Surprising Landscape

scotts bluff national monument

As we left the bison ranch in Cheyenne, we headed across the plains towards Nebraska. I expected a flat grassy expanse of the prairie and a boring drive. I have to say that we were pleasantly surprised by the landscape along the way.

The prairie is not really flat, so when you take the backroads, you experience beautiful views of rolling hills and pastel serene grassy areas filled with grazing cattle. Then as we drove further into Nebraska, those rolling hills gave way to tall rocky bluffs jutting skyward from the plains. Soon we were on windy and hilly roads. Surprised, right? Who else thought Nebraska was all flat farmlands?

I guess I should have expected the change since we were headed to Scotts Bluff National Monument. Typically I try to find a national park or monument to visit in each state that is somewhat close to our route. Scotts Bluff National Monument is in western Nebraska so it wasn’t too far out of our way as we traveled from Wyoming to South Dakota.

views along the trail by the visitors center

more views along the trail

Scott’s Bluff was a key landmark that served pioneers on multiple trails through the area, including the Oregon, California, Mormon, and Pony Express trails. This park features towering bluffs, badlands, and the prairie. The monument is named for the bluffs that forced travelers to detour through Robidoux Pass to continue their journey westward.

The visitors center has interesting displays with quotes from pioneers who traveled these trails. Scott’s Bluff could be seen from the prairie for miles so it was a key landmark for the wagon trains. They started experiencing rougher travels once they arrived at these bluffs and knew more difficulties were to come in the Rockies. Initially they had to turn south to reach the pass through the badlands. Eventually a route was created near Scott’s Bluff to go westward through the area.

i liked how they made these statues to give you the feeling of being along the trail with the pioneers.

view from the visitor’s center

On our way there, we had an issue with the van. The check engine light came on so we stopped at an Advance Auto to get it checked. It could be a lot of things but they said often it is the gas cap. So we replaced that and reset the display and got ready to leave. Then the clerk noticed we had a headlight out. So Tim bought two bulbs and worked on replacing them while I spent time at the monument. The rangers were very accommodating and offered to help. He took them up on it when he dropped a screw and they offered a magnet to help find it. That worked and he got both headlights replaced.

I took the scenic drive up to the top of the bluff while Tim was working. It was quite a curvy road with steep drop offs. Tim would not have liked that so it was good he stayed in the parking lot working on the van. The view from the top was pretty spectacular and you could see the prairie stretching east for quite a long way.

at the top of the bluff

We learned that Chimney Rock was also nearby. This geological formation rises over 300 feet above the North Platte River Valley and is also a National Historic Site. It was a key landmark in the Oregon, California and Mormon Trails.

After spending the night in town, I drove out to see Chimney Rock in the morning while Tim stayed at the motel and packed up our stuff. It is definitely a unique rock structure that has changed its appearance over time due to erosion.

chimney rock. iconic, isn’t it? you can just imagine how the pioneers felt seeing the structure rising out of the prarie.

As you can see, we found a couple pretty cool places to visit in Nebraska. We still had a few more days to fill before our reservations in Rapid City, SD and we found a few more interesting stops along the way. More on that in the next post.