Parking
Start at the Talkington Trail roadside pullout on Scenic Loop Drive. A short walk along the road connects the pullout to the circuit. Parking is identified, but its capacity and restroom details were not confirmed.
Overview
About Upper Paddock/
Why go
- A long circuit links prairie, an extended rim walk, and creek-bottom badlands.
Heads up
- Eight to ten hours of backcountry travel with difficult route-finding and no approved water.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Theodore Roosevelt map
Full mapElevation2,352–2,792 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
2 active Theodore Roosevelt alerts
- ClosureRidgeline Nature Trail inaccessibleThe South Unit’s 0.6-mile Ridgeline Nature Trail is currently inaccessible because of a road collapse. Check current park conditions.Official details
- InfoPetrified Forest trailhead: use approved routeUse the approved legal route from I-94, Exit 10 toward Camels Hump Lake, and follow the clearly marked posts to the Petrified Forest trailhead.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Theodore Roosevelt Tour Guide
Your drive to Upper Paddock/
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Theodore Roosevelt National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Theodore Roosevelt audio tourRecorded for this area
An Owl at the Burrow0:00 / 0:29
“At a prairie dog town in summer, look for a small owl standing on long legs beside a burrow. Burrowing owls nest underground, using holes left by animals such as prairie dogs.”
Plays near this trailhead in the Parkwolf Theodore Roosevelt Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Chorus Frogs at Coal Vein
- Badlands Overlook: A Landscape Hard to Cross
- Coal Vein Trail: The Ground Above the Fire
- Old East Entrance: A Gateway in a Prairie Dog Town
- 45 audio storiesacross Theodore Roosevelt’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Bison, Wild Horse, Wapiti, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 38 trails, 35 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Upper Paddock/
A full day outThis is a 15.
This is a 15.4-mile backcountry loop from the Talkington Trail roadside pullout, linking part of Lower Talkington with Upper Talkington and Upper Paddock Creek. The park’s estimate is 8–10 hours, so plan this as your main outing, not a quick break on the scenic drive. The Painted Canyon approach adds four miles round trip, making that version 19.4 miles.
How the loop runsFrom the pullout, follow Talkington Trail north to the Lower Talkington junction, then take the…
From the pullout, follow Talkington Trail north to the Lower Talkington junction, then take the loop through Upper Talkington and Upper Paddock Creek. A short mapped road connection along Scenic Loop Drive closes the circuit at the pullout. The route is mostly dirt path through open prairie and badlands terrain.
Rim and creek countryUpper Talkington climbs east over sandstone and clay formations before reaching the rim.
Upper Talkington climbs east over sandstone and clay formations before reaching the rim. About 1.5 miles follow the rim; the route then drops among the formations on Upper Paddock Creek. Creek sections can be wet or muddy, and the route has a few steep drop-offs. The walk changes from open, exposed slopes to creek-bottom terrain, so footing and effort vary over the circuit.
Wayfinding and waterThis is backcountry travel.
This is backcountry travel. Marked routes can be easy to confuse with wildlife trails, so carry a topographic map and compass and don’t rely on GPS alone. There is no approved drinking water in the backcountry; carry what you need for the full day. Storms can build quickly, and heavy rain can cause flash flooding.
Access and rulesUse the Talkington Trail roadside pullout.
Use the Talkington Trail roadside pullout. The route link from the pullout to the circuit follows a short stretch of Scenic Loop Drive. Pets are prohibited on park trails. If you plan to camp overnight instead of finishing in a day, the park requires a free backcountry permit; there are no established campsites.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Theodore Roosevelt
1,082 sightingsBisonMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
346 sightingsWild HorseMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
27 sightingsWapitiMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
46 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
87 sightingsPronghornMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
162 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 8 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Theodore Roosevelt. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
