North Dakota
From hunting for prehistoric sea monsters to white-water rafting, gorgeous Pembina Gorge has it all
WALHALLA, N.D. — When the state’s Senior Paleontologist Clint Boyd leads first-time visitors into the Pembina Gorge for public fossil hunts, their responses often surprise him.
Of course, these weekend paleontologists are thrilled that they might unearth part of a mosasaurus — a prehistoric sea “monster” bigger than a city bus — from the oldest exposed rock in the state.
But whether they’re native North Dakotans or Italian tourists, they also thrill at the beauty of their surroundings: a 2,800-acre stretch of land so filled with hills, soaring river-valley cliffs, pockets of wetlands and the largest continuous, undisturbed forest in North Dakota that it seems custom-built for its own full-color coffee table book.
Some say they never anticipated such lush landscapes in North Dakota, which is sometimes unfairly stereotyped as one endless farm field. But this, they’ll insist, looks more like the north woods of Minnesota or perhaps even Canada.
Now the Gorge is getting its due.
In May of 2023, Gov. Doug Burgum announced plans to develop the Pembina Gorge State Recreation Area into North Dakota’s 14th state park. Drawing from an ambitious master plan developed in 2014, North Dakota Parks and Recreation has invested $6 million in state dollars and $2 million in federal dollars toward completing the first phase of that plan: a 55-unit campground, with 50 modern campsites, five primitive sites, up to six year-round cabins, underground utilities, roads, a maintenance shop and a comfort station.
The campground is slated to open in 2026.
Contributed / Poppy Mills
It’s all to provide an “adventure park” experience to the estimated 8,000 to 10,000 visitors who explore the trails through Pembina Gorge annually, said Mike Deurre of North Dakota Parks and Recreation.
The area boasts trails for hiking, mountain-biking, ATV-riding, snowmobiling and horseback riding. The Pembina River offers the only white-water rafting (albeit a fairly tame, Class 1 version) in the state. That’s not to mention sightseeing, leaf-gazing, bird-watching and fossil-digging aplenty.
Ask Mike Deurre, who manages the Gorge recreation area and nearby Icelandic State Park, if he’s excited about the Gorge’s upcoming upgrade, and he chuckles.
“I’ve kind of described it like the Gorge has been like my fourth child,” he said. “After year 17 here, I feel like my baby got a full-ride scholarship to college.”
He’s not alone.
Screenshot / PembinaCountyND.gov
“We’ve had people showing up at the construction gate with their campers until they realized it was still under construction and wasn’t quite ready to go yet,” he said. “We get questions all the time: ‘When is it ready? What are we looking at?’ It’s been really fun to see that.”
Especially for Deurre, a Mandan, N.D., native who admits “I’d never even heard of anything north of Grand Forks,” before applying for a job here in 2007.
But once he saw firsthand the beauty, wildlife and landscape, he was amazed he hadn’t heard of the area sooner. The 12,500-acre formation was shaped by massive glacial runoff which carved out the soft shales left by the oceans millions of years ago to create one of the deepest and steepest river valleys in North Dakota.
Contributed / Cassie Theurer for North Dakota Tourism
Back then, Deurre’s top priority was to find a workable solution for ATV enthusiasts and landowners alike amid the Gorge.
“Originally, there were a lot of landowner complaints on ATVs with people driving everywhere. So they hired me, the dumb 26-year-old, to go up there and figure it out,” he joked.
The agency quickly realized they couldn’t stop ATV traffic, as the four-wheeling genie had already roared out of the bottle.
“You have to give people somewhere to go, because there’s not a lot of trails for ATVs in North Dakota,” he said. “The consensus was we had to build something.”
That would spark the 2014 master plan, which outlined a template for development based on public feedback in a 159-page document.
Today, the recreational area offers nearly 30 miles of trails for everyone from horseback riders to ATV drivers. Deurre described the pathways as tight and twisty, with hairpin turns. “I usually tell people if you’re going over 8 (miles an hour), you’re going too fast. But people have a lot of fun on them,” he said.
Contributed / North Dakota Tourism
That’s not to mention the extensive snowmobile trail network in this area, which totals 455 miles, taps into a statewide trail system and is managed by volunteers from the Northeast Snowmobile Club Association.
Trails may be an ideal way to explore the Gorge, as they can take you into the most scenic areas. Case in point: The Tetrault State Forest Lookout Point, which is so naturally magazine-ready that it frequently graces state tourism publications.
Trail-blazing might also give you a glimpse of wildlife, like elk, white-tail deer, red fox, river otters and even the occasional lone wolf or black bear. The Gorge contains a sweep of forest that serves as a transition zone between three different biogeographical provinces: boreal forest, eastern deciduous forest and central grassland. It’s one reason you’ll find the state’s most extensive woodlands for oak and birch here.
