USFS · North Dakota, South Dakota

Dakota Prairie Grasslands

The Dakota Prairie Grasslands (DPG) are a collection of grasslands in North Dakota and South Dakota, United States. It was formed in 1998 and consists of four U.S. Forest Service Ranger District offices that manage four National Grasslands:North Dakota Cedar River National Grassland Little Missouri National Grassland Sheyenne National Grassland South Dakota Grand River National Grassland

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Grassland1.4 million acresUSFSNDSD13 campgrounds within 10 mi17 Forest Service sites36 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Grassland
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StatesNorth Dakota, South Dakota
Size1.4 million acres (Forest Service administrative boundary (gis_acres))
Forest Service code0118, region 01
Center point47.3903, -103.4858
Night skyVery dark ground, a faint glow at most (Black Marble reading 26)

Boundary map

42 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Dakota Prairie Grasslands10°20°30°40°50°60°70°January: 0.45 inches of precipitation, 5.8 inches of snowFebruary: 0.44 inches of precipitation, 6.9 inches of snowMarch: 0.71 inches of precipitation, 5.4 inches of snowApril: 1.35 inches of precipitation, 4.4 inches of snowMay: 2.79 inches of precipitation, 1.3 inches of snowJune: 3.28 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJuly: 2.42 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowAugust: 2.01 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowSeptember: 1.76 inches of precipitation, 0.3 inches of snowOctober: 1.31 inches of precipitation, 3.4 inches of snowNovember: 0.62 inches of precipitation, 6.0 inches of snowDecember: 0.54 inches of precipitation, 8.2 inches of snowJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 15.0°F averageFebruary: 18.7°F averageMarch: 30.1°F averageApril: 42.5°F averageMay: 53.3°F averageJune: 62.1°F averageJuly: 69.0°F averageAugust: 68.2°F averageSeptember: 58.3°F averageOctober: 43.6°F averageNovember: 29.4°F averageDecember: 18.5°F average0 in2 in4 in6 in8 in10 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Grassy Butte 2Ene, 13 miles from the center point at 2,670 feet, station USC00323705 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 18 inches a year. The dotted line is average snowfall, about 42 inches a year on the same inches scale.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

9 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 4 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Buffalo Gap Campground
Reservable36 sites
FS · Inside
Ccc Campground
Reservable25 sites
FS · Inside
Hankinson Hills Campground
First-come15 sites
FS · Inside
Jorgen's Hollow Campground
Reservable14 sites
NPS · Inside
Juniper Campground
Reservable48 sites
FS · Inside
Magpie Campground
First-come8 sites
FS · Inside
Sather Lake Campground
Reservable18 sites
FS · Inside
Summit Campground
First-come5 sites
Show 4 more

1 more within ten miles is not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 17

The Forest Service lists 17 recreation sites in this forest, among them 12 campgrounds, 3 interpretive sites, 1 trailhead, 1 picnic area. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 17

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 36 named trails in this forest, 250 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Maah Daah Hey ↗144.3
North Country National Scenic ↗31.1
Buffalo Gap ↗18.9
Wolf ↗8.8
Hankinson Hills ↗7.9
Cottonwood ↗6.9
Blacktail ↗6.8
Long X ↗5.8
Denbigh3.2
Bennett3.1

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas, refreshed September 18, 2026. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 36 trails in Dakota Prairie Grasslands on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Park · Adjacent
Theodore Roosevelt National Park
National Historic Site · 10 mi
Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site
National Register listings within 15 miles · 59 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Dakota Prairie Grasslands?

1.4 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Dakota Prairie Grasslands?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Dakota Prairie Grasslands in?

The boundary crosses North Dakota and South Dakota.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Dakota Prairie Grasslands?

9 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary, including Buffalo Gap Campground, Ccc Campground and Hankinson Hills Campground. 13 in all are within ten miles. Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites; check the forest page for closures.

Source: Where to camp

Where are the trailheads in Dakota Prairie Grasslands?

The Forest Service lists 17 recreation sites here, including 12 campground campgrounds, 3 interpretive areass and 1 trailhead. Each one links to its Forest Service page.

Source: Trailheads and sites

How do I get to Dakota Prairie Grasslands?

A point inside the boundary is at 47.390, -103.486. Theodore Roosevelt National Park is adjacent. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

How dark is the night sky at Dakota Prairie Grasslands?

NASA’s Black Marble night-lights image reads 26 on a 0 to 255 scale at the center point, very dark ground, a faint glow at most.

Source: NASA Black Marble

Which national parks are near Dakota Prairie Grasslands?

Theodore Roosevelt National Park (adjacent) and Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site (10 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Dakota Prairie Grasslands?

59 National Register listings within 15 miles, including Initial Rock and Rockford No. 40 School.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons; a state is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area.
  • Description: Dakota Prairie Grasslands on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.