I'm going high, high up on some lonesome hill

July 04, 2016 in Nebraska, Me

It's hard to believe that it has been almost ten years since I first set out to explore Nebraska and began work on what would become ninety-three. In the years since, I've continued to photograph every corner of Nebraska, keeping track of every place I've visited along the way. The result is the following map:

The blue dots represent places I've visited, from towns to natural areas to cemeteries to state-lines and more. The red dots (of which 16 remain!) are the few towns I've yet to visit in my travels. As with the ninety-three project, it would have been a heckuva lot easier if this is what I had planned from the beginning. Despite that, it's been a fun journey and I'm looking forward to completing this personal challenge in the next year or so.

All that remain: Amelia, Brownlee, Chambers, Champion, Cummingsville, Elsmere, Huntley, Johnstown, Lamar, Lebanon, Milburn, Milligan, Naponee, Palisade, Purdum, and Wood Lake.

Photographs from an unseasonably cool July 3rd along the edge of the sandhills...

This was my first visit to the Olson Nature Preserve near Petersburg, a small, semi-remote public nature reserve along Beaver Creek. It's one of the more fascinating natural places I've found in the state. The area around the creek is a wetland, with tall Cottonwood Trees and tall native prairie grasses. Along a ridge, there is a cool, dark woodland full of tangled old Oak trees. And on the other side of the ridge are the start of the sandhills complete with cacti and more desert-like grasses. And all of this within a mile or so walk from the parking lot.

View from Palestine Baptist Church near Lindsay

Post title: The Carter Family - Bear Creek Blues

Now that I'm found, I miss being lost

June 04, 2016 in Iowa, Illinois

Photographs from a trek to the Mississippi over Memorial Day weekend..

Post title: Clem Snide - Jews for Jesus Blues

We belong on these wild and wonderful trails

March 30, 2016 in Nebraska

Yesterday was a long trek from Valentine to Omaha across the northern edge of the state on Nebraska Highway 12. Almost this entire area feels forgotten, as if time moved on without it. The towns are impossibly small (see: Monowi, Pop. 1 and Gross, Pop 2.) and poetic in their own silent, sad ways. This part of Nebraska had its glory years almost a century ago and much of what once held great importance to those who lived here will disappear quietly over time.

In Sparks, I was taking photographs of the general store / post office and an old church when a woman came outside and invited me in. I learned that a grandchild had just been born - increasing the population of the town to 7. The general store had a broad, eclectic collection of necessities, and more than half of the town was sitting at a table in a cafe area, all family. They were all exceptionally friendly people, joking about how they've realized that the number of pets in the town now greatly exceeds the number of people.

All in all, this was a successful trip, and a much needed break from the day-to-day responsibilities of my job. Despite how much I enjoy wandering, there's nothing better than coming home to a comfortable house, a wonderful wife, and an excited dog.

To the future!

Visited: Sparks, Norden, Springview, Burton, Mills, Brocksburg, Jamison, Naper, Butte, Annoka, Spencer, Gross, Bristow, Lynch, Monowi, Verdel, Niobrara State Park, Niobrara, Verdigre, Winnetoon, Brunswick, and Foster, Nebraska.

Post title: The Tallest Man on Earth - Beginners

We've got hours before we get to Valentine

March 28, 2016

Today brought a (relatively) quick day, across the sandhills from Chadron to Valentine. It was a near-perfect, warm spring day for a drive and a few photographs.

I ended the day by visiting Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge a few miles outside of Valentine. There were no elk or bison to be found, as the refuge has been conducting a prescribed burn today. (This is a bit of a funny coincidence, as my job at Fontenelle Forest has had me working on a plan to educate the public and announce prescribed burns on our properties.) Instead, I watched prairie dogs pop in and out of their network of holes in a different part of the refuge for a good long while.

Tomorrow is the long trek back to Omaha, beginning with Nebraska highway 12 across the very northern edge of the state to visit a handful of towns I've yet to visit in my travels. I will post an updated map soon; After this trip I'll be down to less than a dozen towns in the state that I've yet to explore.

Visited: Hay Springs, Rushville, Clinton, Gordon, Merriman, Cody, Nenzel, Kilgore, Crookston, Valentine, and Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge, Nebraska.

Post title: Big Harp - Steady Hand Behind the Wheel