Contributed / North Dakota Parks and Recreation
The diverse ecosystem also includes 30 plant species and 21 animal species categorized as “rare” in the state.
It’s getting late for this season, but autumn is historically the Gorge’s time to shine. The trees form a plush carpet of greens, orangey-browns and golds that rolls across the undulating terrain. Look closer, and you’ll spot the fiery reds of sumac and other smaller plants beneath the canopy of bigger trees.
“To get out on the trails during that time, it’s just nice,” Deurre said. “It’s nice, crisp air and it feels so good. You find yourself stopping and staring at things.”
Some say the best way to see the Gorge is to forego trails completely and canoe or kayak it instead.
Visitors can kayak the Pembina River by contacting the office of the Pembina Gorge State Recreation Area. Through this program, they can opt for a 3.5-mile, two-hour float, which begins at the Vang Bridge near Frost Fire Ski Resort and travels to the Brick Mine Bridge. The bridge is a charming, red structure originally built by the Fargo Bridge & Iron Company for Mayo Brick & Tile Company in 1905. Traveling to and from it will expose you to some of the Gorge’s prettiest views.
Contributed / Cassie Theurer for North Dakota Tourism
Another kayak option is to travel from the Vang Bridge to the Highway 32 Bridge, which is 10.75 miles and provides four to six hours of scenic sailing.
The Pembina Gorge State Recreation Area offers kayak rentals for $32/half day or $50/full day. Life jackets and paddles are provided with your rental. The recreation area also will transport kayakers for an additional fee.
Contributed / Dan Koeck for North Dakota Tourism
“It’s a really cool way to see the Gorge on the river,” Deurre said. “You kind of feel like you’re right there in the middle of nowhere.”
Clearly, people dig the Gorge.
Like, literally.
The North Dakota Geological Survey runs public dinosaur digs in four locations across the state — Bismarck, Dickinson, Medora and the Pembina Gorge.
The Gorge alone opens up 100 spots to aspiring archaeologists each summer. Clint Boyd, who oversees all the public digs, says that when registration for its statewide digs is announced to its 2,500-strong email list, they fill quickly — sometimes within minutes. “It’s crazy popular,” he said.
Since the state’s first public dig in 2000, Boyd said the event has attracted people from 45 states and countries as far-flung as Norway and Italy.
Boyd cites several reasons for the dig’s attraction.
One is that North Dakota’s public dig program is so affordable. The department charges $40 to $60 per person per day to cover supply costs and the salaries of summer interns to help at the site. In comparison, he said, public digs in other states charge up to $300 per day.
People also can opt to dig just a day, or even a half-day, rather than committing to a full week.
Another is the high concentration of specimens found in the Gorge. “Normally when you go look for fossils, you dig out what’s there and then have to explore around to find another,” Boyd said. “This site we’ve been working at Gorge, we collect a skeleton for a mosasaurus and shortly after that, 40 or 50 feet from there, we’ll find another one. “
The Gorge has proven to be an especially rich source of marine life from 75 million years ago, including turtles, fish, plesiosaurs, squid and sharks.
Contributed / Cassie K. Theurer for North Dakota Tourism
It’s a mecca for the mosasaur, a huge, carnivorous aquatic lizard whose bones have been found in the black shale of the Pierre Foundation, which runs throughout the Gorge.
Mosasaurs were essentially the kings of the food chain for their time, with some species growing as large as 60 feet.
In 2015, Boyd and a team discovered a new species of mosasaur which may have been a precursor to the Mosasaurus, a larger form that grew to nearly 50 feet long and lived alongside the T-rex.
“If you put flippers on a Komodo dragon and made it really big, that’s basically what it would have looked like,” said
Amelia Zietlow
, a doctoral student in comparative biology who co-authored a study on the discovery with Boyd and another researcher for the Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History.
The researchers also described the prehistoric predator as possessing an extra row of teeth, a shark-like tail and a bony ridge on the skull which gave it the appearance of “angry eyebrows.”
Boyd named the discovery Jormungandr walhallaensis to honor the nearby community of Walhalla and the ethnicity of the area.
“Given the similarity of spelling between Walhalla and the mythological Norse location Valhalla, we chose to name it after the legendary sea-dwelling World Serpent: Jormungandr,” Boyd wrote in a North Dakota Geological Survey newsletter.
Those itching to unearth their own sea-faring fossils should know there’s no prior experience required to participate in the dig. Kids as young as 10 can attend for a half-day, but must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Participants must be 15 or older to attend a full-day dig.
Learn more about fossil digs at
https://www.dmr.nd.gov/dmr/paleontology/fossil-digs.
Information about rentals and other Gorge attractions is available by contacting the Pembina Gorge State Recreation Area at 701-549-2444 or pgsra@nd.gov.
