Another Route from the Tourist Guide to the Bakken

One of my favorite drives in the Bakken is from Williston, ND to Watford City, ND. The route takes you south over the Missouri River and through the the Little Badlands before turning east south of Alexander, ND with its mighty bypass. The intersection of US Route 85 and ND Route 23 has become a settlement in its own right with workforce housing accommodating over 1000 people around the iconic Bakken Buffet. 

Then you follow US 85/ND Route 23 east, past Arnegard before descending onto the Madson Flat just west of Watford City. On the south side of the road is the imposing Madson grade which was meant to bring the train onto the flat toward Watford City. For my time and energy, the drive from Williston to Watford For more on this, go and check Route 4 in my Tourist Guide to the Bakken Oil Patch.

For people into this kind of thing, Google Earth now has Landsat images from late September 2014 available. 

Here is the current table of contents for 

I. Introduction

I.1. A Brief Industrial History of the Bakken CountiesI.2. Practical Notes on Travel, Roads, and Weather in the BakkenI.3. Technical Notes and Key Terms about the BakkenI.4. Controversies and ConcernsI.5. The North Dakota Man Camp ProjectI.6. Further Reading

II. Route 1: Minot to RossII1. Route 1a: Ross to White Earth

III. Route 2: Ross to Tioga

IV: Route 3: Tioga to WillistonIV.1. Route 3a: Wheelock, Nession Flats, East WillistonIV.2. Route 3b: Wildrose

V: Route 4: Williston to Watford City

VI: Route 5: Williston to Sidney, MT

VII: Route 6: Watford City to New Town

VIII. Conclusions: Industrial Tourism and Some Theoretical Reflections