Ft. Stevenson State Park
Activity Calendar
Amphitheater Programs
Amphitheater programs are held each Friday and Saturday night throughout the summer, starting at 9:30 p.m. Information is posted on the campground bulletin boards.
2009 Special Events
SKY DANCE SAKAKAWEA - May 23-25 (1 - 4 pm)
Kite flying festival for all ages. Fly your own kite. Build your own kite. See kites of all shapes and sizes being flown, including stunt kites. (701-463-2661)
MILITARY SERVICE PERSONNEL DAY – May 25
Free admission into Fort Stevenson State Park (701-337-5576)
NATIONAL TRAIL DAY - June 6 (2 pm) (701-337-5576)
Ranger guided hike through park’s native prairie. North Dakota bird checklist available. Hike will start at the Guardhouse Interpretive Center.
GEOCACHING EVENT - June 12-14 www.geocaching.com
For the first time at Fort Stevenson State Park, it hosting a GeoCaching Event. This is a state wide geocaching event that will allow presenters to speak about different aspects of Geocaching. Hands on classes will be presented so the participants get a good idea of how the units operate. The group will be hiding some temporary caches in different areas of the park.
FORT STEVENSON FRONTIER MILITARY DAYS - June 27 - 28
(1 pm – 4 pm) Living history demonstrations with military encampment and maneuvers. Skills and crafts of the Indian Wars period on display. Visit the
Fort Stevenson Guardhouse Interpretive Center. (701-337-5576)
PARK APPRECIATION DAY - June 28
Free admission into Fort Stevenson State Park. (701-337-5576)
JULY 4th CELEBRATION – July 4 (At dusk)
Fireworks display in the picnic area of the park. (701-337-5576)
ND GOVERNOR’S CUP FISHING DERBY - July 17- 18 (701-337-5576)
252 teams competing for the Governor’s Cup 34th annual championship. Flights go out between 7:00 am and 8:30 am. Weigh-ins begins at 3:00 pm.
ND JUNIOR GOVERNOR’S CUP FISHING DERBY - July 18 (10 am-1 pm)
Open to ages up to 17. Prizes awarded. Only charge is the park entrance fee. (701-337-5576)
CANDISC BICYCLE TOUR – August 1 - 8th (1-800-799-4242)
“Far East Tour” 2009 will cycle the picturesque haunts of legendary Sitting Bull and the Dakota Territory Frontier Army between huge Lake Sakakawea and Devils (Spirit) Lake. Visit historic Fort Totten and Fort Stevenson Guardhouse.
BEACH PARTY – August 29 (1-800-799-4242)
Garrison Chamber of Commerce Beach Party, live bands and entertainment, fun and food for all ages, 1950s, 1960s and 1970s music. Early ticket sales available.
GARRISON FALL WALLEYE CLASSIC - September 11-12 CALL 800-729 for further information.
Interpretive Activities
Weekend interpretive activities, including hikes, campfire programs and Dakota Explorers, are held every weekend during the summer. Information is posted on the campground bulletin boards.
June 12th-14th Caching and Camping- ND style
Friday, June 12th Geocaching
- Geocaching 101: Come join us at the amphitheater to learn the basics of geocaching.
Saturday, June 13th
- Ft. Stevenson Geocaching: Explore and find the caches hidden throughout the park. Also, join us for a potluck and homemade cache making.
- Night Cache: Join us at the amphitheater to participate in a night cache through the park.
Sunday, June 14th
- ND Geocaching: If you are interested in joining a geocaching organization join us at the amphitheater to get more information.
June 19th-21st Prairie Dogs
Friday, June 19th
- Small mammals of the Prairie: Join us at the amphitheater to learn about the little known small mammals that live below your feet.
Saturday, June 20th
- Kids in the Guardhouse: We will be hiking to Prairie Dog town. Join us at the Guardhouse and we will learn about the endangered black tailed prairie dog..
- Prairie Small Animal BINGO: Come to the amphitheater Saturday night to play small animal bingo and win lots of cool prizes!
June 26th-27th Frontier Military Days
Saturday, June 27th (5th Annual Great American Campout)
- Frontier Military Days: Come to the Guardhouse to experience life during the frontier. There will be a military encampment with cannon firings, butter making and tomahawk throwing.
- Early Lighting: Special presentation by Rev. Steve Holmes on the early lighting used by settlers and the cavalry. Join us at the Guardhouse for this interesting presentation.
Sunday, June 28th
- Frontier Military Days: Military encampment at the Guardhouse with more cannon firings, Arikara displays and black powder rifle firings.
