24 Nebraskaland • April 2025
cyclists with a shuttle and other services, for instance.
Fun stops can be found in smaller locales. One such place
is in Newport, population 97, where resident Melissa Denny
renovated an old hay scale building to a pool hall. The
unmanned facility is always open for trail users to shoot a
game of pool. Drinks, snacks, shirts and hats are available
on the honor system.
Other popular sites along the way are the Neligh Mill State
Historic Site and a pair of restored depots — one made of brick
in O'Neill and another constructed of wood at Long Pine.
The trail is surely not as busy as those in and near
metropolitan areas, but Duryea said it gets a lot more use
than most people think.
"We have automated trail counters out there now, and just
from January through the end of July 2024, we had 87,000
counts. That's just between Norfolk and Valentine and doesn't
include the section between Gordon and Rushville," he said.
Most of the traffic occurs near communities along the way,
but there are users who like the challenge of taking it on in
its entirety.
Kylee Borg of Stuart, population 590, has a front row seat
for activity on the Cowboy Trail from her convenience store,
SouthSide Mini Mart.
"We see a lot of bicyclists stopping along their trip to fuel
People ride horses along the Cowboy Trail near Long Pine in Brown County. ERIC FOWLER, NEBRASKALAND
The Newport Pool Hall, located a few yards from the Cowboy Trail, is always open and offers free pool, concessions
and merchandise. Camping is allowed outside.
ERIC FOWLER, NEBRASKALAND
