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| Sweat Bee on a sunflower |
So, we’re took off on another adventure — this one very National Park-focused. Our itinerary took us to the midwest to visit Voyageurs, Isle Royale and Cuyahoga Valley National Parks and Apostle Island National Lakeshore — with a lot of other stuff thrown in along the way. Plus, we took the trip as an opportunity to visit friends and family, as well.
CW: Isle Royale NP, Voyageurs NP, Cuyahoga Valley NP, Apostle Islands NL
And, the itinerary started in an unexpectedly lovely place — north central Nebraska. We decided to go to Merritt Reservoir, which is 26 miles south of Valentine, Nebraska. And, based on our drive, not near anything else. The reservoir, which is also a state recreation area, is in the heart of the Sandhills. Scott wanted to go there because it has “dark sky” status and Scott has been experimenting with Milky Way pictures. Plus, the Perseid meteor shower was underway.
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| Night |
The Sandhills are vast — way more land mass than I had expected. They comprise about a quarter of the state of Nebraska. It is believed that the area was originally a huge area of sand dunes, much like Great Sand Dunes National Park, back during the Medieval Warm Period, when temperatures were just 1 degree C hotter than they are today. When the climate cooled (1 degree C!), grass started to take hold, stabilizing the hills to some degree.
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| Sandhills |
Still, you can see the sand through the cliffs and the land doesn’t look all that secure and probably aren't good for growing crops. I imagine that's one reason the area isn't very developed. There were a few houses, but most of the area seemed to be cattle ranches.
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| Hills and lake |
There are also lots of small creeks and ponds. I suspect the area is teeming the waterfowl during the migratory seasons. As it was, it was mainly teaming with flowers.
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| The roadway; Photo: Scott Stevens |
If you go that way, make sure you have a full tank of gas and some food with you!
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| Sunflower |
Merritt Reservoir is a lovely lake. Our campsite was rather small and sandy with little shade, but it was close to the showers (yes, we like campgrounds with showers). We had booked it late because we were not originally going to Nebraska, so that probably explains why our site was small and not close to the lake. There are many really nice sites with shade and lake access at the park. It looked like a great place to spend boating and swimming. It did, however, have lots of mosquitoes -- setting the tone for the rest of the trip.
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| Merritt Reservoir |
After we dropped off the trailer, we drove 27 miles north to the Niobrara River, 76 miles of which are is designated as a National Scenic River. I always expect National Scenic Rivers to be wild and rapid-filled. The Niobrara, while it may have some rapids, was very calm and lazy where we were. The area is the canoeing capital of Nebraska.
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| Niobrara River; Photos: Scott Stevens |
The Niobrara begins in eastern Wyoming and flows 535 miles to meet up with the Missouri River in northeastern Nebraska. Hundreds of springs feed the river as it flows through the Sandhills, resulting in more than 200 waterfalls. We stopped at two.
Fort Falls is in the Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge, which we drove through looking for animals. Many of the NWRs in this part of the country primarily protect migrating birds. Unfortunately, I planned this trip for a time before birds started their treks south for the winter, so we didn't see much. And, we didn't see the promised elk and bison. There is an overlook at Fort Falls, but you can't really see the falls, just the bluff beside them.
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| Hillside |
To see the falls, you have to walk for a few minutes down a trail through some dense foliage -- a bit surprising after the grasslands of the Sandhills. Some of the trail is paved and some is those creepy metal cheese-grater stairs. I had on flip-flops, which are probably not the best shoes even for such a short walk. Scott started down the trail while I was still reading the signs at the overlook. He saw a mink. I didn't.
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| Where's the mink |
Fort Falls is fed by a small stream that is fed by a spring not far away.
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| Pretty falls |
When I started down the trail, I didn't expect to see a 45-foot waterfall! Very pretty. The signs indicate that it becomes ice falls in the winter. If you go then, wear crampons or some kind of shoe that handles ice. You would not want to fall on those stairs.
The tallest falls along the Niobrara is Smith Falls, where we went next. Eighteen miles east of Valentine, Smith Falls plunges approximately 63 feet before flowing several hundred yards into the river. It can be viewed from a nice, quiet boardwalk.
Fortunately, we went around dinner time, so the campers were cooking and eating, not crowding the boardwalk. On a busy day, it could be crowded.
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| Smith |
Smith Falls is named for Frederic Smith, the first to homestead the land around the falls. The site, which a state park in 1992, is also an area of biological significance where fossils of several ice age species can still be found.
... too bright for the Milky Way
But we did see several impressive meteorites and I even caught some as they streaked by the Big Dipper.
Unfortunately, the mosquitoes were fierce, even after I soaked myself in Deet. Ah, the joys of summer by a lake!
The next day, went out on the boat to explore the lake. The morning started out rainy, sending us back to get rain gear.
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| And, then, a rainbow |
But, then it cleared up and turned into a very pretty and sunny -- oh, and hot -- day.
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| The sun came out |
The lake allegedly has walleye, crappie, white bass and lunker catfish (big catfish).
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| Casting |
There were a lot of people fishing, both by the dam and in grassy areas near the shore.
Most of the boats were motor boats. I guess canoeing is for the river!
Scott fished, but didn’t catch anything. With the exception of one boat where two guys were hauling in catfish, we didn’t see anyone else catching either.
Merritt Reservoir is fed by both Boardman Creek and the Snake River. It is long and curved, so you really don't see the entire lake at once.
The earthen dam on the Snake is rather low and also serves as a road to the other side of the lake. There are 44 miles of shoreline around the lake.
Merritt has a marina, five ramps, seven docks and some tiny cabins at the marina (fishing shacks, really) as well as campsites.
I tried to photograph wildlife from the boat. It’s tricky with a long lens on water, even when the water is calm. But, we did at least see some animals.
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| Just enjoying myself; Photo: Scott Stevens |
We saw lots of birds ...
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