Little Mo Trail — Unpaved Outer Loop

Little Mo's unpaved outer trail is an easy 1.1-mile loop through the North Unit's cottonwood bottomland and open badlands edge. Allow 30–45 minutes. At the fork, stay on the longer nature-trail branch; the paved branch makes a separate 0.7-mile inner loop.

Access is by Juniper Campground, with a nearby roadside pullout also serving the trail. The campground has toilets and seasonal drinking water. The trail listing pin is approximate, so check the signed access when you arrive. The outer route is unpaved and includes steps; some steps can be slippery when wet. The separate inner loop is the paved option.

The walk starts below a bridge at Squaw Creek, a small tributary of the Little Missouri. A CCC-era picnic shelter is one of the stops. In the North Unit, Civilian Conservation Corps crews worked from 1934 to 1941, building park roads and campgrounds as well as this shelter.

One stop looks toward a Little Missouri meander. The current erodes the outside bank and drops sediment on the inside, slowly shifting the channel and cutting the badlands valley. From the established river-view point, include the cut bank and the curve together if you want the bend to read clearly in a photo.

The creek-side stretch moves through a wooded river bottom beneath cottonwoods, then the loop reaches a more open upland section. Beaver signs may turn up along Squaw Creek, and the river bottom is home to least chipmunks; neither is a guaranteed sighting.

Poison ivy and prairie rattlesnakes occur in the underbrush; stay on the tread. Steps can be slippery when wet. Pets, bicycles and motorized equipment are prohibited on park trails.