JUNE 2016 • NEBRASKAland 43
I
t's strange to think of the Pine Ridge of northwestern
Nebraska and Wildcat Hills along the North Platte
River Valley as being relatively flat land with a
blanket of volcanic ash as it was millions of years ago.
One wonders if it was just dumb luck that made the
sediment gather more tightly in some areas than others
over those millions of years, making our escarpments and
buttes more resistant to erosion than their surroundings.
Regardless, we find ourselves thankful nature did what it
did – especially when witnessing a scene such as the full
moon hanging over northwestern Nebraska buttes on a
September night.
Above: Trunk Butte by Whitney. Opposite: Crow Butte near Crawford.
