Nebraskaland

26 Nebraskaland • May 2024 Because of the sensitive biological attributes, the park limits hiking to designated trails and walkways. The best way for visitors to take in the park's natural scene is the Jim MacAllister Nature Trail, named for one of the Game and Parks offi cials who was instrumental in the park's early development. It takes hikers 1 1 ⁄2 miles from the bottom of the canyon to the top. It's an elevation change of about 200 feet, but most hikers consider it easy. Along the way, the trail encounters a number of the other nine waterfalls in the park and 230-plus waterfalls documented in the Niobrara Valley. Most other falls in the park are not marked and are much smaller than Smith. They include Turkey Feather, Birch, Pine and Little Smith falls. A Popular, Quiet Place A summer day at Smith Falls State Park evolves from a tranquil night and sunrise to the chatter from a steady stream of fl oaters landing riverside to take that walk up the canyon for a scenic view or cold shower from nature. Those fl oating the river can access the park at two landings. The Smith Falls Landing is on the south side of the river and the Nichols Landing at the north side, just east of the campground. In the late 1980s, offi cials estimated 15,000-20,000 canoers per year on the river. The National Park Service estimates the latest fi ve-year average to be about 75,000 fl oaters per year, surely driven by increased publicity and the popularity of fl oat tubes and kayaks. In 2020, when much of the world was shut down because of the pandemic, the fi gure topped 100,000. Despite all of that busyness, Smith Falls and the Niobrara River maintain a reputation of serenity. Smith Falls was among the stops that a team for Quiet Parks International made while doing acoustic tests on a four-day kayak trip down the river. The organization bestowed the river with its "Quiet Trail" designation in 2023 — the second in the world and fi rst in North America to receive such an honor. That doesn't mean Smith Falls is necessarily quiet. Those doing the sound study for the designation didn't document a fi gure, but said the water dropping at Smith Falls is probably about 70 decibels, comparable to that of a vacuum cleaner. A Niobrara Valley Treasure Early news accounts tell of the beauty of at least four other named falls in the area surrounding Valentine that since have been concealed behind the fences of private landowners. The one that is now the main attraction of this state park was and remains to be the most well-known. The immeasurable value of Smith Falls was often mentioned in the 1970s and 1980s as contentious debates raged over a proposed dam project and federal legislation to designate the Niobrara a national scenic river. Although the proposed dam site was downstream near Norden and said by proponents not to aff ect Smith Falls, the beauty spot surely was present in the minds of the public during the discussions. The dam proposal failed, but the National Scenic River designation passed in 1991. The designation has aff orded certain protections from development to 76 miles of the river that includes the park. Roaring On The water of Smith Creek emerges from a spring of the Ogallala Aquifer about 800 yards south of the waterfall. Because of the stream's short length, it's much less susceptible to the Canoers enter the north side of the park at Nichols Landing. There is also a landing on the south side that provides access to the big waterfall and nature trail. Smith Falls is convex, formed from erosion during countless winters of freezing and thawing at their sides.

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