Cowboy Trail Forum

June 23-30, 2017 One of the best ways to see and experience the United States is to bike through it. For the last 12 years, my friends and I, all women between the ages of 52 and 66, have chosen a long off road bike trail to ride. We’ve ridden the Katy, the Erie Canalway, the Ohio to Erie, the C & O Canal and Great Allegheny Trails, and others. This year we chose the Cowboy Trail in Nebraska, about 200 miles from Valentine to Norfolk. We go slow and stop often, averaging 30-35 miles per day. Some of us camp, and the rest of the group stays in hotels, B&Bs, or inns along the way. We visit local museums, restaurants, libraries (two of us are librarians), parks, and shops, and talk to the local residents. People are often interested in our story, and we are interested in theirs. We always have a fantastic time no matter what obstacles or hardships we encounter.
This year we drove to Norfolk, NE on Friday, June 23, 2017. We stayed in The Norfolk Lodge and Suites overnight and met up with Tony and Lita from Norfolk Outing the next morning about 8:00 AM. They loaded our six bikes into their trailer and shuttled us to Valentine. Tony and Lita were very accommodating and friendly. In Valentine, we stayed at the Niobrara Lodge. We had lunch at Frosty’s and then biked out to the Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge. We stopped by the Visitor Center, where J bought an elk antler (a shed) and carried it across Nebraska on her bike. We saw lots of prairie dogs, birds, bison, and made a short hike to the waterfalls.
On Sunday, June 25, we rode from Valentine to Ainsworth (about 48 miles). The first 18 miles out of Valentine, which included a magnificent trestle bridge over the Niobrara River and the beautiful sandhills, was fantastic. There were open, rolling hills with the trail far from the road. We saw antelope cavorting, deer, and lots of interesting birds. Unfortunately, the trail then became overgrown and covered with loose gravel, so we abandoned the trail and road on Highway 20. Highway 20 is flat with a nice wide shoulder. We were expecting to find no amenities or water for 48 miles, but were pleasantly surprised when we entered Wood Lake. There was a small, welcoming park with an open bathroom and a water pump. We also saw a redheaded woodpecker with its striking red head. Farther down the road we stumbled across the L-Bow Saloon in Johnstown, which was open. Yeah! We enjoyed refreshing lemonade and iced tea, while Ruth, the proprietor, filled us in on the town history. Johnstown, NE, population 64, was the filming location for the TV production of Willa Cather’s, Oh! Pioneers. Ruth was welcoming and delightful. We arrived in Ainsworth in the late afternoon and stayed at The Rodeway Inn. The room was very large with a shed for our bikes. Two of our party were camping, and stayed at East City Park. There was water but no hot showers. The camping was very accessible all along the trail. Many of the towns had facilities in their parks with water and showers. We ate dinner at Big John’s Café.
Monday, June 26, we had breakfast at the hotel or the D & B Café on Richardson Drive. There is a nice downtown, and we visited several shops while we waited for the Sellers Barton Museum to open before heading out from Ainsworth to Bassett (about 17 miles). We were happy to find out that this part of the trail was very good, and we were told the road is very hilly. The area around Long Pine is hilly and beautiful. There is another handsome trestle bridge going into Long Pine. We ate lunch in a park near the trail. In town there is a drinking fountain and an old jail outside. So, of coarse, we took pictures of us in the jail. We arrived in Bassett in the late afternoon. We stayed at the rustic Bassett Lodge, and the campers stayed at the fairgrounds where there were showers and water. The folks at the Bassett Lodge were very accommodating. We wandered into the thrift store next to the lodge and met Carolyn and her friend. They invited

In my previous comment, I mistakenly referred to North Fork Outfitting as Norfolk Outing. Highly recommend.

