April 28, Nebraska on the Oregon Trail

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Headed for the Rock Creek visitors’ center to tour the exhibits and see the outside buildings. It was closed, so we wasted a morning waiting around for it to be open at the posted time. Looked over the ranch buildings from the top of the hill and at the ruts and swales. Fortunately we had a little brochure that showed the layout of the buildings. This station made famous by the penny novels of the day. Wild Bill Hickok was a hired stock tender at this pony express/wagon trails station and murdered the owner and two other men, but it was written such that he was a hero and killed 3 bandits—thus began his career as gunfighter extraordinaire.

Drove on to Fairbury and looked at a city mural of a visiting circus passing down main street and the copper domed courthouse in the middle of a neat town square. There were several huge veterinary supply companies here. Continued west on Highway 136 to Hebron and took highway 81 where we stopped for gas at $3.899 per gal. Took 81 north to Fairmont and then highway 6. We had lunch in Rosie at the tiny town of Sutton, Nebraska at the city park. You could camp for free at the park with electric hook-up, but could stay only 3 days; after that you had to pay.

Went through Hastings, where Kool-aid was invented by a couple. The town was home to a huge World War II Naval Ammo Depot with row upon row of bunker type buildings for over 5 miles. Stopped at a Sara Lee bakery outlet for bread and snacks.

Went North on highway 10 to Fort Kearney on the Platte River. It was the first western military post built to protect the emigrants on the Oregon Trail. Not much left of the fort as it was abandoned in 1870’s with the railroad and the needs of the country changing. Watched a slide show at the visitors’ center and looked at the reconstructed blacksmith shop with its sod roof.

Took interstate 80 along the Platte as it is the way the trails went at this point. Drove to North Platte and stayed the night at a Wal-Mart. All along the Interstate saw many, many wild turkeys. Lots of ponds on both sides of the interstate---maybe the river changed or was straightened?

The group that Amanda was traveling with, since she was coming from Iowa, remained on the north side of the Platte while Capt. Mock and his group, coming up from Missouri, were on the south side.
Fought wind all day. Lots of feedlots along side of the road, especially one near Hastings that seemed to have over 5000 head—Sharon says she counted 5,238; however, she missed the Hereford with its head over the Black Angus near the front.

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