Port: North Dakota’s best-kept secret may not be a secret much longer

MINOT, N.D. — I love to camp.

Food tastes better when it’s cooked on a campfire. Hiking some trails, or splashing around in the Missouri River, is endlessly fun, but so is sitting quietly with a good book with nothing in my ears but the sounds of birds and nature.

The Germans even have a word for that specific word for that (of course they do). It’s “waldeinsamkeit,” which means the feeling of solitude in the forest.

It’s lucky, then, because I am enamored with coyotes howling to end the day, and the sound of rain on our tent while I’m tucked in dry and safe with my loved ones, and the slightly tired and achy feeling you get after a long day of outdoors activities, that I live in North Dakota, where we have a truly wonderful network of state parks that cater to this sort of thing.

North Dakota’s parks are a treasure, and not just because of the arresting scenery. Our parks are well-managed. User friendly. The facilities are clean. The fees are reasonable. The staff is knowledgeable and professional and always ready to help.

What I’m trying to tell you is that our parks aren’t just an asset to our state because they preserve, and make accessible, some of the natural wonders North Dakota is blessed with.

It’s the people, too.

I’ve been taking my family camping in our state parks for more than 20 years now, and we’ve yet to have a bad experience.

Which is why my family and I are so excited about the new state park to be built at the Pembina Gorge.

This is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful areas in the state. Since 2012, the Pembina Gorge State Recreation Area has been open to the public, though in my experience, few people who aren’t from that area know about it, which makes the Pembina Gorge perhaps North Dakot’s best-kept secret.

But maybe it’s not going to be a secret much longer.

The Legislature appropriated $8 million for upgrades, turning the recreation area into a full-on state park. The enhancements will “include underground utilities, roads, an approximately 35-site campground, six all-season, full-service cabins, a comfort station, shop and seasonal staff accommodations,”

per a news release from Gov. Burgum’s office,

with a full visitor’s center as well as indoor and outdoor learning centers in the works for the future.

This is a big deal, not just for camping enthusiasts like me, but for our state. The Pembina Gorge and its natural beauty has been an untapped resource. Now our state is investing money in both protecting it, and making it accessible for the public to enjoy.

When people think of tourism in North Dakota, what comes to mind most often is probably Medora, and the badlands, but Pembina has the potential to be as attractive as those jewels are.

What our lawmakers are investing in Pembina will pay dividends for generations to come.