Pembina Gorge SRA OHV

Kimball Bottoms OHV Area is a 410-acre Army Corps of Engineers off-highway vehicle facility along the Missouri River downstream of Garrison Dam in McLean County, North Dakota, within the Lake Sakakawea project boundary. The 25-mile trail system traverses a diverse riparian and upland landscape shaped by the Missouri River and the managed flows of Garrison Dam: open native grassland on the upland terraces, cottonwood and willow bottomland forest in the river corridor, badlands-style clay breaks along the coulee edges, and river terrace formations that provide modest elevation change in an otherwise flat region. All OHV types are permitted within the designated boundary; no entry fee applies. Primitive camping is allowed within the area. Because the facility sits within the Lake Sakakawea reservoir project boundary, it is subject to seasonal flooding when reservoir levels are high — typically spring runoff from the Missouri River headwaters. Always verify current access conditions before visiting; the Corps of Engineers Garrison Dam project office (701-654-7411) monitors water levels and posts access closures. Cell coverage in the Missouri River bottoms is limited — download offline maps before leaving pavement.

Roughrider OHV Trail is a 16-to-22-mile designated off-highway vehicle trail within Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park in Morton County, south of Mandan across the Missouri River from Bismarck, North Dakota. The trail traces the badlands terrain immediately above the Missouri River bottomlands — rolling prairie uplands, steep coulee edges that drop toward the river breaks, and ridge routes with sweeping views of the Missouri River valley and the historic Fort Abraham Lincoln site below. The landscape is identical to what Lieutenant Colonel Custer would have viewed from the fort before his departure for the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876 — a historical resonance that makes this one of the more culturally layered OHV destinations in the Great Plains. ATVs and side-by-sides meeting the 55-inch maximum width are permitted on the trail. A North Dakota state park vehicle permit and OHV trail pass are both required. The park itself features the reconstructed 7th Cavalry Fort Abraham Lincoln and the Mandan On-A-Slant Village historic site — making a combined history-and-riding day trip viable for visitors from the Bismarck-Mandan metro. Contact the park office (701-667-6340) for current OHV access hours and conditions.

Turtle Mountain State Recreation Area OHV Trail System provides approximately 12 miles of designated trails through the Turtle Mountain Plateau in Rolette County near Bottineau, in north-central North Dakota. The Turtle Mountain Plateau rises 500 feet above the surrounding lake plains — a glacial upland remnant covered in aspen groves, shallow lakes, wetland potholes, and mixed meadow that creates one of the most forested and biologically productive landscapes in the state. For OHV riders, the plateau offers a genuinely wooded riding environment rare in North Dakota, where most riding areas are open prairie. Aspen corridors, meadow clearings, and wetland pond edges characterize the trail, with sections that feel more like Minnesota lake country than what most riders associate with the Northern Plains. ATVs and UTVs up to 50 inches wide are permitted on designated trails. A North Dakota OHV trail pass is required. Camping is available at the adjacent Turtle Mountain SRA campground. The International Peace Garden is located 10 miles north on the Canadian border, making Turtle Mountain a natural stop on a cross-border recreational itinerary. Contact North Dakota Parks (701-328-5357) for current conditions and pass information.