Our destination today was Sidney, Nebraska. This is the headquarters for Cabella’s Sporting Goods. They have a large store with an adjacent campground. We arrived a bit after 4PM and found the campground pretty much full with no one at the check-in. They wanted $30 per night to stay for self check-in. There was a large parking lot with trucks and RVs adjacent to the campground, but could not find out if O/N camping was permitted there. So we moved onto a nearby Wal-Mart. Maybe if we pass through here again we will make reservations to stay at the campground. As most of you know we generally would prefer to “dry camp” when we are just putting miles under us.
At Wal-Mart we parked over by the garden center and we were soon joined by a couple that were full timing in a larger Airstream trailer from Florida. They were towing with an older diesel Ram truck. Interestingly they are considering a new truck and asked many questions regarding going gas this time around. The fella cited higher purchase and maintenance costs as a reason. His fuel economy is better than ours, but the cost of fuel being at premium gas prices offsets much of the gain. He was surprised that we target 400 miles/day as they are more in the 250 mile range. It must take them forever to get anywhere, Geez.
September 25, 2013 – Wednesday
We arrived in Grand Island, Nebraska in early afternoon. Our plan was to make an intermediate stop in Kearney to visit the Archway Museum, however we were observing the Platte River along the route as it parallels I-80. It was very high due to the heavy rains in Colorado the previous week and we were concerned that Morman Island State Park, our destination for the night, could be flooded. A part of the Platte runs through the park. So we thought we may need to seek an alternative.
Our concerns were unfounded, the Park was fine. In fact it was a very nice little park. It got its name from Mormon Island which is one of the islands formed by the multi-channel Platte River. During the 1884-1885 winter, several Mormon families camped on the tip of this island - the last of the Mormon migration to Salt Lake City. They chose the site because of the open stream and abundance of timber to repair their covered wagons. Three graves, a Mormon mother and two small children, remained on the island when the wagons rolled westward the following spring, although we did not see where they were. The local people of the time named this place “Mormon Island,” the name it still carries today.
Our early arrival permitted some time to visit the Stuhr Pioneer Museum located very close to the campground. In addition to a museum, there is an outdoor restored village with buildings of the late 1800s. The web-site indicated there were supposed to be folks in period costumes doing activities of the period. Unfortunately it was closed, so we only visited the museum. It documented the migration west, although it was not very well organized. The Platte River was the migration “highway” west, so Grand Island was a popular stopover.
This is the entrance to the museum. One cool thing was an old steam locomotive on the grounds. It included the tender car, caboose and a couple of coach cars.
September 26, 2013 – Thursday
Today we went west back to Keaney, about 30 miles, to visit the Great Platte River Road Archway Monument. Impressive name, eh? The structure itself is pretty interesting, as you can see below it spans I-80. It was lifted as a completed unit over the expressway, closing it down for several hours one night.
There were some mixed reviews on this place. Like Stuhr, it also tracks the migration west covering the mid-1800s period and then into current day. They use a combination of dioramas and video projections with audio provided through headphones. Its all wireless and the audio changes as you move through the museum. We thought it was interesting and well organized.
An interesting thing we learned about was the Lincoln Highway. Like Route 66, it was a two-lane thoroughfare labeled Highway 30 that was replaced by an interstate, I-80 in this case. There appears to be quite a cult following with restored businesses, motels, restaurants, and entertainment along the old route.
Outside they are restoring an old pioneer trail that runs about 3 miles between Kearny and the Archway Museum. It is part of a longer trail that will connect to Fort Kearney. There are several historic trails that intersect at Grand Island and Kearney; the Oregon and Morman Trails. We did not allot enough time to walk it, or to explore some of these other trails. They appear to be bike friendly, so maybe next time through.
Along the short portion we walked were gardens, a sod house, and Pawnee Lodge. These are all historically accurate reproductions with local Pawnee participation. The garden was actually planted with a few remaining white corn seeds that were held for several generations. This variety of corn was nearly extinct. The planting was a success with several plants produced. Amazing!
The lodge pictured here held four families and provided necessary protection from the harsh winters in the Plains. Think about being cooped in here with 3 other families for several months.
Our next stop, a Dan stop, was to a Classic Car Collection located on the grounds of the Cabellas in Kearney. This was a relatively small museum but had an amazing collection of cars. It started from the donation of 130 cars from the Taulborgs of Omaha.
All cars are in running condition and there are minimal barriers allowing you get up nice and close. The collection contains many “orphans”, cars no longer produced. Most are actually on loan, although the museum does buy some now and then. It is staffed by volunteers and admission is by donation. Here are a couple of our favorites.
Tomorrow we continue our journey home. We are glad we made the stop here. There are a surprising array of things to see and visit in central Nebraska. We always considered Nebraska as that place to get through on your way west. A return trip to check out the area history and the Lincoln Highway is on the “to do” list.
September 27, 2013 – Friday
We are hoping to make Davenport, Iowa tonight. There are a couple of Wal-Marts we’re shooting for overnight. The wind started blowing pretty good prior to getting to Grand Island. Mostly westerly which is good if you are headed east. But today it is still blowing 25 mph or better, but it has swung more to the south / southeast. It is killing our mileage, 7.5 to 8 mpg. It always seems we are always driving into the wind.
Fortunately, gas is in the $3.15 range, and the road is pretty smooth. We arrived at Wal-Mart, south of Davenport about 5:30. It is great that Wal-Mart permits overnight parking for travelling RVers. Its actually good business practice as we usually find something, either groceries or merchandise, in the store to buy while we’re there.
September 28, 2013 – Saturday
We arrived home late in the day. Our trip took us a total of 9225 miles over 63 days. We travelled through 15 states. We slept in 10. We visited 9 National Parks and Monuments and many state parks; we actually lost count. The experience was fantastic. We saw ocean and sea life, volcanoes, glaciers, mountains, canyons, and really big trees. This country is awesome!
Hope you have enjoyed following our journey, we certainly enjoyed sharing it with you. We’ll be planning again for next year, stay tuned!
I so enjoy traveling with you! Thanks for this update!
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