July 2021 • Nebraskaland 23
resulted in the SRA's latest losses,
washing out four of its primitive
campsites and submerging the stone
shelter house. Access to Dead Timber
via Highway 275, which was heavily
damaged by rushing water, was limited
for months.
Despite years of degradation,
dedicated visitors continue to make
the most of their SRA. Visitors
enthusiastically returned to Dead
Timber when Highway 275 reopened
in late summer 2019.
On a Saturday afternoon in late
August of that year, campers, working
around mud and standing water,
resumed their usual activity — a couple
cooked dinner around a campfi re by
the oxbow lake, an extended family
engaged in friendly competition over
a game of cornhole, a gathering of
friends cheered on their favorite teams
in front of an outdoor TV at their RV.
These people have camped at Dead
Timber before, many times, and they
will return again and again. Although
the general feeling was of gladness
around the campground — of relief
that their SRA was still there and that
they were able to get in some camping
before the end of summer — it was
clear that improvements and changes
were desperately wanting.
Redevelopment Plan
In response, Game and Parks is
creating a plan to redevelop the
fl ood-prone Dead Timber State
Recreation Area. On March 23, 2021,
Game and Parks off ered a virtual
public meeting via Zoom to open up
comments and suggestions, which
was attended by 170 people. The
proposed redevelopment plan for Dead
Kevin Mannschreck, of Hooper, RV camps at Dead Timber State Recreation Area in Dodge County.