Thank you for this excellent report. I'm sorry that the website cut off the end of your posting. Here is the rest:

They invited us to meet them at The Corral, the local bar down the street, for $2.00 hamburgers. When we arrived, we were greeted by the local ladies, who had saved a table for us. Carolyn, the secretary for the local Historical Society, is quite the ambassador for the community – she knows the history and the geology. We talked with her for over an hour. The next morning, Tuesday, June 27, we had a great breakfast and coffee at The Range Café, which is attached to the Bassett Lodge. We rode from Bassett to Stuart (about 22 miles). This was a tough day. The winds, out of the south, were 25-26 mph and we were heading SSE. There was a lot of loose gravel on about half of the trail, too. We stayed on the trail the entire time because the winds were so strong, and we didn't want to fight the wind on the road with the cars and trucks. One of our most delightful discoveries was in Newport. Right next to the trail is The Newport Pool Hall. A small white building with lovely wood floors, a pool table, snacks, and drinks, all run on the honor system. Enjoy, take what you want, and leave your money in the jar. We arrived in Stuart in the afternoon a little tired after fighting the wind and the gravel. We stayed in a nice little hotel, The Stuart Village Inn, and had lunch at the South Side Mini-Mart. The owners of the mini-mart also own the hotel and were extremely friendly. The campers stayed in the city park with showers and water. We visited the White Horse Museum and ate at the Caste Iron Bar and Grille, where we met the owner, Dustin, who is a Cubs fan and runs a nice restaurant. Unfortunately, we also had a run-in with the infamous Texas sandburs. We all had kevlar tires, but one bike still got a front and back flat. The rest of us used tweezers to pull out several thorns from our tires. One bike had 11 thorns. They were small, very hard, and white. On Wednesday, June 28, we ate breakfast at the South Side Mini Mart among several local folks. They serve tasty breakfast pizza and breakfast sandwiches. We also met Rochelle, who worked at the local paper. She took our picture in front of the mini-mart with the hopes of getting it into the local paper. We then headed out toward O’Neil (about 28 miles). We stopped in Atkinson, and were told not to miss the purple building at the end the street. Something Special by Marilyn is a large purple building, 4400 square feet of Christmas ornaments and other holiday gift items. It was pretty amazing. We also visited the soda fountain at the back of Goeke’s and we all had ice cream treats at 10:30 in the morning. A lady from The Atkinson Graphic, the local newspaper, stopped by to interview us and take a picture for the paper. We also stopped by “the bike store” which consisted of two shelves in the local hardware store with tubes with shrader valves only. Make sure to carry your own spare tubes!! We ate lunch at a picnic table in Emmet. About 14 miles of the trail was good, and we were on Highway 20 for the other 14 miles. We arrived in O’Neil in mid-afternoon. We stayed at the classic, Golden Hotel and the campers, again, stayed in the park with showers and water. We were able to do laundry at the hotel. We ate dinner at Chesterfield, visited the quaint Carnegie library, and chatted with the director of the library. Thursday, June 29, after having breakfast at McDonalds, we rode from O’Neill to Neligh (about 41 miles). We stopped in a tiny store in Inman for drinks and a bathroom break. At Ewing, we ate lunch in the mini-mart and had drinks and dessert in the café in Clearwater. We rode most of the way to Clearwater on Highway 20 because a storm was predicted and there was quite a bit of loose gravel on the trail. Our waitress at the café informed us that we needed to stay on the road because part of the trail had been washed out in a flood – seven years ago in 2010! Afte

One more continuation (I need to fix this to handle longer comments!):

After the washout, we jumped back on the trail and it was good all the way into Neligh. We arrived at our fantastic hotel, the Deluxe Hotel, just before a downpour. Tim, the proprietor, was very helpful and friendly and the rooms were great. We went into town for dinner, visited the old mill, and walked by a Carnegie library that is now a private home. Friday, June 30. One of our group was sick through the night and could not ride. So, she and B stayed at the hotel, while the rest of us headed to Norfolk and the cars (about 36 miles). First, we stopped for breakfast at Mama and Nana’s. We stayed on the road, Highway 20, the whole way because we wanted to get to Norfolk as quickly as possible. We didn’t stop anywhere except the mini-marts along the road. A couple of miles out of Norfolk we jumped back on the trail. It was paved and wound its way along the Elkhorn River. We saw a redheaded woodpecker and a Baltimore oriole, too. It was a lovely way to end the ride. We loaded the bikes, retrieved the friends we left at the hotel, and headed back to Chicago. Our friend recovered and was feeling better in the afternoon on Friday and was fully recovered by Saturday. The weather for our trip was beautiful – low to mid 80s. There was a breeze everyday, sometimes in our face (not so good) and one day 25-26 mph (not so good), which helped with the heat because the sun is pretty intense. But, you can’t control for wind or heat or rain. You just have to be prepared. If you ride hard and fast, this is not the trail for you. If you are up for meeting some lovely people and a bit of an adventure, you might want to consider The Cowboy Trail.

