/ AGRITOURISM / Which Guest Ranch is Right for You? Big Blue Ranch, Burchard 402-865-4335, bigblueranch.com There’s no internet service, but fishing, hunting and sunset views will keep you occupied at Big Blue, located on one of the state’s only remaining tall grass prairies. Double R Guest Ranch, Mullen 866-217-2042, sandhilldoublerranch.com Live out a true cowboy adventure with a hands-on stay at Double R. Guests can care for cattle, mend fences and harvest hay on the land. ROWSE’S 1+1 RANCH, BURWELL Kreycik Elk & Buffalo Tours, Niobrara 402-857-3850, nebraskaelktours.com You can’t stay overnight here, but you can observe elk and buffalo up-close from the side of a covered wagon. Visit in fall for especially beautiful views of the valley. GUEST RANCHES Ride horseback, mend fences or just enjoy the views—plus a few surprises—on a northwest Nebraska guest ranch. Driving through northwest Nebraska, I’m amazed by the landscape. Alien from the state’s rolling fields and pastures, white limestone bluffs topped by dark trees run ragged across the bottom of a never-ending sky. Deep gullies rip through grass-topped plains. Imagine my surprise to learn that someone lives in such a place, at once so desolate and so pretty. Meet Jean Norman. In 1887, her great-grandparents, immigrants from Sweden, homesteaded this land. Today, Jean and her husband own and work the place where grasslands, badlands and the Pine Ridge, a series of pine-covered hills, come together. They call it Our Heritage Guest Ranch, and you’re welcome to stay a night or two . . . or more. KREYCIK RIVERVIEW ELK RANCH, NIOBRARA I retire to a two-room accommodation near the ranch’s horse arena. The cozy unit features Western-and Plains-style art as well as furniture made by Jean. Outside, horses rest in corrals and graze on grasslands. Jean invites her guests to bring their horses with them, or take to the saddle on one of the ranch’s horses. OUR HERITAGE GUEST RANCH, CRAWFORD Ponderosa Ranch, Crawford 605-858-2549, ponderosaranch.net Soak up the ranch setting without the work: Ponderosa treats you to birdwatching, hunting and a cozy cabin stay. Don’t miss the expansive views of the starry night sky. Rowse’s 1+1 Ranch, Burwell 308-346-5530, 1plus1ranch.com Spend a day with lifelong cowboys at this working ranch, where you can learn to drive the herd and practice your rope skills. continued... CREDITS: JEAN NORMAN/OUR HERITAGE GUEST RANCH VisitNebraska.com 15
Nebraska Official State Travel Guide The Official 2019 Not-At-All What You Thought State Travel Guide: Page 19
