NEBRASKA

Nebraska is what geographers like to call a triply landlocked state. Not only does it not touch on an ocean but none of the states it borders has a shoreline and none of their neighbors have ocean access either. But the Cornhusker State is hardly lacking for opportunities for your dog to hike through the sand - more than 25 percent of the state is comprised of the Nebraska Sandhills, grass-stabilized sand dunes that have been designated a National Natural Landmark. The Pine Ridge Region in the Nebraska Panhandle is a wonderland of ponderosa pines growing among enough eroded buttes and canyons to earn it the label "Little Badlands." Here in the Oglala National Grasslands your dog will find Toadstool Geologic Park where the relentless tag-team of water and wind has carved fanciful rock formations into the stark claystone hills. Nearby a three-mile trail explores the Hudson-Meng Bison Boneyard where archaeologists attempt to unravel the mystery of how over 600 bison died nearly 10,000 years ago in an area about the size of a football stadium. The 800-foot high Scotts Bluff National Monument was the most recognizable landmark for travelers on the Oregon Trail and the paved Saddle Rock Trail to its summit will be the sportiest hike your dog ever takes on macadam. Also in the Pine Ridge is Fort Robinson, one of five army installations open to the public in Nebraska. Most famous as the site where Lakota Sioux leader Crazy Horse was killed in custody, the 22,000 acres of pine-studded hills also offer one of Nebraska's largest recreational areas. In the Nebraska National Forest the Scott Tower National Recreation Trail in the Halsey tract takes your dog through the world's largest hand-planted forest.

The Best Day Hike You Can Take With Your Dog In Nebraska

Toadstool Loop
Oglala National Grasslands • Crawford

Seaman may come to these national grasslands expecting to hike through amber waves of grain but the attraction here is the “Little Badlands” of the Nebraska panhandle. America’s badlands received their ominous moniker when early settlers found it impossible to safely roll a wagon through the cracked lunar landscape in the UpperMidwest. Our most famous badlandsare preserved in Dakota national parks - and off limits to canine hikers.

At Toadstool Geologic Park Seaman will be trotting across stark, eroded rock formations where the tag team of water and wind have been at work for millions of years. The “toadstools” form when underlying soft claystone erodes faster than the hard sandstone that caps it. Your curious dog can also explore off the path for close- up looks in the gullies at fossil bone fragments that lace the rocks and 30-million year-old footprints preserved in the stone. A mile-long interpretive loop tells the tale.

For extended hikes with Seaman, Toadstool Park connects to the world-renowned Hudson-Meng Bison Bone- yard via a three-mile trail. This archeological site seeks to unravel the mystery of how over 600 bison died nearly 10,000 years ago in an area about the size of a football stadium. Human predation is the leading suspect. As you near the prehistoric kill bed Seaman will experience the head-high grasses on the trail he was looking for from the Oglala Grasslands.

HIKING TIME: 1-3 hours

(from the book 300 Day Hikes To Take With Your Dog Before He Tires You Out: Trails where you won’t be able to wipe the wag off your dog’s tail)