Scoria Pit Dispersed Camping
Little Missouri National Grassland
Write a Review West River Rd. Medora, ND 58645 701-227-7800 Official WebsiteGPS: 46.9454, -103.5886
Overview of Scoria Pit Dispersed Camping
Please do not create new campsites, but utilize areas previously camped at.
Accessibility is not guaranteed, always scout ahead before driving down dirt roads. Learn more: Boondocking 101.
Last Price Paid: $0
Reported by Steven-Paula on 10/23/2024
Longest RV Reported: 40 feet
Reported by LibbysOnTheLoose on 8/14/2017
Pad Type dirt
Open Seasonally Yes
Elevation 2,591 ft / 789 m
Max Stay 14
Tent Camping Yes
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Q&A - Ask the Community about Scoria Pit Dispersed Camping
To ask questions of the owner or manager please contact the campground directly. 701-227-7800
camper-831032 asked on 6/9/2023
Would it be safe to drive in late at night in a 4WD CRV? It wouldn't be towing anything.
Reviews of Scoria Pit Dispersed Camping 94 people have reviewed this location.
“Positive experience”
Reviewed 10/11/2020
Nightly rate: | FREE! |
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Days stayed: | 3 |
Site Number: | none |
Camped at Scoria Pit on 9/11/20 for 1 night in a tent and again on 9/25/20 with a 19-ft trailer for 2 nights. Both stays were on the BLM grassland area with free dispersed camping. Primitive with no facilities. There were very high winds on both occasions and 40-degree nights. The road is dirt with some very deep ruts which may be di... more
Camped at Scoria Pit on 9/11/20 for 1 night in a tent and again on 9/25/20 with a 19-ft trailer for 2 nights. Both stays were on the BLM grassland area with free dispersed camping. Primitive with no facilities. There were very high winds on both occasions and 40-degree nights. The road is dirt with some very deep ruts which may be difficult to navigate, especially if muddy. Some big rigs managed to park up on a ridge. We camped well away from others to avoid generator noise. Clear nights provide an impressive night sky as it is totally dark. The drive to the top edge of the pit gives beautiful Badland views. Scoria Pit makes a good home base for sightseeing in the Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Watch out for the buffalo piles! There is excellent cell phone coverage.
Zarrla would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Great spot on the edge of the park”
Reviewed 9/10/2020
Nightly rate: | FREE! |
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Days stayed: | 1 |
The sites were easy to find, relatively close to the highway. If you’re headed East on 94, you have to get off on the exit before 24 or use exit 24 to turn around as there is no east bound exit. Take W River Rd. North and take the first right on a bumpy dirt road. It was a little rough, but not horrible. The first site is flat and had ... more
The sites were easy to find, relatively close to the highway. If you’re headed East on 94, you have to get off on the exit before 24 or use exit 24 to turn around as there is no east bound exit. Take W River Rd. North and take the first right on a bumpy dirt road. It was a little rough, but not horrible. The first site is flat and had a few campers, but if you keep going, there are several other spots with better views. We had a great view of the Northern Badlands.
Audrey would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Beautiful views, access to TRNP”
Reviewed 9/6/2020
Nightly rate: | FREE! |
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Days stayed: | 9 |
RV Length: | 31' (Class C) |
We arrived just after a rain. That made things a little messy to get in. There is a large mud pit on one side of the road and tire ruts on the other. Once you get past that, you're pretty golden. There is a loop you can pull into on the left. But, you won't get the views there. We're in a class c and went up a bit. We have views of t... more
We arrived just after a rain. That made things a little messy to get in. There is a large mud pit on one side of the road and tire ruts on the other. Once you get past that, you're pretty golden.
There is a loop you can pull into on the left. But, you won't get the views there. We're in a class c and went up a bit. We have views of the badlands and park. Halfway up is as high as we saw any rigs over 30ft go. There were a couple TT's at the summit. Lots of vans, popups and smaller c's up the foothill.
It's windy, and you will hear some highway noise. When it's really windy, trucks hit the rumble strips often.
It was pretty dead here most of the time. Labor Day weekend brought a lot of tent campers. Everyone is pretty quiet though. No cell signal st the bottom. Great AT&T and Verizon as you go up.
Easy acces to Medora and the south unit if TRNP. The trails for the petrified forest are further down River rd.
We used Sully Creek SP for water and dumping. There was no price listed, so we donated a few bucks.
Clean Slate, Dirty Tires would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Best view ”
Reviewed 8/19/2020
Nightly rate: | FREE! |
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Days stayed: | 1 |
This campsite was perfect for a quick stop on our drive through! And the view of the prairie is absolutely amazing! Plenty of room for multiple campers so you shouldn’t have trouble finding a spot. We only stayed one day but talked to a few of the other campers that were planning to stay a week.
tyrell would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Great Boondocking spot close to TRNP”
Reviewed 8/16/2020
Nightly rate: | FREE! |
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Days stayed: | 3 |
Great spot. We were able to get here relatively easy with our 36ft motorhome and even didn’t disconnect our flat towed car we were pulling.
