8/1-8/4

North Platte, NE

We really didn’t know much about North Platte prior to visiting the city.  We were pleasantly surprised when we discovered there were actually quite a few interesting things to do in the area.

North Platte was established in 1868 when the Union Pacific Railroad was extended to that point. 

We camped at Lake Maloney, located just six miles south of North Platte.  The set up is a little odd.  There are two sections for camping-one section has 50-amp electric hook-ups with water spigots scattered throughout. 

Our site was close enough to reach with our hose so we were able to add water as needed.  The dump station and bathhouse is located a couple of miles away at the primitive camping area.

We crammed a lot of exploring in our short three day stay beginning with a visit to Fort Cody Trading Post.   

 

 

The Trading Post, family owned and operated, has been in continual operation since 1963. 

 

In addition to the usual trinkets one would expect to find in this type of tourist attraction there is a permanent exhibit that was quite charming. 

Buffalo Bill’s Wild West in Miniature is a narrated diorama made by Ernie and Virginia Palmquist that took 12 years to complete and contains over 20,000 hand-carved pieces—many animated. 

 Ernie was inspired to create this one-of-a-kind presentation because of his childhood memories of attending the show and actually meeting Buffalo Bill. 

To save money we usually pack a picnic lunch to take along when we go exploring.  But we also like to try the local fare especially food that the area is noted for and in North Platte that food can be found at Runza.    The Midwest based chain began in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1949 by Sally Everett and is still run by her grandchildren.

The original signature sandwich features a fresh-baked bread stuffed with ground beef, onions and cabbage.  In addition there are several toppings that can be added.  I chose the swiss mushroom Runza that was delicious. 

 

We took advantage of North Platte’s All-in-one ticket for $10 that includes admission to Buffalo Bill State Historical Park, Lincoln County Historical Museum, Cody Park Train Display and Golden Spike Tower.

 

 

We purchased the ticket at perhaps the most popular attraction in North Platte - Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park. 

The house, once the home of the legendary scout, buffalo hunter and showman, was built in 1886. 

Built and furnished at a cost of $3,900, the house sits in its original position on the grounds.  In 1909 the house was updated with forced-air heating and electricity. 

The mannequin in the den wears a replica of Cody’s Wild West outfit.

In the dining room, the period table is set and ready for a simple lunch. 

The wallpaper is a reprint of the original paper designed by Cody, which shows a montage of his life’s adventures. 

In this kitchen, the cook was known for making three gallons of root beer one week and three gallons of ginger ale the following week.

Throughout the house there are several frames posters that had been advertisement for the Wild West show.

The coat on display in Buffalo Bill’s bedroom is made of buffalo hide.

What was once the servant’s quarters now houses display cases filled with photos and items used in the traveling show.

The barn houses additional memorabilia.

 

 

 

 

 

Our next stop, The Lincoln County Historical Museum, is located just down the road from the Buffalo Bill Ranch.  The museum, opened in 1976, encompasses eleven acres featuring an entire village of historic structures from the area, the North Platte Canteen exhibit, and many artifacts from the history of the region of the Great Plains.

The museum features Native American and Pioneer history.

 

The North Platte Canteen was a railroad stop manned by local citizens that operated from Christmas Day 1941 to April 1, 1946.  The purpose was to provide refreshment and hospitality to soldiers who were traveling through the area on the way to war during their ten-to fifteen minute stopovers. 

The museum village is home to sixteen historic buildings including the Trinity Lutheran Church, Birdwood School, Barber Shop, etc.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Entering the Brady Island Depot I was transported back to a time when the main mode of transportation was via railroad.

We had difficulty locating the next stop because the address listed on the All-in-one ticket was incorrect.  The Cody Park Train Display and Museum is across the street from the listed address in the rear of Cody Park. 

On display is the only Challenger 3900 series steam locomotive on display in the world. 

 We were able to climb up and get the engineer’s view before walking through a series of old rail cars, including a mail car and a caboose that are filled with old railroad memorabilia.

 

 

In addition to the 3900 series is Unit 6922.  The 6900 series diesel locomotives were the largest ever made.

The final stop on our All-in-one ticket was to the Golden Spike Tower located at the Bailey Yard. 

 Union Pacific’s Bailey Yard is the largest railroad classification yard in the world.   

The massive yard covers 2,850 acres, reaching a total length of eight miles.  Bailey Yard has 17 receiving and 16 departure tracks handling 14,000 rail cars every 24 hours. 

 

 

3,000 cars are sorted daily in “hump” yards.  Using a mound cresting 34 feet for eastbound trains and 20 feet for west bound trains, the hump yards allow four cars a minute to roll gently into any of 114 “bowl” tracks where they become part of trains headed for destinations in the East, West and Gulf Coasts as well as the Canadian and Mexican borders.

 

 

 

 

The train operations and repair shops at Bailey keep America moving forward.  The shops are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

All train movement is handled through the on-site command center with the latest computerized control systems.  

On our final day in North Platte we “shopped” at Bin Grain Antique Town. 

Antiques are on display in 20 restored historic octagon wooden granaries.  The shops are tied together with a boardwalk made of 100 year old Douglas fir timbers. 

Living in such small quarters we really have to limit the amount of things we have around so we weren’t really shopping but it was fun just exploring and discovering the treasures in each building.

We packed a lot in our short stay in North Platte but it was time to move on and as usual we were looking forward to where the road would take us.