Greg Power, fisheries division chief with the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, shares information about the new 2026-2028 Fishing Guide and a few new regulations starting April 1, 2026.
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SIOUX FALLS — Ali Stephens had 17 points and 13 rebounds and 8th-seeded Omaha defeated 9th-seeded North Dakota 49-39 in the first round of the Summit League women’s tournament.
The Fighting Hawks had a tough time putting the ball in the hoop all night long, scoring just three points in the first quarter and having only marginally better luck from there.
UND (7-24) shot just 23.5 percent from the floor (12-for-51) and made 1-of-20 shots from outside the arc. Walker Demers and Mackenzie Hughes had 10 points each to lead the Hawks, with Demers adding eight rebounds.
Matt Zimmer/Sioux Falls Live
Regan Juenemann had 10 points and five rebounds for the Mavericks while Avril Smith had seven points and 16 rebounds and Sarai Estupinan eight points, five assists and three rebounds. Omaha (6-26) shot the ball slightly better than the Hawks, going 16-of-53 from the field (30 percent) and 8-of-23 (35 percent) on 3-pointers.
With the win, the Mavs earn a date with top-seed North Dakota State on Thursday at 2:30 p.m.
The Bison won both regular season matchups by more than 50 points.
Matt Zimmer/Sioux Falls Live
Oral Roberts 84, Kansas City 62 — Don’t look now but the team that started the conference season 0-10 and at one point lost 15 of 16 games might be the hottest in the Summit League.
Oral Roberts picked up their fourth straight victory on Wednesday night in the conference tournament opener, routing Kansas City at the Premier Center in the 8/9 “play-in” game.
Ty Harper had 22 points to lead the Golden Eagles (10-22), who took a 44-21 lead by halftime and never looked back. ORU shot 50 percent from the floor and made 13-of-27 3-pointers while the Kangaroos shot just 34 percent and made 6-of-24 from deep. Martins Kilups had 17 points for the Eagles and Connor Dow added 14.
Jayson Petty had 14 points to lead the Kagaroos, who finish the season 4-27. It was their final game under coach Marvin Menzies, whom the school announced earlier this season would not return next year.
With the win ORU advances to face top-seed North Dakota State on Thursday at 6 p.m.
The Golden Eagles lost to NDSU 86-58 in Tulsa on Jan. 24 but they took the Bison to overtime in Fargo on Jan. 3 in a 79-77 loss.
Matt Zimmer is a Sioux Falls native and longtime sports writer. He graduated from Washington High School where he played football, legion baseball and developed his lifelong love of the Minnesota Twins and Vikings. After graduating from St. Cloud State University, he returned to Sioux Falls, and began a long career in amateur baseball and sports reporting. Email Matt at mzimmer@siouxfallslive.com.
North Dakota
The North Dakota Attorney General issued an opinion to the ND State Auditor – North Dakota Attorney General
04 Mar The North Dakota Attorney General issued an opinion to the ND State Auditor
in Opinions
March 4, 2026
Media Contact: Suzie Weigel, 701.328.2210
BISMARCK, ND – It is the opinion that federal law does not prevent the state from auditing P&A and even though P&A possesses confidential records, N.D.C.C. § 54-10-22.1 and 42 C.F.R. § 51.45(c) authorize the state auditor and the employees of the auditor’s office, to review the records without detriment to P &A.
Also, whether Rule 1.6 of the North Dakota Rules of Professional Conduct for licensed attorneys prohibits P&A from disclosing to the State Auditor the contents of a client file for the purpose of conducting a non-financial performance audit under N.D.C.C. ch. 54-10 when the requested file includes information about individuals and businesses in the private sector who chose to contact P &A.
This issue was already addressed in a 1995 opinion of this office regarding P&A. The 1995 opinion highlighted that P&A has authority to contract with private attorneys to represent private individuals. 17 During that performance audit, auditors asked to see billings from the contracted attorneys. 18 P&A redacted the names of the individuals represented by the contract attorneys under the rules for attorney-client privilege or attorney-client confidentiality. 19 The names of individuals seeking services of P&A are protected under N.D.C.C. § 25-01.3. The opinion stated:
Thus, P&A’s records which indicate to whom its services were provided are available to the State Auditor for performance audit purposes. The State Auditor has
been given access by P&A to its records other than the attorney’s billings. Therefore, the State Auditor already has access to the names of the persons to whom P&A
provides services. State law requires that the State Auditor and his employees must keep such information confidential.
Here, P&A has not identified a specific record. Given that, I rely on the past opinions declaring that records made confidential by N.D.C.C. § 25-01.3-10 are available under N.D.C.C. § 54-10-22 to the State Auditor and the Auditor’s employees for audit purposes.
Link to opinion 2026-L-01
###
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