zoo. This is a delightful little zoo that has a playground inside and a “train” to take you all the way around the zoo for an additional fee. We did the train ride as well as walking around to see everything. It was a little on the expensive side but worth it as a one-time thing. You will see many native species to the North Dakota area, so it’s really great for those who are not used to seeing such sights.
Dickinson (day trip):
Another little trip we made was over to a town called Dickinson. We went to Patterson Lake where my husband fished unsuccessfully, again; I am thinking he might need to go with a guide at this point. He did however, get talked up by the Game and Fish guy. Yes, he had his license. Yes, I was sitting in the truck reading. Yes, they were laughing and joking by the time they were done talking.
The most unique feature around Dickinson is just a bit further east on the interstate. There is a little highway called the Enchanted Highway. You drive out and back. Along the way are these enormous scrap metal sculptures! They are definitely a sight to see. While these are not considered fine art, nor are the welds technically perfect, the story behind the sculptures is charming. For me personally, what draws me to this is that this man had a vision and he followed his heart to realize that vision, that is really powerful.
I believe God gives each of us a calling, he puts a hunger inside of our souls and while we may not understand why or how, his purpose always prevails. Sometimes we take a lot of detours in life before we finally end up on the path God means for us. Sometimes these are God lead detours meant to teach us something and sometimes they are of our own making. Either way, God knows every single twist and turn in our lives. Rest assured, no matter what, He is a good, good father, He is in control and there is a purpose to everything you are experiencing. You just have to trust the process.
Isaiah 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.
Romans 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
I hope you enjoyed this little tour of Williston North Dakota and the surrounding area. I am looking forward to our next mission and in the meantime, I’ll pop back in here to give you some more insight into the RV lifestyle.
With Love, Jen Fulks, the Elegant RV’er
More pics from this mission:
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| Well hello there! |
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| I really did capture this shot somehow! He had just snagged that fish from the pond! |
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| I saw this little flower on the roadside as I stopped to take a picture of the church below. I later learned it is a Prairie Rose, the state flower! |
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| This is an old abandoned church in the middle of all of these fields. As you can see, the church is in a state of disrepair but the grounds are immaculate. There is a cemetary here that is still in use. |
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| This pelican flew so close to me I was able to get this shot! |
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| My thinking spot at Spring Lake Park. |
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| The road our campground is on. |
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| A little piece of heaven on earth. |
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| The view from behind our camper |
