Sully Creek State Park, near Medora, North Dakota, is a fantastic spot for campers looking to enjoy wide-open spaces and stunning views. With spacious sites that are well spread out, you can expect a peaceful atmosphere, perfect for unwinding after a day of adventure.

The campground offers a range of amenities, including clean showers and well-maintained vault toilets. Many visitors have praised the hot showers and the overall cleanliness of the facilities, making it easy to refresh after a day spent hiking or biking the nearby trails. One camper noted, “The shower house was always clean,” which speaks to the park's commitment to keeping things tidy.

For those who love the outdoors, the Little Missouri River runs right by the campground, providing a scenic backdrop for your stay. The area is also known for its hiking and biking trails, with the Maah Daah Hey trail running through the campground. As one reviewer mentioned, “Scenery can’t be beat,” highlighting the natural beauty that surrounds you here.

If you're planning a visit, keep in mind that the campground is open from April 1 to November 30, making it a great destination for spring and summer getaways. Whether you’re camping in a tent, RV, or trying out glamping, Sully Creek State Park has something to offer everyone looking to connect with nature.

Just south of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, and a couple miles from the town of Medora, Sully Creek State Park is located in the heart of North Dakota’s Badlands. This small park provides easy access to the Little Missouri River for paddlers and anglers, and serves as a launch point for the 170-mile Maah Daah Hey and the 50-mile Maah Daah Hey II trails. These two scenic trails invite hikers, mountain bikers and horseback riders to discover the Badlands’ peaks, plateaus, prairies, and wetlands—just as Roosevelt saw them more than a century ago. Sully Creek also makes an ideal basecamp for exploring the nearby national park in a quieter setting, or if the park’s facilities are full. 

Sully Creek offers 41 spacious campsites in three open, grassy areas: Whitetail Flats, Cedar, and Little Muddy Breaks. Whitetail Flats offers open, grassy, pull-through sites that can accommodate large RVs; Cedar is a wooded loop with pull-through and back-in sites for smaller RVs and tent campers; Little Muddy Breaks is an open area designated for horse campers, and features corrals and a round pen. All sites are equipped with picnic tables, and there are vault toilets, a shower house, drinking water, and a dump station available; hookups are not available at this location. Dogs are permitted in the park, but must remain leashed. Camping is available from April through November. Campsites are $12/night; reservations accepted.

Sully Creek State Park — Sully Creek State Recreation Area

Medora is the perfect place for adventurous campers and RVers. Medora is filled with the activities, sights, and experiences to make everyone in your crew a happy camper. Find the best campgrounds near Medora, ND. Read helpful reviews and tips to find the perfect camping option for you and your crew.

Medora

The Best Camping Near Medora, North Dakota

Gorgeous park. Very small with limited camping spots. The Little Missouri River is right here and the trailheads for the Maah Daah Hey Trail and Maah Daah Hey II (The Deuce) are in this tiny park as well. Great views of the surrounding badlands, exceptional horse and hiking trails. A variety of amenities are offered incuding some electrical, water, pay showers and vaulted toilets and horse corrals. No paved roads. Very close to Medora.

Sully Creek State Park

I didn’t have a spot in the National Park so this was next. The park is right on the horse and hiking trail so I thought we could take advantage. 

The sign in was confusing. Be sure to stop at the ranger station before entering the campground. The ranger set me up with a site that was out in the open. There are some shaded sites but they fill up. Another camper told me that many didn’t show up because of the rain storms. 

There is plenty of space between sites even if it’s in the open. Water is available throughout the campground. Vault toilets are in three spots but it’s quite a long walk to get to them. There is a shower house near the front. I didn’t expect to pay for showers but the site is only $12 so another $1 is fine. 

This was an ok spot for us. I would try some of the other primitive campgrounds next time. We loved being close the the NP and the town of Medora.

Close to Theodore Roosevelt NP and right on the Maah Daah Hey Trail

Nice little spot only ten minutes from Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Lots of RV traffic which comes with lots of generator noise. 

Pit toilets, and a shower house that gives you eight minutes for $1. Sites are reservable and cost $12 a night but there is a day use fee of $7 that is not included in the site fee. $19 a night unless you have a ND state parks pass. Tent sites have lots of shade and the RV and equestrian areas are pretty exposed. 

Decent views, RV heavy.

I think I have found my  favorite campground. Has 3 section one I think is for larger campers though there are only about 10 sites. Another is for horses and has corrals with the sites. The one I stayed in is for smaller campers. Quiet and primative with others that wanted to get back to nature. Not one single generator!! Sites are shaded and private. 

Back to Basics

This is a more affordable campsite that many people forget about when they go to Medora. This site is cost effective and beautiful!