- Ft. Stevenson On the Market: presentation given on the history of Ft. Stevenson Reservation building and land sale at the Guardhouse.
July 3rd-5th Independence Day
Friday, July 3rd
- Patriotic Family Fun: Join us at the amphitheater to sing Patriotic songs and celebrate the 4th of July.
Saturday, July 4th
- Kids in the Guardhouse: Come to the Guardhouse to have fun and make patriotic crafts.
Fireworks: Join us at de Trobriand Marina to enjoy a firework display put on by the Garrison Firefighters.
July 10th-12th Birds
Friday, July 10th
- Meet the Grebes: Come to the amphitheater to experience and learn about the life of a grebe.
Saturday, July 11th
- Kids in the Guardhouse: Meet at the Guardhouse, to go on a bird watching hike. We will have bird checklists and see how many birds we can find.
ND Birds: Join us at the amphitheater to play BIRDS (bingo) and find out what birds live here in the park.
July 17th-19th Governor’s Cup
Friday, July 17th
- Someone Smells Fishy: Join in a fish identification challenge at the amphitheater. Come join the fun and see how many fish you know.
Saturday, July 18th
- Kids in the Guardhouse: Come to the Guardhouse to explore the inside of a fish. We will be learning about the anatomy of a fish.
July 24th-26th Nature in North Dakota
Friday, July 24th
- Nature in ND: Join us at the amphitheater to play Nature Jeopardy. Come have fun with us, prizes for everyone!
Saturday, July 25th
- Kids in the Guardhouse: Wildflower hike. We will be walking one of our many trails and learning about the native prairie. Meet at the Guardhouse
- Animals of the Prairie: Come join us at the amphitheater to see the animals of the prairie. We will be learning everything from bison to prairie dogs.
July 31st-August 2nd Lewis and Clark
Friday, July 31st
- Seaman the Dog: Join us at the amphitheater to learn about this traveling dog and his role on the Lewis and Clark trip.
Saturday, August 1st
- Kids in the Guardhouse: We will be learning about the life of Lewis and Clark. Come join us at the Guardhouse to see how they lived while on their trip.
- Lewis and Clark: Lewis and Clark Bingo will be played, and learn about their adventure through North Dakota. Prizes will be awarded!
August 7th-9th Creepy Crawlies
Friday, August 7th
- Creepy Crawlies: Bug lore and storytelling. Come to the amphitheater to share or listen to some great stories.
Saturday, August 8th
- Kids in the Guardhouse: Join us at the Guardhouse, to go on a bug hunt. We will hike through one of our trails to see what creepy crawlies we can find.
- More Creepy Crawlies: Learn about some weird bugs of the world. We will explore the really weird bugs that live on earth.
August 14th-16th Really Weird Animals
Friday, August 14th
- Really Weird Animals: Join us at the amphitheater to listen as we read the book, Nature’s Yucky!
Saturday, August 15th
- Kids in the Guardhouse: We will be looking at really weird animal homes. Come to the Guardhouse to see animals and their environments.
- Weird Animals in Action: Come to the amphitheater to see animals live doing some pretty weird things!
August 21st-23rd Fire
Friday, August 21st
- Fire!: We will be learning about the good and bad sides of fire. Join us at the amphitheater to see which side you are on.
Saturday, August 22nd
- Kids in the Guardhouse: Meet at the Guardhouse to go on an un-nature hike. We will be hiking one of our many trails to make sure it is staying clean for everyone to enjoy.
- Pack it In; Pack it Out: Join us at the amphitheater to learn about fire safety and how to leave no trace when in the outdoors.
August 28th-30th Camping in North Dakota
Friday, August 28th
- Are You an Average Camper: Come and enjoy the fun with us at the amphitheater, we will be playing “Are You Smarter than the Average Camper?”
Saturday, August 29th
- Kids in the Guardhouse: There will be a Ft. Stevenson State Park coloring contest. Meet at the Guardhouse to get started.
- Beach Party!!! Join us at the de Trobriand Bay for lots of fun and celebrate the end of summer!!
September 4th-6th Snakes
Friday, September 4th
- Snakes on the Prairie: Join us at the amphitheater to learn about the cool snakes that live here in North Dakota.
Saturday, September 5th
- Kids in the Guardhouse: We will be snake hunting. Meet at the Guardhose to join us on a hike to see if we can find where snakes might live.
- Patriotic Family Fun: Join us at the amphitheater to play and Patriotic Family Feud. Come join the fun!
