Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site
Earthlodge people hunted bison and other game, but were in essence farmers living in villages along the Missouri and its tributaries. The site was a major Native American trade center for hundreds of years prior to becoming an important market place for fur traders after 1750.
Fees & passes
Free. No entrance fee here.
Hours
| Standard Hours | Daily · 9:00AM - 5:00PM |
Hours by date. Standard hours apply on every date not listed.
| Dates | Hours |
|---|---|
| Standard hoursNow | 9:00AM - 5:00PM |
| May 19 to Sep 1, 2027Summer Hours | 9:00AM - 5:00PM |
When to go
July draws the most visits here and December the fewest, averaged over 2021 to 2025.
Visitor centers
- Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site Visitor Center ↗Passport stamp
The Visitor Center is located off Highway 37 just north of the city of Stanton, ND. The Visitor Center’s entrance is in the shape of a giant eagle welcoming visitors. Once inside, visitors can view the movie, tour the exhibits or shop in our bookstore.
No campgrounds, no webcams or events in Park Service data. What is here comes from the official page. The rest lives there.
Checked nightly. Modules appear as soon as the Park Service publishes the data.
Explore
Things to do
- Walk the Village Trail15-90 Minutes
Walk down the Village Trail (1.3 mi/2.1km) and see the remains of the Awatixa Xi'e Village (Lower Hidatsa Site) and Awatixa Village (Sakakawea Site). There is a loop at the second village site that includes a walk along the Knife River.
Opens on the Park Service site
Films
National Park Service productions, public domain.
News
- National Park Service Plans Prescribed Burns at Knife River Indian Villages NHS ↗2026-05-06
The National Park Service has scheduled prescribed fires on federal lands in Mercer County this Spring depending on environmental conditions.
Map
Interactive map by the National Park Service
Public land nearby
Distances are approximate. Wilderness Atlas publishes a center point and an acreage for each area rather than a boundary, so each area is treated here as a circle of the same size and the figure is the gap to that circle.
North Dakota guidebooks
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject.
Reference
Wildlife
Seen this monthOsprey 1×Research-grade observations within 25 km, last 30 days, via iNaturalist
Full checklist: 144 birds, 36 mammalsHide
Raptors & owlsAmerican Kestrel · Bald Eagle · Broad-winged Hawk · Cooper's Hawk · Eastern Screech-Owl · Golden Eagle · Great Horned Owl · Long-eared Owl · Merlin · Northern Harrier · Osprey · Prairie Falcon · Red-tailed Hawk · Sharp-shinned Hawk · Short-eared Owl · Snowy Owl · Swainson's Hawk · Turkey Vulture
Waterfowl & wadersAmerican White Pelican · American Wigeon · Blue-winged Teal · Canada Goose · Common Goldeneye · Common Merganser · Double-crested Cormorant · Great Blue Heron · Northern Pintail · Sandhill Crane · Wood Duck
Shorebirds & seabirdsCalifornia Gull · Forster's Tern · Franklin's Gull · Herring Gull · Killdeer · Least Tern · Marbled Godwit · Ring-billed Gull · Spotted Sandpiper · Upland Sandpiper · Willet
Gamebirds & dovesMourning Dove · Ring-necked Pheasant · Rock Pigeon · Sharp-tailed Grouse · Wild Turkey
WoodpeckersDowny Woodpecker · Hairy Woodpecker · Northern Flicker · Red-headed Woodpecker · Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Hummingbirds & swiftsChimney Swift
Also on the checklistAlder Flycatcher · American Crow · American Goldfinch · American Redstart · American Robin · American Tree Sparrow · Baltimore Oriole · Bank Swallow · Barn Swallow · Belted Kingfisher · Black-and-white Warbler · Black-billed Cuckoo · Black-billed Magpie · Black-capped Chickadee · Black-headed Grosbeak · Blackpoll Warbler · Blue Jay · Bobolink · Bohemian Waxwing · Brewer's Blackbird · Brown Creeper · Brown Thrasher · Brown-headed Cowbird · Cedar Waxwing · Chipping Sparrow · Clay-colored Sparrow · Cliff Swallow · Common Grackle · Common Nighthawk · Common Redpoll · Common Yellowthroat · Dark-eyed Junco · Eastern Bluebird · Eastern Kingbird · Eastern Wood-pewee · European Starling · Evening Grosbeak · Field Sparrow · Gadwall · Grasshopper Sparrow · Gray Catbird · Gray Partridge · Great Crested Flycatcher · Harris' Sparrow · Hermit Thrush · Hoary Redpoll · Horned Lark · House Sparrow · House Wren · Indigo Bunting · Lark Sparrow · Lazuli Bunting · Least Flycatcher · Lincoln's Sparrow · Loggerhead Shrike · Mallard · Mountain Bluebird · Northern Goshawk · Northern Rough-winged Swallow · Northern Shrike · Olive-sided Flycatcher · Orange-crowned Warbler · Orchard Oriole · Ovenbird · Palm Warbler · Pine Grosbeak · Pine Siskin · Purple Finch · Purple Martin · Red Crossbill · Red-breasted Nuthatch · Red-eyed Vireo · Red-winged Blackbird · Rose-breasted Grosbeak · Ruby-crowned Kinglet · Savannah Sparrow · Say's Phoebe · Sedge Wren · Snow Bunting · Song Sparrow · Spotted Towhee · Swainson's Thrush · Tree Swallow · Vesper Sparrow · Warbling Vireo · Western Kingbird · Western Meadowlark · White-breasted Nuthatch · White-crowned Sparrow · Willow Flycatcher · Yellow Warbler · Yellow-breasted Chat · Yellow-rumped Warbler
Small mammalsbeaver · deer mouse · eastern cottontail · fox squirrel · house mouse · meadow jumping mouse · meadow vole · muskrat · northern grasshopper mouse · northern pocket gopher · northern short-tailed shrew · porcupine · southern red-backed vole · thriteen-lined ground squirrel · western harvest mouse · white-footed mouse · white-tailed jackrabbit
Predatorsbadger · coyote · least weasel · long-tailed weasel · mink · raccoon · red fox · striped skunk
Hoofed mammalsmule deer · pronghorn · white-tailed deer
BatsBig Brown Bat · Black Bat · Hoary Bat · Little Brown Bat · Northern Bat · Small-footed Myotis
Also on the checklistDomestic Cat · domestic dog
Activities
Activity guides for this park Birdwatching in the national parks · Fishing in the national parks · Hiking in the national parks · Wildlife watching in the national parks
Questions people ask
Does Knife River Indian Villages charge an entrance fee?
No. Knife River Indian Villages is free to enter.
Source: National Park Service
What are the hours at Knife River Indian Villages?
Standard hours are 9:00AM - 5:00PM, every day. Dated exceptions are listed under Hours.
Source: National Park Service
How busy is Knife River Indian Villages?
9,048 recreation visits in 2025, number 353 of 387 units that report visitation.
Source: Most visited parks
Follow this park
- Alerts feed (RSS)
- Every active Park Service alert for this unit, one item each, rebuilt with the nightly data refresh.
- Add dates to your calendar (.ics file)
- Fee-free entrance days that apply here and each published hours exception, as all-day events.
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