Carhenge!
OK, this one’s just for fun. Sitting on the western edge of the Sandhills, near the town of Alliance, Nebraska is Carhenge. Admittedly, Carhenge is not the typical fare that I usually promote on this blog. It will not entice you with scenery, there are no natural features to contemplate, but it will impress nonetheless. […]
The Gloss (Glass) Mountains of Oklahoma
Here’s a Great Plains site that I have never been to, but looking at some of the photos of the Gloss Mountains makes me want to check it out for sure. I love learning about new places on the Great Plains and the list is growing! The Gloss (or Glass) Mountains got their name from […]
Not Far From the Freeway – Monument Rocks, Kansas
Thanks to everyone who commented on last week’s post about some of your favorite places in the Great Plains. I’m going to dedicate the next several weeks to “showing off” the places you mentioned! Just south of I-70 in Gove County Kansas are a series of abrupt rock formations rising 60-70 feet above the otherwise […]
What Are Your Favorite Great Plains Sites?
2015 – The Year of the Great Plains As I have brazenly declared, 2015 is The Year of the Great Plains, and I’m dedicating this blog all year to providing information for anyone on where to go to enjoy some Great Plains scenery and recreation. I’ve started the year by mentioning some places that are […]
Not Far From the Interstate – Cross Ranch
Cross Ranch on the Missouri River in North Dakota is not too far from Interstate 94 (about 30 miles north of Bismarck). It consists of a smaller unit (600 acres) that is actually a state park, and a system of larger nature preserve units (6,000 acres) that is administered by the Nature Conservancy. There are […]
Found WInter Photo: Bison
Just Off the Interstate – Palo Duro Canyon
Not far from Interstate-40 as well as Interstate-27 is Palo Duro Canyon near Amarillo, Texas. It’s been called the “Grand Canyon of Texas,” and for good reason. The canyon is more than 70 miles long, and approaches 1,000 feet deep. Its red rock walls are similar to features you might see in the Grand Canyon, […]
Just Off the Interstate – Konza Prairie
Continuing with our series of cool Great Plains sites that are easily accessible from major interstates, we come to Konza Prairie in Kansas. In fact, Konza is so close to the Interstate 70 that its southern border is the freeway. Konza Prairie is just south of Manhattan, Kansas, the home of Kansas State University. It […]
Just Off the Interstate – Badlands National Park
Continuing with our easy-to-get-to sites in the Great Plains, we come to Interstate 90 runing east-west across South Dakota. If you’ve read the very first post in this blog, High Plains Drifter, you’ll know that this freeway has a long history with me, and crossing it is something I always look forward to. Well, right […]
Just off the Interstate: Theodore Roosevelt National Park
In keeping with my promise from the previous post, I intend to deliver useful (hopefully) information about places to see, and things to do in the Great Plains. I’ll start with some places that are easily accessible from major Interstate Highways. Theodore Roosevelt National Park Just off Interstate 94, take the road less traveled in […]
2015 – The Year of the Great Plains!
Happy 2015 from the Great Plains Trail Alliance! We’re excited about this year because we have some projects underway that we hope will help to put the Great Plains Trail “on the map,” so to speak. I’m not going to say anything more about them right now because I’m just superstitious enough not to want […]
Wounded Knee – at 124
Having mentioned the 150th anniversary of Sand Creek Massacre, I’ll follow it up with a more timely (it happened today in history), less momentous (it happened 124 years ago), but equally awful anniversary: Wounded Knee. On December 29th, 1890, the U.S. 7th Cavalry Regiment opened fire on a band of mostly Sioux Indians who were […]