Peaceful and Close to Trails

Very open area not much shade making the site not very private. Staff is nice and accommodating. Showers are 1$ for 8 minutes. Close to trails and close to Medora which is the closest city to Theodore Roosevelt national park. A good alternative for tent camping if you can get into cottonwood because it’s too full.

Nice camp

We stayed at this campground. We tented and found a great place in the Horse stable area. Normally this is not allowed but they were full and we arrived very late. they were nice and let us stay there. bathrooms were nice and clean. Water was good.

super site

Perfect for the horse enthusiast, with corrals available for every site. It was full the day I got there, but stayed for breakfast before the check ins started (I asked first). Right on the MDH Trail, for us MTB peeps. 

Clean, nice views

Great campsites.  Stayed in the non-electric sites (Cedar Campground) that are among the trees.  Secluded, well spaced apart from other sites.  Perfect view of the mountains.    Note-Electric sites (Whitetail Flats) are all out in a large open field.   Also, the back group of sites were all reserved for horse camping.  Easy 10 minute drive to TRNP for great hiking.  Also had local trails right at the campground.  In between Sully Creek and Little Missouri River, so kayaking/canoeing/fishing all right there.   Showers and toilets were always clean.  Rangers and on-site host were friendly and helpful.  I will go again.

Great campground, sites are spaced apart

Primitive campsites were secluded and surrounded by the trees. The trees were needed as there was a ton of wind that day. We were close to some of the horse corrals which was an added bonus as we don’t typically see that sort of things. Clean toilet/shower facilities.

Good campground 

Campgrounds in Teddy were closed due to Covid so had to find an alternative. This did the trick nicely. Much of the campground seems geared toward the horse crowd, but the small non horse tent loop was nicely set in a wooded area by a creek. Neat views of the bluffs all around. 

Cool, clean & convenient 

Really great campground! Easy to find and navigate. Sites with fire pit, picnic tables, and bathrooms. 

Making a reservation was really easy too! We made the reservation through parkrec.nd.gov Campground fee was $17 + $6 processing fee online made our stay around $23 for a night.

Thanks for the great stay, Cheers!

Lovely Campground With a View

Place had everything I needed, including a shower. Website states they are coin showers but mine was free so unsure if they just updated to free showers. Primitive sites are $17/night but you also have to pay the $7 state park fee. All sites had a fire ring and picnic table and had distance between neighbors. Trash available, nice vault toilets and a dump station. No ATT service but would definitely stay again on a weekend. About 80% full on a Saturday night mid may.  Only 5 minutes to get to medora and the national park. 

Stayed 1 night 

A perfect campground for equestrian campers or those visiting Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Just 3-4 miles from Medora ND and park entrance. Open views, good trails, great birding. The sites have electric, accessible water and dump site. Showers snd vault toilets kept very clean.

Mesa views on Little Mo at Medora

I was so disappointed with our site. We came to kayak and camp because the reviews were so high and we are going to be exploring the national park and town of Medora. We had to pay an addition 21$ upon arrival for a vehicle fee. That, combined with our 56$ space fee equaled about 25$ a night for 3 nights. Which is a great deal for the area. Warning... the river is about 2 inches deep in the summer. Apparently that is the norm and I did not do my homework as well as I thought I had. It does say on the website that the river is high in early spring. Getting to our site, 22, it was too small for our large tent and carpeted in cottonwood which is not the fault of the camp rangers but allowing so much poison ivy in a space is. Everyone says this is great for horse camping, but if you are tent camping in summer with young kiddos, I would highly reconsider. Also be aware that there are not many hotels below 180$ a night for a single available in the town of Medora, and if you are looking for an alternative to camping the best options are 40 minutes away in Dickinson. Another little tidbit is that even though we are pretty high in the continental US, it is still in the 90s during summer. So, not too much at fault of the camp but definitely not the best summer camping experience I have had.

full of poison ivy and cottonwood

Just did an overnight here while going to TRNP. Site is clean and free HOT showers.

Sites clean, camp host was great. 

Overnight delights 

Came in as the sun began to set and it had great views driving into Medora. Half of the sites are equestrian half standard rv with power only, remaining few are tent style that are off a little from the rest. Great space between sites. Showers require quarters :) Bathrooms are a little more rustic and only a male and female. No flushing here, just a compost vault.  Water is between sites to fill up and take back to your site. I'd come here again for sure. Very quiet. 

Good base site with a few views

The road coming in has some pretty steep hills. Our site was 
good for hammocks. Nice that the horse area was separated from the non-horse area. The showers appear to be coin-op but were free when we were there. 

Nice little state park

This site was massive and would've had room for 5 or 6 tents (not sure on limits though). 

It was right next to an equestrian area, so some horses being trained and whinnying just next door. 

No cell service (AT&amp;T at least) but quick proximity to Medora and Teddy Roosevely National Park!

