Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Ponca State Park

Last night, I camped in Ponca State Park on the Nebraska side of the Missouri River a few miles upstream from Sioux City, Iowa.  I got an early start to my day thanks to a noisy turkey wandering through the campground.  In fact, I had broken camp and started hiking before the alarm on my phone started beeping.

I eyed two trails in the park for hiking in the morning, but one was hard to follow; the other, hard to even find.  I ended making my own way along the shore of the river.  I saw plenty of birds including pelicans, turkey vultures and the ubiquitous Canada goose.  I had to engineer my own bridge to cross a small channel separating a quasi-island from the shore.  It wasn't much but kept my feet dry.

When I finished hiking, I drove to Three State Overlook, the best view in the park.  Below the observation deck, the Missouri flows through one of two unrestrained sections.  In addition to Nebraska, South Dakota & Iowa are visible from the overlook.  I also stopped in the new Missouri River Museum on the park grounds to spend thirty minutes or so perusing the exhibits.



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