Nebraska and Illinois

May 24-30

May 24: We were up and ready to leave the campsite by 8 AM. We dumped our tanks, filled our water tank, and headed toward Nebraska. Today was a long 7 hour driving day. Driving out the east side of the Tetons was new for us and we really enjoyed watching the scenery change. We saw some deer and maybe some elk in the distance. We had been hoping to see a moose or bear, but we were only able to spot the faint silhouette of a moose in the distance yesterday as the sun was setting. People at the wedding had seen a moose and two babies the day before. And some people saw a grizzly bear eating some fish. But we were not present for any of that. 

As we left Wyoming heading east, the landscape changed from mountains to rolling snow-covered hills marked with ski, sled, and snowmobile tracks. Then we drove through hilly range land with livestock and lots of pronghorns. We saw some large cranes fly overhead, as well as hawks and an eagle. Then the landscape changed to flat range land with lots of domestic animals, including sheep, cows, and horses. Continuing driving east, we traveled through some really interesting rock formations as we entered Nebraska. Prior to entering Nebraska we stopped in Casper,  Wyoming to shop at Albertsons and pick up some groceries and fill our fuel tank. Then we headed into Nebraska arriving at Fort Robinson Soldier Creek Campground around 4:30 PM. We were happy to get out of the van and walk around the old fort area. This state park marked the place where many Cheyenne native peoples were massacred. It was also where a Crazy Horse was murdered. The signage was very disappointing in how the state park described the capture, imprisonment, and massacre of indigenous peoples. But the history was really interesting. After walking around, we came back and had a delicious Just Egg and potato dinner. And then we took a shower and hung out. We were happy to have cell service at the campsite and be able to relax for a bit. 

One thing we have noticed throughout this trip is that there are robins flying everywhere. Nearly every campground and every state we have been in there have been an abundance of robins in the area. And the ravens out here are plenty and huge.

May 25: Today was a really fabulous day! We left our campsite and took the scenic drive so that we could see the park’s herd of bison. We saw them from a distance and then drove the rest of the scenic drive, which had some educational historical markers explaining the Cheyenne massacre. Then we continued onto Toadstool Geologic Park about 40 minutes away. The drive out meant 14 miles on unpaved roads, which was okay, but we are really going to need to clean up the van when we get back home! We took the one mile nature loop and saw really cool toadstool shaped geologic formations as well as footprints from prehistoric rhinos, pigs, and ducks. 

Because of the extreme heat, we drove to find a shady place for lunch, stopping in Chadron, Nebraska in the parking lot of a Catholic church, where we ate BLT sandwiches while sheltered under the shade of a tree. Then we headed toward Golden Prairie Bison, the Harvest Host where we were staying the night. Golden Prairie Bison offers bison tours, so we texted the owners, Vicki and Karl, and asked if we could have a tour that evening, not realizing that just as were were about to arrive, we lost an hour due to the time change from Mountain to Central Time. Not at all bothered by our late arrival, Vicki showed us to a lovely shady spot and said we could take a 7:30 PM tour. In the meantime, we drove the short distance to the Fort Niobrara Wildlife Preserve and hiked the 1 mile Fort Falls Trail  past the waterfalls and through a shaded area of woods, thankful to be out of the sun. Returning to our camping spot, we sat and had a beer overlooking amazing grassland, which we learned is one of the few left in the country. Karl told us  that we were overlooking the sandhills grassland, a grassland that is literally sitting on large sand dunes. We think he told us that the sandhill grasslands of Nebraska are second only to ones in Mongolia. 

After a stir fry dinner, we started what turned out to be an absolutely amazing tour! Vicki and Karl drove us out in their four-wheel drive vehicle to see their bison herd. Along the way they told us about the ecology and geology of the area including the rocks that peek out from the grasslands . Then they dropped four huge bags of bison treats on the ground, and the bison came running toward the car for their snack. Vicki and Karl quickly encouraged us to get back in the car because bison are not really safe to be near, but several of the bison came up to the car looking for treats so we got to feed them. And there were also baby bison that were really cool to see. As we fed and admired the bison, Vicki and Carl told us about bison behavior and how they raise their bison. They let the bison range on the grasslands and don't put any fertilizers or anything in the fields, keeping the are in its natural for. They only harvest the male bison because they keep the female bison for reproduction. Then we drove over the field to where there were burrowing owls. We knew about burrowing owls from a children’s book we used to have, but we had never seen them. They are small owls that often take over prairie dog holes or dig their own burrows, but they come out during the daytime. So we got to watch the owls, some prairie dogs, sandpipers, and doves in the area. Vicki also showed us photos of prairie chickens, which were super cool to see even on her phone. Returning back to their house around 9:30 PM after a wonderful two hour tour, we hung out near the van, had a little whiskey, and watched a beautiful lightning show in the distance. We think it was heat lightning because we didn't hear any thunder, but it was really amazing to see all the lights flashing over the horizon. Then we enjoyed an amazing quiet and dark night sleep. 

May 26: We slept until about 7 AM, had toast for breakfast, and then started our 2 1/2 hour drive to Ashfall Fossil Park on our way to Omaha. Along the drive, we passed through several small towns. Nearly all of them had a Dollar General somewhere in them, but we did not see any real grocery stores. Ashfall Fossil Park was really fascinating! The park contains an area where volcanic ash fell 11.8 million years ago. The animals that were there had no choice but to inhale volcanic ash, which filled their lungs, and ultimately killed them. In an effort to relieve that pain of inhaling the ash, the animals traveled to a water source where they died, creating a huge bed of their fossils. 

