Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota

Two protected buffalo rest in the rugged landscape stretching along the Little Missouri River. North Dakota Badlands welcomed TR in 1883 when he sought solace after his wife and mother died on the same day. He fell in love with the curiously delicate striated landscape and was influenced by his experience to later establish three national parks, the U.S. Forest Service, and designated 130 million acres as national forests and monuments.