Parks

LINCOLN, Neb. – Youth are invited to enter the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s Kayak Kid Essay Competition for the chance to win an outdoors prize package. The contest requires a handwritten 250-word essay expressing why growing up in the outdoors is important. Entries must include a photo of the essay writer at one of the southwest region parks or reservoirs, including Johnson Lake, Elwood Reservoir, Gallagher Canyon Reservoir, Lake Maloney, Sutherland Reservoir, Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park and …

LINCOLN, Neb. – The Walter Scott Jr. Observation Tower and surrounding trails at Eugene T. Mahoney State Park will be closed temporarily due to construction starting Oct. 1. The temporary closure will accommodate the painting of the tower and Riverview Event Center construction, a Venture Parks project scheduled for completion in the fall of 2020. The tower and trails will reopen at completion of the construction projects. For information about Mahoney State Park and upcoming activities, visit OutdoorNebraska.org.

LINCOLN, Neb. – Visitors to the 15th Annual Missouri River Outdoor Expo Sept. 21-22 at Ponca State Park are advised that high water along the Missouri will affect the locations of some activities. Due to recent high Missouri River levels, this year’s event will include two main venues – the Resource and Education Center and Shooter’s Village. The activities and demonstrations on the park’s riverfront will be moved to one of these two locations. All normal activities and demonstrations except …

CHADRON, Neb. – The public is invited to examine the natural diversity of the Pine Ridge during the fourth annual Chadron State Park Bioblitz on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 6-7. A bioblitz challenges attendees to identify as many plants and animal species as possible within a designated area and timeframe. During this bioblitz, members of the public will team up with local natural resources experts to explore and learn about the biodiversity and habitat at Chadron State Park. “This is …

GERING, Neb. – A new offering at the Wildcat Hills Nature Center has special meaning to the person who implemented it. It is a new checkout program for sensory backpacks. Amanda Filipi, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission outdoor education specialist who is based at the center, said she learned of sensory backpacks after her nephew was diagnosed on the autism spectrum. “I read about the sensory backpacks popping up in several different places across the nation, like museums and …

LINCOLN, Neb. – For a unique 5K race experience, sign up for the Cannon Fire 5K, to be held Aug. 17 at Fort Atkinson State Historical Park. The 5K takes place at a site filled with Nebraska history, where the first U.S. military post west of the Missouri River was established. The 3.1-mile course will take you through the park’s timber trails and roads. The course includes a hill, gravel and paved paths, and mowed grass portions across the prairie. …

Paradise in the North There aren’t many places you can pull your boat up on the bank at Lewis and Clark Lake. Water has eroded away hillsides ringing much of the lake, leaving cliffs that reveal colorful layers of Niobrara chalk and Carlisle shale, part of the geology of the area. Below those cliffs, more than 100 feet high in places, the shoreline is just too rocky. Still, boaters make the most of it, anchoring in the shadow of those …

GERING, Neb. – Attendees of a program at Wildcat Hills State Recreation Area will observe and learn about the night sky. The program gets underway at the Wildcat Hills Nature Center at 8:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 3. The presenter is Tom Robinson, a Western Nebraska Community College instructor who teaches astronomy. Robinson said attendees will meet at the nature center for an introductory video provided by Hyde Memorial Observatory of Lincoln, then move to the east end of the park …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Waterfowl hunters are invited to attend a class on hypothermia safety on Aug. 4 at Niobrara State Park. The class covers basic facts of hypothermia, different scenarios hunters might encounter, and how to respond. Then participants will head to the park swimming pool to practice water safety in a controlled environment. Niobrara State Park superintendent Mark Rettig developed the class in response to the numerous hypothermia-related rescues of hunters he sees. “When the water’s cold, it doesn’t …

LINCOLN, Neb. – A health alert is in effect for Willow Creek Lake in Pierce County and the southeast beach at Harlan County Reservoir in Harlan County. The health alert was put in place after high levels of blue-green algae were detected at the lakes during testing by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality. It is recommended that visitors to Willow Creek Lake and Harlan County Reservoir avoid full body contact activities such as swimming, wading, skiing and jet skiing. …