One area had a mud hole but we were able to get around it.
Beautiful spot with room for multiple large rigs.
@ZulaLife would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Phenomenal Site”
Reviewed 8/7/2020
Nightly rate: | FREE! |
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Days stayed: | 1 |
Site Number: | N/A |
After checking two other campgrounds in the area—one full another closed—I decided to head to Scoria and man did I luck out. First I followed the “main” road, but I arrived pretty late (9p local) so most of the good sites were taken. Went down to the service road and followed it back until I passed a ‘Private Land, No Off roading’ sign... more
After checking two other campgrounds in the area—one full another closed—I decided to head to Scoria and man did I luck out. First I followed the “main” road, but I arrived pretty late (9p local) so most of the good sites were taken. Went down to the service road and followed it back until I passed a ‘Private Land, No Off roading’ sign, just beyond that I found a promising site. Once I made it up the hill, I was ecstatic! Nice and private with amazing views!
J would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Spectacular View overlooking Teddy Roosevelt NP”
Reviewed 7/30/2020
Nightly rate: | FREE! |
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Days stayed: | 3 |
Site Number: | None |
RV Length: | 24' (Class B) |
We camped at the next to the last spot at the end of the road, on top of the mountain. It was perfect for our 24' Sprinter. The road was a bit rough and uneven, but manageable if you drive slowly. The view was awesome. It was very quiet and cool in the evening. Great place for stargazing.
NYEscapee would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Great relaxing time”
Reviewed 7/15/2020
Nightly rate: | FREE! |
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Days stayed: | 4 |
Site Number: | No site |
great free camping. Pick out your spot and set up. QUIET. Lots of space for kids and pets. No amenities. That was ok. We are in a 36' class C with a 24' tow. Took first loop to left. at top of first hill. Several areas further along for smaller rigs. Tenters showed up later and were very quiet. Could hold a few on first loop. Woul... more
great free camping. Pick out your spot and set up. QUIET. Lots of space for kids and pets. No amenities. That was ok. We are in a 36' class C with a 24' tow. Took first loop to left. at top of first hill. Several areas further along for smaller rigs. Tenters showed up later and were very quiet. Could hold a few on first loop. Would come back for sure.
Sparky would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Great spot just outside of Medora!”
Reviewed 7/7/2020
Nightly rate: | FREE! |
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Days stayed: | 3 |
RV Length: | 38' (Toy Hauler Travel Trailer) |
Exit 23 is from eastbound I-94 only and does not have westbound reentry or an exit from from westbound I-94. If you are coming from westbound I-94, just take exit 24 and turn around. We had no trouble getting our 42' 5th wheel to this location. When turning off the main gravel road, the road could be a muddy mess if it's raining.... more
Exit 23 is from eastbound I-94 only and does not have westbound reentry or an exit from from westbound I-94.
If you are coming from westbound I-94, just take exit 24 and turn around. We had no trouble getting our 42' 5th wheel to this location. When turning off the main gravel road, the road could be a muddy mess if it's raining. Fortunately it was very dry the entire time so we had no issues. This spot can fit several campers and has a fire pit. The best part is the view you get of the grasslands/National Park. This spot seemed fairly busy as we had a lot of single night people stay.
This is a 15 minute drive to Medora where you can enter the south side of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. If this spot is full, there's a couple more spots further up and plenty more along the main gravel road. The cell phone service here was pretty good with Verizon. We were able to watch Netflix, facetime, and have work video calls. Our dogs loved the location because they could run everywhere without a leash.
RVwithRandC would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Perfect spot”
Reviewed 7/4/2020
Nightly rate: | FREE! |
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Days stayed: | 3 |
RV Length: | 31' (Class A) |
Spent July 4th here and loved the peace and solitude. Storms can get intense up here and we watched lightning strike very nearby, but other than that it’s an amazing place to free camp! Very quiet. We saw very few people but had neighbors go through the grasses to a nearby hill so if you’re careful, I guess that’s ok? Gives you even mo... more
Spent July 4th here and loved the peace and solitude. Storms can get intense up here and we watched lightning strike very nearby, but other than that it’s an amazing place to free camp! Very quiet. We saw very few people but had neighbors go through the grasses to a nearby hill so if you’re careful, I guess that’s ok? Gives you even more privacy. Crazy how good AT&T was too! You lose signal until you get to the top.
KFann would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
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Amenities
Hookups
- dry camping
- Dispersed Camping
Pets
- pets
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