After visiting the area, walking around, and purchasing a small vile of 11.8 million old volcanic ash for a friend, we made lunch in the van and then headed to Omaha. The weather was unusually hot, closing in on 90°F. On the drive over, we called several community gardens and found the Benson Community Garden who said they would take our compost the next day. We also found online a few walking neighborhoods so we could plan out our day for tomorrow. We drove directly across the Missouri River into Iowa to Lake Manawa State Park where we were planning on spending two nights. We were hoping to walk around the park and maybe do some boating or swimming, but we found out around 3:00 PM that accessing the beach meant paying $5 per person. The fee would have been worthwhile had the beach not been closing at 4 PM. We decided it was not worth it for an hour. 

The campground had absolutely no shade and our van was parked facing west and so the sun was beating down on us. We put out the awning and tied up some cloth to try to block the sun, but that was not very successful. Note for the next time: In hot weather, pick a spot that faces East in the afternoon! We went for a little bit of a walk and found a spot by the lake where we could at least put our feet in the water to cool down. Then we went back to the van, had dinner, and took showers. Thankfully, everything cooled down after the sun went down a little bit before 9 PM. 

May 27: We slept in as we were really not in a rush to spend a very hot day in Omaha. We first drove over to the Benson neighborhood and dropped off our compost at the community garden. The person who runs it, Kurt, was really nice and he also let us put our recyclables in his recycling can. Then we drove over to the main cute but small Benson neighborhood and walked around a little bit. After Benson, we drove through the Dundee area, which was also cute but very small. Then we drove to the Saint Cecilia Cathedral. The church was beautiful and we went in and lit a candle. Our next stop was the Joslyn Castle and Gardens. Unfortunately we missed the last tour and decided not to go inside. While we had hoped to walk around the area a bit, we didn't see much are to walk so we headed down to the Old Market area, which turned out to be vibrant. So we had fun walking in and out of many of the shops. After getting very expensive vegan ice cream and sorbet at Centi, we decided to go to the Jocelyn Art Museum. We wanted to get out of the heat and had heard how impressive the museum was. Unfortunately, the museum was closing at 4 PM which we didn't realize until too late, so we were only able to spend about an hour in the museum. We thought about going to the zoo or the Lauritzen Gardens, both of which we had heard really nice things about, but it was already late in the afternoon and both were closing soon. 

Having seen what we wanted to in Omaha, and not wanting to spend another night at our very hot, concrete-laden campsite, we drove back to the campground, took showers, filled up our water tank, and headed out to a Harvest Host, Living History Farms, that we were lucky to reserve, only two hours away in Urbandale, Iowa. The farm was closed, but the area was pretty neat. There was a restaurant next-door called the Machine Shed with a gift shop and little garden. We went into the gift shop and made a few purchases and then walked back to the van. Before going to bed, we heard several coyotes howling, which was really cool. Unfortunately, we could also hear cars on the road nearby. It was an OK, but not great night’s sleep. 

May 28: After eating a quick breakfast of overnight oats, we the farm by 8:15 AM and headed towards Starved Rock State Park in Illinois. We wanted to get there early enough to do a little hiking. On the drive over we managed to find diesel that cost less than $5 per gallon, which was a good find. We ate lunch at a rest stop and arrived at the park around 1 PM. The park was absolutely packed with school and camp groups. At the visitor center we gathered some information about where to hike, starting with the St. Louis Canyon Trail. The area was really nice and the trails were thankfully very shaded. Unfortunately, we were met by a bunch of screaming kids at the falls. After the hike, we drove over to the campground to check out our campsite. We were thankful to find that at least part of the site was shaded. Then we drove down to the trail head of the LaSalle Canyon Trail. After walking down a lot of stairs, we walked along the Illinois River, which was huge and beautiful. Again the trail was thankfully in the shade, and the falls were pretty spectacular. There were fewer people on this trail, but still enough people who were standing in the middle of the falls and canyon area so we couldn't get a clear picture. After hanging out by the falls and in the canyon for a little bit, we hiked back, drove to our campsite, and settled in for the evening. We had a little snack, took showers, and then had a blueberry kale salad for dinner. After dinner, we were hanging out in the van when we heard a barred owl hooting really close by. That was really cool! After that, we went to be hoping to get a good night’s sleep before two long driving days that would take us home. 

May 29: Today was a serious driving day. We left the campground around 8:15 AM, dumped our tanks and drove 7 hours to our Harvest Host, Paladin Brewing in Youngstown, Ohio. We stopped along the way, eating lunch along the road, but otherwise we drove the long slog heading east along Interstate 80. To keep us occupied, we spent time looking online for a new car that we needed to purchase once we got home. Arriving at the brewery, we parked on the grass and ordered a flight of beer, salad, and fries. Then we took a short walk around the area and hung out. The trip has been really fabulous, but we were looking forward to getting home and seeing friends and family

May 30: After a 6.5 hour drive, stopping for lunch to at a service station in Pennsylvania, we arrived home around 3 PM. Getting home early enough gave us time to empty the van and play with our dog. What and excellent trip and how glad to be home!