| Plains and Cranes |
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Each spring, central Nebraska comes alive with the sounds and calls of millions of migrating birds. Nebraska’s Big Rodeo, the childhood home of Johnny Carson, exceptional wineries and vineyards, a one-of-a-kind chalk mine, and the urban amenities of Lincoln and Omaha are just samples of the thousands of things you can enjoy in central and eastern Nebraska. Day 1 Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo offers a number of impressive attractions, such as the world’s largest indoor rainforest, the Desert Dome (including a sand waterfall), Kingdoms of the Night, Hubbard Gorilla Valley, Orangutan Forest, an impressive aquarium, an outstanding big cat collection, an open-air aviary, and a Lozier IMAX Theater. Enjoy a ride high above the zoo on the Skyfari. The historic Old Market District is an eclectic shopping and dining district that features dozens of boutiques, lodging properties, nightclubs, bars, cafés, and upscale restaurants. The arts are alive all through Omaha. The Durham Museum is located in a restored art deco train station and showcases the history of Omaha and the Union Pacific Railroad. Hot Shops Art Center is a 92,000-square-foot facility that houses 44 art studios, three art galleries, exhibition spaces, and a café/coffee shop. Loves Jazz & Arts Center showcases the wonderful history and culture that African Americans have achieved in the arts, music, and humanities through exciting exhibits, workshops, performances, and educational programs. The Joslyn Art Museum is a world-class museum of exquisite works of art from antiquity to the present and features European, American, Western American, American Indian, and Asian art. The museum is especially noted for its collection of American West art and its collection of watercolors and prints by Swiss artist Karl Bodmer. El Museo Latino highlights the important contribution that the Hispanic population has had on the history, culture, and development of Omaha. The 100-acre Lauritzen Gardens includes an arboretum, bird sanctuary, rose and herb gardens, spring flower walk, Victorian and festival gardens, and a woodland trail. The 5,000-square-foot visitor center offers year-round floral displays. Cruise up the scenic Missouri River on the River City Star Riverboat and enjoy live jazz at Rick’s Café Boatyard. The Mormon Trail Center at Historic Winter Quarters chronicles the hardships the Mormon pioneers who camped in the area faced during the winter of 1846–47. The interpretive center offers films and state-of-the-art exhibits about the Mormons and their trek west. Florence Mill was founded in 1846 as the Mormon Winter Quarters gristmill. The former mill and grain elevator are home to the Winter Quarters Mill Museum and Loft Gallery. West Omaha is home to Father Flanagan’s world-famous Boys Town. Take a tour of the place that Spencer Tracey made famous for portraying Father Flanagan. Stroll through the garden inspired by the Bible and see the world’s largest ball of stamps in the gift shop. A fun activity is Dinner With Father Flanagan, where you can enjoy a traditional family-style dinner while portraying one of the children who lived at Boys Town. Afterward, see the outcome of your child’s life at the Wall of History. The Fontenelle Forest Nature Center in Bellevue shows evidence of diverse American Indian cultures with 70 known sites of Indian lodges and mounds. The forest also boasts more than 1,400 acres of woods, wetlands and waterways, deep ravines, and loess ridges and 17 miles of walking paths. Delicious chuck wagon dinners, year-round events, and picking your own fruit are some of the fun activities you’ll find at the Bellevue Berry Farm and Pumpkin Patch in Papillion. Day 2 Fremont has a great selection of antique shops in its historic downtown district. Climb aboard the Fremont & Elkhorn Valley Railroad for a picturesque 16-mile ride through northeast Nebraska in a diesel-powered train. The Fremont Dinner Train provides a full dining and riding experience. Special events include murder mysteries, USO shows, dinner theatre, wine tastings, and seasonal shows. Good times will be had by all as you view eagles while speeding down the Platte River with Bryson’s Airboat Tours. The Andrew Jackson Higgins Memorial offers a life-size replica of the Higgins landing craft that he designed and built to help win WWII. Sand samples collected from invasion beaches around the world are mixed with sand surrounding the craft. A bronze eagle statue with a seven-foot wingspan sits atop a steel structure made from material from the 2001 World Trade Center disaster. Columbus boasts one of the best restaurants in Nebraska, Dusters and the Gottberg Brew Pub, which serves delicious, homemade dishes. The Genoa Indian School Museum in Genoa is the site of the former Indian Industrial School, where American Indian youth were housed and educated for assimilation into white society. Tours of the Manual Training Building