You Ladies are so Blessed to have one another! I am 60 y/o....how do I sign up for your rides!

Thank you for taking the time to write up such a wonderful review of your ride. My husband and I are looking forward to enjoying the Cowboy Trail in Sept.

Thank you VERY MUCH for the detailed info on the Cowboy trail. We will be starting our trip on Sep. 11 so this was very helpful!

I love your story, it seems you all found pretty much the same conditions Lisa and I found. It was really a great ride, and I am glad we got it done!.. We do have about 100 yet to ride, we just didn't have time to go further.

All kidding aside....

Maybe we should each, EVERYONE OF US, take the 20 minutes it would take, and write a letter to the State of Nebraska and ask them, tell them, about the Trail and it's conditions.

Make sure you tell them where you are from and that you had planned to stay a few days and spend money in their State.....but the Trail needs work.

One letter, they will probably ignore. Two letters they will probably ignore, 10 letters will raise eyebrows and 25 to 300 letters will get time on the Floor of their next meeting.

Send a CC to the Tourism of Nebraska also.....that will REALLY matter to them too.

We all spend days or even weeks preparing for our Rails to Trail Rides....adding 20 minutes to get letters off COULD MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

It might change the topics here on this forum from "uncut, overgrown" to "they just finished the section of....."

20 minutes....now don't just intend to do this....DO IT! You are at your computer and now is a GREAT time to write something up.....then MAIL IT.... Snail Mail is not overlooked like email can be. Hit Copy, grab an envelope and drop it off in a Mailbox!

Comment here when you send yours.

Mine are sent.....

Going to work this one over and send it to the Nebraska Governor too.....mentioning how Mickslon got behind the Trail here in SD and ended up getting the Trail named after him.

Here is what I wrote...and SENT

*********************

August 26, 2017
Concerning The Cowboy Trail:

Hello,

Can you tell me what your State's plans are for the Cowboy Trail? We are planning to come and ride it and spend several days in your State (and spend money there) when it is ready for riders. Actually we are planning a trip down in Sept to Valentine to ride the Trail to Arabia. (and spend money in your State)

As we understand it the Trail is rough to closed.

My husband and I have ridden both the Katy Trail in MO, End To End and the Mickelson Trail in SD There and Back (each direction). We also rode many many miles on these two Trails (Katy and Mickelson) Section by Section on other dates (and spent money eating and camping and in motels and shops). Why? Because the Trails are so Nicely Built and Well Maintained as well as User Friendly.

Thank you for your time.


Marna Kazmaier

*************

I sent them a like to my website under my address that has a bog and many photos of the Mickelson Trail

That was exactly my thoughts and plan. We just rode The Cowboy Trail. I am with you maybe if the state gets enough mail they will get on 'trail and take care of a great treasure and opportunity for Nebraska.

I just got an nice email from The Parks Dept. I was so glad they took the time to write,.....and I hope they took the time to READ what I had written. I sent my letters snail mail, but my reply thanking them for taking the time to write me back, I sent email, reply.

Keep Writing Folks....the more letters they get the more the money could sway toward the Trail.

The legislature and or governors office would probably be good too.

I am going to write a letter. But one thing that I really enjoyed about this trail. It was a challenge and an adventure. It wasn't just a "day ride".

I think if they could possibly control the vegetation on the route (we ran into a few areas that were pretty thick, and that's where you pick up the thorns), and while the crushed granite wasn't as "firm" and compact as limestone, most of it was rideable. I think we had some tracks from a four wheeler on day one, maybe where they'd been out spraying, but it was like rumble strips.

But again my thought is this is an Adventure trail, and I am glad we got to enjoy it.

Part of the trail washed out nearly ten years ago about 3 miles East of Clearwater. Does anyone know if it has been repaired?

Trail clear from Norfolk to Neligh. We traveled mid-July. Heat and other events caused us to travel and do day trips. Don't know about Clearwater area.

