By editor
Dawson County, Glendive
Makoshika—a variant of a Lakota phrase meaning "bad earth" or "badlands"—is Montana's largest state park. It is a landscape of stark, eroded beauty, where water and wind have carved the Hell Creek Formation into a labyrinth of fluted ridges, caprocks, and deep coulees. While famous for its dinosaur fossils, the park is also an exceptional location for badlands birding.
The sheer, unstable cliffs provide nesting sites for Prairie Falcons and Golden Eagles, which hunt the surrounding shortgrass prairie. In the deep, rocky coulees, the descending, liquid song of the Canyon Wren echoes off the sandstone. The scattered stands of Rocky Mountain juniper and ponderosa pine support Mountain Bluebirds, Spotted Towhees, and the occasional Loggerhead Shrike. In the heat of the summer, Turkey Vultures can be seen soaring effortlessly on the thermals rising from the badlands.
Visitor Access
Makoshika State Park is open daily from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM year-round. Entry is free for Montana residents who have paid the state parks fee; non-residents pay an $8 vehicle fee. The park features a scenic drive, eleven designated hiking trails, and a visitor center. Camping is available at twenty-eight sites within the park. Digging or collecting fossils is strictly prohibited.