are available throughout the year. Scotia is home to Happy Jack Peak and Chalk Mine, which boasts more than 6,000 feet of honeycombed caverns and is the only publicly accessible chalk room and pillar mine in North America. Adventurous types can enjoy a hike to the top of Happy Jack Hill for a panoramic view of the surrounding countryside. The Museum of Nebraska Major League Baseball in St. Paul features a collection on Grover Cleveland Alexander and four other Nebraskans who went on to baseball fame (Sam Crawford, Dazzy Vance, Bob Gibson, and Richie Ashburn). Spend a lazy afternoon sipping a variety of delicious Nebraska wines, laughing and talking with friends, and letting your troubles melt away at Miletta Vista Winery. Salute! Visit Grand Island and experience pioneer life at the Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer, one of the top ten living history museums in the country. Walk through an 1890s railroad town, push a handcart on the Mormon Trail, learn about Great Plains American Indians, or explore the birth cottage of Oscar-winning actor Henry Fonda. A variety of special events are offered at the museum throughout the year. Grand Island abounds with art galleries, specialty stores, and other shops, such as Prairie Winds Art Center, The Warehouse Gallery, The Gallery, Heart of the Country, and Bartenbach’s Galleries. Day 3 Experience the beauty of the Platte River and the impressive sandhill crane migration at the Nebraska Nature & Visitor Center near Alda. A 12,000-square-foot interpretive center, nature trails, and a 35-foot-tall observation tower on the north side of the Platte River help you to gain a better understanding of the ecological significance of the Platte River. Visit the Rowe Sanctuary and Iain Nicolson Audubon Center near Gibbon. This 1,250-acre wildlife sanctuary is located on the banks of the Platte River where more than one-half million sandhill cranes pass through the area on their northward migration in early spring. Trips to crane-viewing blinds are available every morning and evening in March and the first week in April. The Nicolson Audubon Center offers stunning views of the Platte River, interpretive displays, a gift shop, and hiking trails. Reservations are required for crane season viewing blinds in March. Stop at Kearney’s Great Platte River Road Archway, the only tourist attraction in the nation located over a federal interstate highway. The Arch commemorates westward expansion of America, including the West’s original American Indian habitants; the Mormon, Oregon, and California Trails; the early pioneers; the modern railroad; and the Lincoln Highway. Explore the history of transportation and communication along the famous Platte River Road through great interactive exhibits. Housed in a historic 1911 Renaissance revival post office, the Museum of Nebraska Art features works of art that highlight Nebraska and the Great Plains in 11 exceptional galleries. The museum’s permanent collection includes more than 5,000 works by artists of regional, national, and international importance. Stroll outdoors through the Cliff Hillegass Sculpture Garden. Thunderhead Brewing Company offers award-winning beer and delicious pizza baked in a stone oven. Tours of the brewery can be requested. As you explore Kearney, look for Cranes on Parade, 6-foot fiberglass cranes that are works of art. Minden is home to the world-famous Harold Warp Pioneer Village. Twenty-six buildings—including a sod house, one-room school, Pony Express station, and an 1884 church—make up the village. It houses the oldest existing Buick and 350 other antique cars, 20 historic aircraft, 100 vintage tractors, guns, motorcycles, snowmobiles, boats, buggies, trains, and trolleys. The historic crafts of spinning, weaving, and broom-making are demonstrated year-round. Visit the historic Minden Opera House, which has been restored into a beautiful multipurpose facility that attracts live performances from around the country. Officially known as the Christmas City, Minden knows how to celebrate the holiday when the downtown district is ablaze with more than 12,000 lights for the impressive Light of the World Christmas pageant. The Hastings Museum of Natural and Cultural History has one of the best natural history collections in the region, including the People of the Plains exhibit from prehistoric times to historic trails and pioneer towns. Kool-Aid: Discover the Dream is an interactive exhibit that tells the story of the birth of one of America’s favorite soft drinks. Lifelike murals and replicas, a fiber-optic river of Kool-Aid, interactive kiosks, and the original Kool-Aid Man costume tell the story. The J.M. McDonald Planetarium will schedule special show times for groups, and the museum’s IMAX Theatre has been upgraded to the Lied Super Screen Theater. Go back to the days of Kool-Aid moustaches and release your inner child at Kool-Aid Days in August. Day 4 York is best known for Chances “R” Restaurant and Lounge. The “R,” as it is known