We just rode this August 18, 2017 The bridge is still out. We had to detour to the highway for a couple miles or three? On the east side the sign says 'Cowboy Trail Closed indefinitely' It is overgrown with weeds.

Yes the trail just to the east of Clearwater is closed indefinitely. The Elkhorn river literally flows through where the trail right of way used to be and the bridge is out. Please detour around this part by hopping on the highway at 517th AVE and then you can get back on the trail at 519th AVE.

Hey all,

I am planning a tour taking place on September 25-27, 2015 and will consist of riding on 195 miles of the Cowboy Trail from Norfolk, NE – Valentine, NE. This initial tour will be predominately unsupported and you will need to ride self-contained so bring gear to accommodate the late September weather. We will be stopping at most of the towns along the way to fill up water bottles, grab food, and check out local attractions. The goal of this tour is to assess the current condition of the Cowboy Trail and the feasibility of hosting this as an annual tour. By doing this I hope to raise awareness and increase traffic on the trail which will bring more tourism to the towns along its path. I am looking for a group of experienced cyclists to come out and participate in this tour with me. All are welcome! If anyone is interested in joining, please contact me for further details and join the event on the Facebook page. I have linked the Facebook Page for the event which contains a route map with overnight towns. Thank you for your consideration, I hope to see you out there!

https://www.facebook.com/rideoncowboy

Alex Duryea
Eco Tourism Consultant
Nebraska Tourism Commission

You will want to figure out a "plan B" for east of Clearwater...there is NO bridge and NO signage to let you know the trail dumps into the river!!!! Rode it day before yesterday.

Has been a problem for a long time:

"Note: Due to flooding in 2010 -Other than some temporary closures due to resurfacing the only closed section from Norfolk to O'neil is on the washout between Mile Post 123.5 and 121.5 or 1mile east of Clearwater then east for 2 miles. Trail users simply travel HWY 275 to continue."

And it is an easy bike around as HWY 275 does not have much traffic and has a shoulder.

How did your trip go? I think that an annual tour would be a good ideal. In Missouri, DNR does one for the Katy Trail and there is another one is South Dakota(done by the parks dept.) for the Mickleson Trail. I am familiar with the DNR Katy Trail and that one is 5 days/4 nights on a 220 mile trek of the Katy Trail. They charge around $350/person and that includes breakfast and dinner, camping, and bag shuttle. If you want to stay in a hotel, that is extra. They usually post details of their June trip in March of each year.

It's been a couple years. How did this go? I think this would be a great idea and bring more awareness to the trail..The state of Nebraska has a great treasure that they need to continue to develop and maintain. We just rode Valentine to Norfolk.
Parts were good. Out west more maintenance and work needs to be done. But we were glad to have done the ride.

Hi Everyone,
I have ridden a lot of trails in the mid-west and central US. My two favorites are the Mickelson and the Katy. Nebraska has a diamond in the rough (literally rough). I think we should start a petition drive to get Nebraska to add more money to improving the trail and have a grand opening ride that is well published. I think this would be a good article for some of the cycling magazines when it is planned. I am 67 and retired and I know there are other baby boomers who are like minded and are looking for something like this to do.

Hi All,

Thanks for your comments about the trail! I know it's been a few years since we did the tour. We had a few show up and ride. One of the guys worked at Monkey Wrench in Lincoln and did a short write-up on his experience:

http://monkeywrenchcycles.com/touring-the-cowboy-trail-valentine-to-norfolk-nebraska/

Afterwards I met with some folks at Game and Parks to talk about the trail and told them about some of the rough spots. They invited me to come talk at some public meetings that were held in some of the towns along the trail that winter. The goal of these meetings were to gather input to update the master plan for the Cowboy Trail. While there we talked to locals about he economic and tourism benefits having a trail like this can have and referenced Katy, Mickelson, Great Allegeney Passage, and others showing what they can do for the towns along the trail.

As far as an annual tour I could not find anyone that was willing to continue it. Since then I helped Jim Craig with Angry Cow Adventure put on two Ultra Marathons on the trail called the Cowboy Ultra which garnered some attention from the local media.

