Places To Go

NPS Photo

 

The park offers a wide array of destinations to explore both the natural and cultural history of the national park.

Visitor Centers

• National Park Service Visitor Contact Station: The national park does not have a visitor center except for its contact area in the park headquarters building located at 508 East Second Street, Yankton, South Dakota. The building and station are open 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and closed on Federal holidays.
• Mobile Ranger Station: The Missouri National Recreational River's visitor center on wheels brings the park to the river corridor and local communities during the warm seasons.
• Missouri National Recreational River Resource and Education Center located in Ponca State Park is a great place to learn about the natural and cultural stories of the national park.
• Lewis and Clark Visitor Center at Gavin Point Dam has exhibits about the Missouri River basin and natural and cultural history of the area, bookstore, and a theater.
• Niobrara State Park: Want to learn more about one of the Missouri's major tributaries, the Niobrara River? Visit the state park's visitor center. Also has a bookstore.

In-Park Destinations

• Bow Creek Recreation Area
• Green Island Recreation Area
• Goat Island Recreation Area
• Mulberry Bend Overlook

Scenic Vistas

• Chief Standing Bear Bridge Overlook near Running Water, SD.
• Gavins Point at the beginning of the 59-Mile District.
• Meridian Bridge in Yankton, SD.
• Mulberry Bend Overlook just west of Vermillion, SD.
• Niobrara State Park overlooking the 39-Mile District.

Cultural Sites

• Dakota Territorial Capitol: Located in Yankton's Riverside Park, this replica of the territorial capitol includes photographs of old Yankton, maps of the Dakota Territory, a collection of former Territorial governors, and other artifacts on display.
• Fort Randall: Walk the grounds and view archeological remains of the fort; one of the most significant United States military posts of the frontier era.
• Mead Cultural Education Center: Visit the newly renovated 1909 Mead Building that houses both the Yankton County Historical Society and Dakota Territorial Museum.
• Morman Monument: Located west of Niobrara, Nebraska and one mile from the Niobrara State Park entrance.
• Spirit Mound: Hike in the footsteps of Lewis and Clark while learning more about one of the most sacred Native Americans sites close to the Missouri River.
• Yankton Sioux Treaty Monument: Visit and contemplate the legacy of westward expansion and its effects on the tribes of this area.