NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.
Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/977334
22 NEBRASKAland • MAY 2018 ravelers to the northern Panhandle often find fascination with the buttes and forested regions of the Pine Ridge. Just north of there, though, is a land that is more subdued but equally enchanting: the Oglala National Grassland. Once visitors enter this landscape mostly void of trees, they realize there is plenty to be seen – and not much to get in the way of seeing it. Be it a herd of pronghorn charging across the wide-open prairie, the flight of the peculiar looking long-billed curlew, or just horizon stretching as far as one can see, most want to stick around a while and return later. The Oglala National Grassland covers 94,480 acres of public land intermixed with private north of Harrison and Crawford managed by the U.S. Forest Service. Named for the Sioux tribe of this region, it is one of 20 national grasslands that are primarily located on the High Plains east of the Rocky Mountains. The property is far from the largest on the list, but when combined with the immense 597,178- acre Buffalo Gap National Grassland on the other side of the Nebraska-South Dakota border there is more than 1,000 square miles of open territory to explore free of charge. Born out of the Great Depression and Dust Bowl, the federal government purchased national grasslands at above market value to both help struggling farmers and ranchers and to reclaim landscapes damaged by the agriculture practices of that era. They were then leased for grazing. A scene of grasslands and badlands, with an occasional prominent landform rising above them, the mixed grass prairie sprawls northward from the edge of the Pine Ridge to the border. After the rain falls, lush green grass stands in remarkable contrast to the chalky white badlands interspersed among it. One of Nebraska's premier attractions is located within the Oglala Grassland: Toadstool Geologic Park. The moon-like surface of this area, with its sandstone features intricately carved by centuries of erosion, has long fascinated visitors. Despite the popularity, the only traffic jam visitors might encounter on the dirt roads leading to and traversing the grasslands is a cattle drive. Pronghorn Country Containing Nebraska's largest expanse of public land in pronghorn habitat, the Oglala Grassland draws a lot of attention from hunters – especially those who like to spot and stalk. Nebraska Game and Parks Commission aerial surveys show an average of nearly five pronghorn for every square mile in the area, and the combined harvest on public and private land here is greater than any other Nebraska unit. The land also is home to mule deer, whitetails and sharp- tailed grouse. The Forest Service has established a public blind to view the displaying grounds of sharptails in the spring. While this high and dry region is not known for deep waters, numerous stock ponds do well with enough rain and r f the tha Og lan plenty to be Water flows along an ephemeral stream at Toadstool Geologic Park following a spring thunderstorm.