We have been trying to promote the trail as much as possible! Getting more people to ride it is probably the best thing for it. I have gone to most of the sites where the cowboy trail is listed and posted current pictures, updated info on the trail and left an honest good review. (This is a great way you all can help too!) A lot of things still need to change to make this trail into what it can be. Many of the rumors out there saying the trail is closed, completely overgrown, impassable, rough, or whatever need to be put to rest. Most of the trail is in pretty good shape but yes you'll run into some rough areas from time to time. I know NGPC has trouble maintaining the entire length of the trail and operates it on an EXTREMELY limited budget. Probably because the usage is just not there. I know they do their best to keep back the weeds and sandburs but if you see areas that need improvement let them know exactly where the problem is, they want to keep the trail in good shape. There is the detour on the highway at Clearwater where the bridge is out but it's quick and easy. The cost to replace that bridge is very expensive and the river now covers the right of way so the detour will have to stay for now.



The trail needs more public support (both local and statewide) if more is going to happen with it. I really think it is a diamond in the rough and can be a great asset to the state. Feel free to call or email me anytime about the trail, my contact info is on visitnebraska.com

I see a lot about biking. I'm thinking about a hike of about half this trail with my dog. I'll camp but every once in awhile I need a bed and shower. Does anyone walk? Do you know any dog friendly bnb's and is there anything or anyone I need to be cautious of walking alone?

I took my two oldest boys 12 & 8 on a one day hike of the trail last summer. We camped at the park in Inman and hiked to O'Neill and back. Can only speak to that small sample of the trail but we spent nearly the whole day hiking and only encountered one couple of locals utilizing the trail the entire day. I would want to make sure I had more than a cellphone as means of calling for assistance if an emergency was encountered. Service may not always be reliable through out. Hopefully someone can give you more info on B&B or other accommodations.

The Sand Hill inn in Atkinson is dog friendly , and I suspect some of the chain hotels in O'neil are dog friendly that is a 20 mile leg between the two towns and a good days walk. The only people you are going to come across outside of the towns are ranchers if anybody. So the western half of the trail is going to be spooky deserted, not sure if that makes more a less safe for a Woman and dog walking alone as compared to a more traveled trail.

Thank you for your comments. Planning now and looking forward to the experience. I assume that locals can advise me day to day about weather conditions. Late spring or early fall? A friend from Lincoln says beware of early snow??? This southerner does not know snow.

I am also interested in hiking this trail, though it'll have to wait until next year. Would like to hear about your experience.

Hello!

Your trip sounds like such fun. I hope when you return from the trip you will do a 'full write up' for us here on this Forum!

I am a dog trainer and have had working dogs all my life. I have backpacked 1000's of miles with dogs also in packs.

One thing I would warn is about the Thorns we hear so much about on this Trail and your dog's paws.

BUY HUNTING DOG BOOTIES made for Briars, Yes, they are expensive, they are made well and will protect your dog's feet.

The correct Dog Booties can make all the difference. This is an excerpt from my working dog website.

The booties need to be simple with few stitches, that might aggravate the dog's foot. The bootie needs to fit just up to the ankle and no higher. Any lower, it would not close correctly, any higher can hurt the dog's ankle and or movement. Impeding the movement of the ankle can irritate the dog's leg and even stretch the muscles and or tendons at that joint.

If you boot one foot, front or back, boot the other foot opposite from the injured foot. This way the dog will continue to move, walk or run, evenly on it's body. If you only put on booty on a dog, it will walk differently, much like a limp. This twists the dog's body as well as puts more weight on the unbootied foot than the other. Use the same type, same age (not one worn down and the other new), on the dog at the same time. This way, again, the dog will not throw it's weight to one side or the other.

We are planning to ride from Valentine to Inman Labor Day week, Just wondering if anyone has ridden that stretch lately, and how the trail was. Areas to avoid (someone mentioned that the area around Johnstown was good to avoid and take the road as there was a lot of thorns in that area etc. So any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

Hello Stephen,

Sorry no one answered your questions....I would like to know too. We will be riding in Sept, but sometime after your ride.

I hope you will write about your experiences on the Trail. From what I have heard about the thorns and ranchers..... kinda apprehensive.

