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Makoshika State Park

July 22, 2018 - July 28, 2018

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Makoshika State Park is Montana’s largest state park as it totals almost 12,000 acres in size. The park has 11 designated trails, visitor center, campground, archery range, pavilion for rent, and amphitheater that seats over 200 people. The park receives over 100,000 visitors a year and just recently won the USA Today Best Montana Attraction award. The park’s main storyline is dinosaurs. Over 10 different species of dinosaur fossils have been found in the park. The visitor center also has a paleontology lab in the basement. The trail crew will be repairing our most popular trail, the Diane Gabriel Trail. This trail is noted as our “dinosaur trail.” At the top of the Diane Gabriel Trail is a Hadrosaur vertebrate imprint that is fossilized. This trail is receiving a new pedestrian bridge and so we are anticipating more people using the Diane Gabriel Trail after the bridge is installed. The volunteer trail project will not include installation of the new bridge but instead fixing steps and possibly rerouting some portions of the .6 mile trail route. The project will also include installing new interpretive signs and some hand rails. Tools used for the project will include saws, hammers, Pulaski’s, McLeod’s, and shovels.

Meet the Crew Leader for this trip.

Host

Montana State Parks

Accommodations

Cabin/Lodge

Hiking/Access

Day Hiking up to 1 miles per day

Project Rating

Moderate

Minimum Volunteer Age

18

Maximum Group Size

10

Area and Attractions

Makoshika State Park is the gateway to the famous Badlands that roam from Eastern Montana through North Dakota and South Dakota. The park is full of scenic vistas where the public can take photographs of wildlife, caprocks and the intriguing Badland beauty. The park is covered in Ponderosa timber and open in other areas. The park has 11 designated trails, visitor center, campground, back country camping, disc golf, archery range, pavilion for rent, and amphitheater that seats over 200 people. Glendive, MT has some great museums including the Glendive Dinosaur Museum and Frontier Gateway Museum. The Glendive Dinosaur Museum has one of the best dinosaur displays in Montana. The Frontier Gateway Museum is the local county museum which is rated one of the best county museums in Montana. Glendive also has one of the top music stores in the nation with Hell Creek Music. Inside Hell Creek Music is a 38-foot T-Rex. Dinosaur fossil digging is available on private land. The longest free-flowing river in the lower 48 states is the Yellowstone River. The Yellowstone River flows through the middle of Glendive and provides great fishing and floating opportunities. The town of Glendive also some unique local shops and has many restaurants including Mexican, Chinese, Italian, Irish, and of course American cuisine. Other area attractions that are not too far away include the famous Medora tourist attraction in North Dakota, Teddy Roosevelt National Park, Miles City, MT and all its historic Cowboy fame and the Evelyn Cameron Gallery in Terry, MT. There is also some spectacular bird watching north of Glendive, MT at the Medicine Lake National Wildlife Refuge. As part of your day off activity you could take in a float on the Yellowstone River or staff can organize a paleo day as the crew could work in the lab on dinosaur fossils.

Accommodations Description

Volunteers will stay in cabins in the park. The cabin complex is called Sleepy Hallow. The largest cabin can accommodate four people comfortably. The cabins have beds with linens and new pillows and some have end tables and dresser drawers. The cabin complex also has a separate building for the kitchen and dining area and has a common area. The kitchen was just remodeled in 2017 and includes gas stoves and ovens, microwave, sinks, pots, pans, bowls, plates, and utensils all for use. The kitchen area also has a dining table. The patio which is located outside the kitchen building has two propane BBQ’s on it for use. A separate building has the bathrooms and showers. The Sleepy Hallow complex is managed by the local Lions Club and is secluded away from the nearest campground. Sleepy Hallow is very quiet and relaxing and has a fire pit and benches. Volunteers should bring their own personal gear.

Travel

Airport Pickup provided from Dawson Community Airport, Glendive, MT

Location

Makoshika State Park
1301 Snyder Av, Glendive, MT 59330 United States
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