fort niobrara national wildlife refuge

Just passing through the area on a road trip. Nice to get outdoors and stretch our legs. A lovely hike down the stairs to waterfall scenery. Continue along the river. Peaceful, quiet, beautiful. Worth taking the time to hike this short trail.

A nice quiet drive through the Natonal Wildlife Refuge. Don't expect to see bison there every time, but if you do, it's great! Otherwise you get a nice view of a meandering Niobrara river and the Sandhills grassland. You might get lucky enough to see a bald eagle while you're there. Stop in to the visitor center, hike to Fort Falls, or just take a cruise. If you keep going on the dirt road, eventually you'll get to Berry Bridge, which has a nice concessions shop and a neat little waterfall right on the river. No alcohol is allowed in the refuge if y are starting a river trip there, so don't even pack it in your cooler or you could get ticketed.

Not noisy or rowdy. For those that enjoy nature, pioneer history and getting away from it all I would recommend. The surrounding area has additional attractions of similar ilk

Although we missed seeing the Elk and Bison we spent over an hour photo'ing the Prairie Dogs and all the wonderful nature scenes. There are so many off shots of the main road we could have been there 4 straight days and not seen all. Although Fort Falls are a walk down numerous stairs it is accessible and breathtaking. A word of warning don't start off the Niobrara River walking trail from the base of the falls unless you plan for a day of hiking because if we hadn't turned around we would have faced about a 10-12 mile walk back to our car.

One of the best ways of seeing the refuge, especially in the fall, is by canoe. Tell your canoe outfitter that this is what you want to do and they will gladly help you out. If that isn't your cup of tea, you can often see buffalo and elk as well as many different song birds on the auto trail loop. This is a wildlife refuge, not a zoo or consumer driven attraction so your sightings are not guaranteed but, if you ask in the visitor center, they can probably help you find the large animals. The prairie dogs, though not universally popular with some local ranchers are easy to find. If you are lucky, you may also see burrowing owls close by the prairie dog town. Hiking the Fort Falls trail is a great activity and you can also check out the scenic overlook of the Niobrara River just east of the refuge turnoff on Hwy 12.

We only saw one buffalo, a few horses, and a ton of adorable little prairie dogs! I'm sure there is more wildlife to see but we spent most of our time hiking the loop around Fort Falls. The hike was about a mile long and pretty strenuous. You can hike down to see the falls and then back up without taking the loop. However, that part of the hike, while fairly short, is very steep! Once you get past the falls you continue down to the Niobrara River and then loop up and around till you finish the loop back up at the parking lot. There are lots of signs along the way explaining all the nature, ecosystem, etc that make up the area. . Very interesting ! The trail is pretty narrow and overgrown in parts. There is a ton of poison ivy/oak along the way! Be careful! It was a fun hike, but it was pretty steep & strenuous for the beginner.

We enjoyed being up close with the buffalo and the waterfall is a short hike. The veiws are very scenic as well. Well worth the time.

I was a little disappointed with this attraction, though it does have ample good points. The visitors' center is staffed by intelligent, helpful folks, but it might be helpful (and perhaps even profitable) for them to stock refreshments of some kind; even bottled water for sale would have been good. The prairie dogs on the auto tour were diabolically cute, but they constituted 90% of the wildlife we saw, and they weren't enough to carry the park. The Refuge's herd of buffalo* was reputed to graze close to the road and attack any poor soul foolish enough to step outside their vehicle. Instead, they all huddled by a fence, seemingly terrified of some unseen presence. (Though this is promoted as a refuge, these mighty beasts are a managed herd, periodically culled with their corrals in plain sight. One can see how the buffalo might not be casual around humans.) The elk, alas, were nowhere to be seen. My sainted aunt vainly searched for them on the horizon for hours after we left. I think elk viewing is a seasonal thing; this merits more research.The Fort Falls, thankfully, exceeded expectations. They are a natural treasure by Nebraska standards, almost as impressive as nearby Smith Falls. This watery wonder - along with the frank, honest narration of the very educational auto tour - raise this to a four-star attraction, desipite the pain that still abides in my aunt's elk-starved broken heart. In other words, the Falls make the visit worth doing, but prepare to be disappointed if you're looking for a lot of wildlife.*I realize these are properly termed "bison" by taxonomists. I'm calling them buffalo because it sounds cool. Anyone who has a problem with this should seek therapy.

We pulled in here and were able to drive right on in. At the refuge, you drive on a 3-mile loop around the park where you’ll see native plant and animal life. We spent a lot of time in a prairie dog town snapping photos of the prairie dogs as they stuck their heads out of their holes. The refuge also maintains a herd of about 350 bison which can be seen and photographed from the comfort of your car. At one point, we stopped and my wife was snapping pictures of some bison nearby when suddenly one ran 10 feet in front of the car! A bit north of the main entrance to the refuge, there is a turn-off for a scenic overlook--and this shouldn’t be missed if you are there. From this overlook you can take in a view of the Niobrara river below as well as look off across ranchland stretching as far as the eye can see. Absolutely breathtaking.

A nice easy drive where we saw probably 30 buffalo and many elk. We also had fun watching prairie dogs from the car. Takes no more than an hour with plenty of time to stop and observe. Visit the welcome center and ask them to point out the way to the bridge across the Niobrara River. From that bridge you can get to Smith Falls without a LONG backtrack. If you want to see Smith Falls from the Refuge, that is the way to do it, save time and see beautiful land.

Although, I didn't see any wildlife, except for two buffalos, and a bunch of prairie dogs, the history was very informative.

The refuge is part prarieland with buffalo, deer, and other wildlife. Other area's are the Niobrara River that is so much fun to canoe or tube down the river. Waterfalls and plenty of birds to watch along with the animals that hang out on the river.

We had family visiting from Tennessee and the 5 year old wanted to see Fort Falls and the Buffalo. We drove out to Fort Niobrara only to find the the road to the falls locked with a paddle lock and shut gate. First the falls is an area where you drive up get out and walk a short distance to view the falls. There are never guides there it is always just a go look and explore on your own. Due to the government shut down it was decided to make this drive up area not accessible.This was a let down to all especially the five year old.There were also no buffalo in the main exhibit field. We were not sure why but it was very disappointing to the five year old and our guest. So it makes you wonder who the people we elected really care about.

We have visited the refuge 4 times and usually see buffalo and other animals in the wild, but this time did not.Still a nice leisurely drive and well worth the time.Rick

This was a real treasure to find near Valentine. They have a huge herd of Bison and many graze close to the road and the Visitors Center. The lovely lady at the visitors center was very helpful in pointing out where the Bison had been spotted recently. We found a couple of pods of them, grazing away near the road. We also saw a gigantic herd of elk running along the road, and the cutest prairie dog village. The drive around and the walk down to the falls are not to be missed. This was an absolute gem.