Stephen & Marna We just rode Valentine to Norfolk Aug 7-21. We were a little apprehensive as we left Valentine as we were told the road was ok to Arabia and after that not so good. We rode all the way on the trail except for a short distance in front of the co-op at Ainsworth (local advised stickers bad). Also we did have to detour to highway between Clearwater and Neligh. Bridge has been out since 2010. The trip Johnstown to Ainsworth was our hardest section. Stickers were bad as you cross roads from one section of trail to next section. We carried bikes a time or two. We checked tires at each intersection and pulled out many stickers. Now that we are done, I can say, we had no flats, but did have to air up a front tire on one bike each day before starting. L Bow Saloon in Johnstown serves a great hamburger and folks are really nice there. About 3 miles out of Long Pine going east we ran into a patch of thistle. Covered the entire trail. We rode through it for a quarter of a mile or so and then it cleared up again. We rode a bit of The Katy Trail earlier in the summer and if you are thinking these trails are similar, I say no. The surface is not as hard pack most of the time, you will come across tracks and bumps not made by a bicycle (more so on the western end). Sometimes it is like a pature road. Weeds in the middle and a trail on each side. At times there were big holes in the road and look out for bridge 164 between Meadow Grove and Battle Creek. big washout. As we moved east the trail was progressively better. We rode recumbents with 2 1/2 inch tires. We didn't break any speed records. Rode in rain a couple days around Inman and that was slow going. We saw only a couple folks on the western end. About Neligh we saw maybe a half dozen riders besides ourselves. It was challenging at times, but we made the trip and glad we did it. We met nice folks along the way. I hope that they can make improvements and finish out the trail to Chadron. I would like to ride that. Hope this helps. I will try to add more to the various sections. I just have not had time. I would have liked to have had more current information than we had when we started.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS WRITE UP ABOUT THE AREA!

I knew, had heard, that the Cowboy was not as nice as Katy or Mickelson. We just wanted to know what to expect and what to prepare for before the ride. We are not new to this type of riding, we even tell people, on our website, what they might want to carry on the Mickelson....and it is sure not the Katy Trail either! www.doesmybuttlookbigithesaddle.com but with all the tourist information written..... that paints such a pretty picture.....the book for the Cowboy.....no.
AGAIN! THANK YOU!

Thanks, much for the comments and we knew a little about it figured the ride was similar to what my friends did in the Dirty Kanza in the Spring(I plan to do one of those rides next spring), rougher than the Katy, but passable. We have several tubes, a repair kit or two, and my friend just put Schwalbe tires on her bike (they have the puncture resistant layer in them), and I put Slime liners in my Clement XPLOR USH tires. Hopefully we'll be ok on that. We are only planning on 40 or so miles a day. I had read about Johnstown and riding the highway around the agri center there. We may end up riding the highway more if tires become an issue :) But we are looking forward to our ride.

Thanks for the comments and discussion, and hope your ride goes well too Marna!

Steve

The trail is closed at Clearwater. The bridge over the Elkhorn river is out. The trai is wasted and overgrown.

Is the whole trail overgrown and wasted?

im planning to walk this trail in june. is the trail completely out at clearwater? or detoured.

The trail is completely knocked out at clearwater, the bridge going over the elkhorn river is down. The "detour" is to walk on the shoulder of highway 275 (it's a nice 4' wide shoulder). You can see it on google earth if you look, it's just east of clearwater. I rode the trail in September with some friends and a couple guys actually crossed it...do that at your own risk though, I think the water levels were low at the time. I hope you come out and hike the trail! I had a great time riding it last year. There are some cool things to check out in the towns it runs through.

I looked on google earth, and sure enough, the bridge is out. However, I noticed that the satellite image date is from March of 2012. Are you saying that 4 years later, and it's STILL not fixed? I'm planning to use my spring vacation (i'm a student at UNO) to backpack some of the trail; I guess i'll just use the highway for that portion.

Hello! We just finished biking Valentine to Norfolk and YEP! The bridge between Clearwater and Neligh is still OUT snd now it is 2017. You have to detour to the highway first least a couple miles.

Is there a place to park and leave a vehicle while riding to Norfolk and back to Valentine?

Valentine has a dedicated parking lot for bike riders on the trail that is usually vacant. Norfolk has the Ta-Ha-Zouka Park at the trailhead, which I would think would be better for long term parking. However, it is generally an uphill ride from Norfolk to Valentine. I also seen the Valentine streets severely flooded during a downpour when I was there, which might be a concern.