locally, offers huge portions at reasonable rates and good food made from scratch. If you happen to be in York on a Sunday morning, the “R” offers an outstanding Sunday brunch. Visit Lee’s Legendary Marbles and Collectables, where more than a half-million marbles are on display, including some very rare ones. Browse the shelves of Four Winds Indian Books, the world’s largest American Indian bookstore, where you can learn everything about American Indian arts and crafts, languages, culture, history, lifestyle, tribes, cooking, and clothing. Take a guided tour of Lincoln’s impressive State Capitol building, home of the nation’s only one-house legislative body. It’s Nebraska’s pride and joy and features many outstanding works of art depicting the state’s political and cultural development. Walk through the adjacent Nebraska Governor’s Mansion. Guided tours are available Thursday afternoons. While away some time in Lincoln’s exciting Haymarket District. This historic downtown district offers a wide variety of galleries, restaurants, antique stores, shops, bars, and coffee houses in turn-of-the-century buildings in what was once Lincoln’s warehouse and farmers’ market district. The state’s largest farmers’ market is held there Saturday mornings from May through October. Search for Nebraska-made products at From Nebraska. The University of Nebraska’s two campuses house a number of quality museums. Designed by internationally famous architect Philip Johnson, the Sheldon Museum of Art is an excellent modern art gallery that houses 20th century American art. The Great Plains Art Museum features changing exhibits and collections of Western art. The University of Nebraska State Museum of Natural History features a world-class collection of fossils, American Indian art, folk art, dinosaur exhibits, wildlife dioramas, a hands-on discovery center, and a planetarium. The International Quilt Study Center features 950 quilts from the Ardis and Robert James Collection. It also is home to more than 1,600 quilts from the Robert Cargo Collection of African American Quilts, the Jonathan Holstein Collection, and the Sara Miller Collection of Amish Crib Quilts. Asian culture and history come alive through beautiful exhibitions at the Lentz Center for Asian Culture. The American Historical Society of Germans from Russia Museum preserves the history and culture of Germans who first immigrated to Russia and then to America. The Heritage Center’s exhibits include a summer kitchen, chapel, general store, blacksmith, railroad caboose, and residences. The Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center south of Lincoln includes more than 350 plant species and 170 bird species on more than 600 acres of rare, native tallgrass prairie, springs, wetlands, and ponds. Enjoy a relaxing time sipping a variety of delicious wines at Prime Country Vineyard southwest of Lincoln in Denton. A short drive north of Lincoln takes you to James Arthur Vineyards in Raymond. The winery features a wine tasting room, gift shop, and peaceful hiking trails. Experience life at a certified organic farm at Branched Oak Farm. An on-farm store sells food and products grown on the farm. Ashland has a charming downtown district of cool, funky shops and restaurants. It’s also the gateway to three stellar attractions: Strategic Air & Space Museum, Lee G. Simmons Conservation Park and Wildlife Safari, and Eugene T. Mahoney State Park. View an indoor wonderland of nearly 30 wildlife species mounted in replicas of their natural surroundings at Willow Point Gallery and Museum. Shop! Shop! Shop! The Nebraska Crossing Factory Stores in Gretna will let you cure that shopping bug at Kitchen Collection, Carter’s, OshKosh B’Gosh, BonWorth, Dressbarn, and more. The Aksarben Aquarium located in Schramm Park State Recreation Area displays more than 60 of Nebraska’s freshwater fish species. The 12,000-square-foot Aksarben Aquarium Outdoor Education Center includes the aquarium, a terrarium, an auditorium, and a display area. Vala’s Pumpkin Patch hosts a five-week Fall Festival complete with hayrack rides, haunted house, lost pumpkin mine, storybook farm, and various other activities. The Holy Family Shrine is a respite for the weary traveler. This impressive glass chapel is open to all people. Route Directions Day 1 Spend the day in Omaha Day 2 From Omaha, 36 miles west on US-275 to Fremont 49 miles west on US-30 to Columbus 22 miles north on US-81, west on NE-22 to Genoa 58 miles west on NE-22 to Scotia 27 miles south on NE-11, east on NE-92 to St. Paul 25 miles south on US-281 to Grand Island Day 3 From Grand Island, 8 miles west on US-30 to Alda 22 miles west on US-30 to Gibbon 13 miles west on US-30 to Kearney 23 miles south on NE-44, east on US-6 to Minden 33 miles east on US-6 to Hastings Day 4 From Hastings, 61 miles on US-281, east on I-80 to York 54 miles east on I-80 to Lincoln 27 miles east on US-6 to Ashland 11 miles east on US-6 to Gretna |
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