Nebraska Sand Dunes

Neither of us really knew what to expect of Nebraska, but assumed it would be much the same as Oklahoma and Kansas. Boy, were we wrong. Western Nebraska is drop-dead gorgeous. And from a couple of confirmed Northwesterners, used to mountains and salt water in our vistas, that's saying a lot.

Of course, we didn't expect ancient sand dunes in Nebraska, either. But the rolling hills covered with prairie grass are the legacy of the ancient seas that once covered this land, and they're beautiful. I snapped a lot of photos out the window, to remind me as I wrote my journal. We kept looking for a good place to stop, and finally found a scenic overlook for the Dismal River, and a short walk up the hill brought us to great views of the hills, with the Dismal River winding through. There were even a couple of groups of kids floating down on inner tubes. We spent too much time there, but loved it. Took lots of photos, then drove down to the river level, and waited for the kids to float by. Loved the cooler wedged into its own inner tube!


We spent time driving the back roads, found a very old cemetery, flocks of wild turkeys, and a waterfall (tallest in Nebraska as it turns out). The water is frigid cold, about 57 degrees, which didn't stop a pack of teenagers from wading right in and standing underneath it. Girls posing for boys, and vice versa. A bit of a dare going on here, but it probably felt good in the 95 degree air temperature!


Heading back to Valentine, we had to stop to photograph a Nebraska state road sign, then noticed that Valentine was underneath the biggest thundercloud we've ever seen. The occasional lightning bolt shot out of it, and you could see it was raining… somewhere. As we drove toward it, it loomed bigger and bigger. We can't do this at home—our thunderstorms fetch up against the Cascades, and there are no roads there.


We checked into our hotel, got directions to the only restaurant that's open on a Sunday evening. Steak Number 3 is on the menu, but we were mesmerized by the severe storm warning on the TV, in a scrolling banner across the bottom of the screen. It was warning people about the severe thunderstorm, and to get indoors immediately. "If you can hear thunder, you're in range of being struck by lightning." Yikes!!

The thunderstorm blew through about 17 miles south of Valentine, NB, with torrential rain, quarter-sized hailstones, and lightning. Not far, actually, from our idyllic scenic overlook, and those kids floating down the Dismal River.