Nevertheless, nobody is going to guard your car while you are on the trail. If you insist on leaving a car in Valentine then it is probably best to talk to the police dept. there. They also have a nice city park there, which is easily reached from the trail if you can handle one steep hill.

Thanks for the info. We are at the city park now. No kidding! That is one steep hill.

THANK YOU STEVE FOR TAKING THE TIME TO WRITE THIS UP!

All the information we are gleaning from this Forum is far more than I have found elsewhere. And we trust you riders more than than... well you know.

What are the trail conditions from Valentine to Kilgore. I know the map show that section to be "undeveloped", but what does that mean ? Dirt/Packed earth, bush and weeds (not passable), etc. ?

Thanks -

Any part of the trail from Valentine to the west is literally undeveloped; meaning it's just the abandoned rail bed. I have seen on blogs where people just ride on US 20 from Valentine to Chadron, and vice-a-versa.


They had such a good start on getting the long stretch from Norfolk to Valentine completed, moving about 15-20 miles per year. It has been several years now that this was completed, and the way I understood it, was they were supposed to continue west towards Merriman, NE. At that time, part of the railway from Merriman to Gordon, NE, Rushville, NE, and ending in Chardon, NE was still in-tact and used occasionally. That part of the railway has since been abandoned and the tracks removed, so the entire trail can actually be built on the old railway bed. There are parts that completely disappear from sight on US 20, which sounds like what many of the folks traveling the Cowboy Trail would enjoy more of on the portion that is already completed.


Seems like I have read that with budget restrictions, there may just simply not be any funding these past few years to continue the project. There are numerous small bridges that have to be "upgraded" for trail use, along with the surface they lay down. I would bet, that some communities along the undeveloped section will try and get the trail, at least through their town, finished with a nice, paved surface. I would really think that would help some of these old towns generate interest in their communities.


It is disappointing to hear that the trail is already falling into some disrepair and the surface is not always as advertised. It doesn't help when the ranchers decide to use the path for their own personal road. Sounds like a better option, while more expensive, would be to perhaps either use the proper material, or use blacktop for the trail instead. (Just an idea.)


My mom grew up in the Panhandle; Rushville to be exact. Their neighboring community of Gordon has

(The comment box has a word limit! Ididn't realize.. My apologies, and the rest of my thought(s) are continued below! I started at the beginning of a paragraph.)



My mom grew up in the Panhandle; Rushville to be exact. Their neighboring community of Gordon has a group of people trying to raise money to complete the portion of the trail between their two communities (15 miles apart). They recently had someone riding on the highway (US 20) that was struck by a motorist, so that has kind of kick started their involvement. That would be a welcome thing if they are able to get this done... A ride between the two communities would be very peaceful, and there aren't really any steep grades at all. It would also bring a few more tourists, I would expect, and also some positive news to those outside of the area that aren't familiar with these towns.


Hope the information helps those out there wanting to ride the trail. I have been searching and searching for news as to when, if ever, they plan on starting on the trail west of Valentine. If anyone sees anything, please post it so we can stay informed! Thank you.

If Nebraska wants to be at all successful they have to back up the lovely website with a way to get current information.

We just rode Valentine to Norfolk August 2017. Parts of the trail were rough, weedy and holes, but we made the entire trip except bridge out between Clearwater and Neligh and a section by Co-op at Ainsworth (sticker warning from local). Would be great to see it finished west of Valentine and maintained. It is a great opportunity for the state of Nebraska.

East City Park is small but has perfect accommodations. Water, electricity and a brand new bathroom with shower. We tented and were the only ones there. $10 per night.

ALSO has a gas station/eats -faststop. Great service to bikers and helpful.

We just stayed in this little park last week.It is great! Loved the new shower house and bathroom. We ate at Subs and Suds on Saturday and it was really good. Sunday we got into the little quick shop just in time for supper. The local police were also very helpful.

Curious as to the progress (if any) west of Valentine. I rode the Katy Trail last year, Mickelson Trail this year, and hoping to ride the Cowboy Trail to Chadron next year! Thanks