Backpacker Magazine: Nebraska: Backpacking and Camping Trips, Hikes, Adventures, Topo Maps, Aerial Photos.

Scottsbluff, NE: Saddle Rock Trail

Submitted by: Backpacker Magazine
The crumbling caprock and sheer sandstone faces of Scotts Bluff frightened Oregon Trail-era emigrants, but they're the draw on this challenging, 3.8-mile out-and-back that climbs 500 feet up the towering massif.

Omaha: Hidden Lake

Submitted by: Backpacker Magazine
Only 8 miles from downtown, this diverse 3.4-mile loop curves gently around a pair of crystal-clear lakes (bring binocs to watch waterfowl) to an old trading post.

Chadron, NE: Steamboat Butte

Submitted by: Backpacker Magazine
Climb a lone butte (and spend a few minutes exploring its rugged base) on this easy 1.5-mile loop that offers a panoramic peek at Chadron State Park's rugged terrain.

Lincoln, NE: Conestoga State Recreation Area

BACKPACKER Review
Hikers must follow unofficial, angler, or game trails for most of this 3.1-mile circumnavigation of Conestoga Lake, a popular roosting ground for upland birds and gobblers.

Omaha: Hidden Lake

BACKPACKER Review
Only 8 miles from downtown, this diverse 3.4-mile loop curves gently around a pair of crystal-clear lakes (bring binocs to watch waterfowl) to an old trading post.

Scottsbluff, NE: Fossil Hills

BACKPACKER Review
Roam Nebraska's Niobrara River valley, just like the rhino-sized Menoceras did 20 million years ago. This wheelchair-accessible 2.9-miler climbs to one of the world's most important bonebed excavation sites.

Nebraska National Forest: Soldier Creek Wilderness Loop

Paddle Nebraska's Niobrara River

BACKPACKER Review
A two-day paddle through high plains prairie amid buffalo, whooping cranes, and elk.

Carbon Dioxide and the Desert Midwest

BACKPACKER Review
Scientists say Nebraska's wild prairies could become the Western Hemisphere's largest sandbox in as few as 30 years.

High Points: Panorama Point, Nebraska

BACKPACKER Review
There's not a bad napping spot anywhere.

Best Backpacking In Nebraska

BACKPACKER Review
Our comprehensive guide to the best backpacking you can find in Nebraska.

Prairie Hiking: Wide-Open Spaces

BACKPACKER Review
It's the easiest hiking on Earth, and you get to sleep with buffalo, listen to coyotes sing, and bask in quiet so deep you can hear the grasslands growing. Welcome to the prairie.

Indian Cave State Park, Nebraska

BACKPACKER Review
Where you can look down on soaring eagles and feel the power of the Missouri River.

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