Small Tent Area within Equestrian Campground

Nice bathrooms with showers! Amazing views and trails run right through the campgrounds. Sites are ver open so it’s a bit windy and the coyotes are out at night but they didn’t bother. We enjoyed listening to them and the stars are amazing.

Gorgeous on the little Missouri river

We really enjoyed this campground. We had a back-in site that had a little bit of shade. There are 30/50 amp electricity, but no water/sewer. There is a dump station with potable water when you first pull in. The sites are really spread out and it was very quiet at night. There is a river adjacent to the campground and the Maah Daah Hey trail runs through the campground. The town of Medora is a 5 minute drive, but there isn't too much there. Theodore Roosevelt National Park is a 5 minute drive as well and the main reason to come to this area.

One of our favorites of our trip

We would’ve stayed longer if the park ranger wasn’t so cranky. We called the states 800# and was on hold 30 minutes. In the meantime, I was trying to make reservations online. It was very confusing despite the nice camp hosts trying to help. A line was forming behind us and we had driven all day. We just wanted a place to land. Based on the host’s recommendation, we finally booked a site in the back under a large shade tree by the river. Apparently, this section is for horse people. 
The park ranger pulled up and yelled at us b/c we didn’t have a horse. I tried to soothe him and explain the situation. He grudgingly let us stay for the night and proceeded to collect another $7 for our vehicle. After park fee $25 + reservations fee $6 + vehicle fee $7 we paid $37 for electric hook up only and a crabby lecture. Thanks but no thanks -moving on. 

Scenic setting and beautiful park too bad the park ranger’s attitude ruied it    

Scenery can’t be beat. Trail makes for awesome hiking and biking. Sites are huge. If you want shade cedar campground unit is better than whitetail although can get shade on some whitetail units. Quiet when we were there. 

Pretty Spot

I booked a tent site in the Cedar area of the Sully Creek State Park Campground and it was so much better than the ones at TRNP! We had total privacy, a fire pit that you could see the bluff from, trees all around, and the only thing you heard were horses from the horse camp area. I was going to put up my hammock by the firepit but heard the hum of bees in a stump close by so I didn’t do it. This sites has room for 2 tents (one on each side of it). Bathrooms were a short walk and showers were coin-operated and clean. I loved this park!

Bluff at Sully Creek

The area with electrical hookups is a wide open meadow; the sites are far apart.  The Little Missouri runs right by the campground and there are bluffs on the other side. 

Showers are clean and hot. Vault toilets are well maintained. Rangers we’re friendly. 

Would give five stars except for lack of flush toilets.

We walked through the loop with tent sites. They are the place to be if it’s hot, all have plenty of shade. 

We had to switch sites because we extended our stay and the original site was booked. Site 8 had almost zero Verizon coverage. Site 11 had great coverage. 

Beautiful spacious campground

As of the end of September 2022, exit 27 off I 94 was closed so we followed the signage to exit 24 where we easily followed the signs to Sully Creek SP. We were early so no one was in the check-in trailer/office. We proceeded to fill fresh water near the dump station. The potable water pressure was low, about 10 psi so it took a long time to fill our tank. While we were filling the tank, the ranger came by and let us know we were good to go as we had purchased the ND state park pass at our last stop. We then proceeded to pull through site 8 with electric only(50/30/20 AMP) in the Whitetail Flats Campground(CG). There are three campground areas: Whitetail Flats with electric, Little Muddy Breaks(horse camping only with electric plus stalls), and Cedar(dry camping with very nice campsites in a wooded setting). Whitetail Flats is essentially a large field with sites periodically set about and not crowded together. The Cedar CG has a 10’ height restriction with sites set into the trees. We received no OTA channels and satellite connection was not an issue as there are only a few trees in Whitetail Flats. We received 1 bar on both Verizon and T-Mobile. We were impressed with the shower house. Though older, the shower house had been remodeled and the fixtures were in great shape. The shower rooms have a sink and regular house-type showers. We enjoyed great water pressure and hot showers. Pls note that there are no toilets in the shower house, but there’s a vaulted toilet adjacent near the office. We were here towards the end of September, and glad we had wasp spray. Bring several cans just in case as there is no place to purchase bug spray in Medora. If you like to golf, Bully Pulpit Golf Course is a great 18-hole course with some fantastic views and challenging, but fun holes. We enjoyed our stay and would not hesitate to come back.

Nice Campground

Wide open spaces in the Whitetail Flats section, so no shade but the views are great. Spacious sites, very quiet. There are 3 loops, one a horsemen's camp but I think I saw a few travel trailers in there without horses. The other loop has height restrictions (10' max) so good options for the smaller trailers or tents. Shower house was always clean. If you plan on visiting TRNP south unit, this is a great option.

Photos of Sully Creek State Park — Sully Creek State Recreation Area

Real photos from real campers