I started the day in Alliance, a relatively big city (10,000 people) for these wide-open parts. I stayed at the Super-8 the previous night, and the girl who checked me in admitted it was just her second day and that she didn't know all the discounts that they offered or honored (e.g. triple A). Me, in a tired but joking mood, asked if she knew about the 'half-off deal for Arizona residents'. She just said she wasn't sure, it was her second day, and apologized. I didn't pursue the issue, but I didn't get my triple A discount either. Oh well. Anyway, today was my big "Sand Hills" day! Just in case you don't know what I am talking about, the Sand Hills is one of the great natural geophysiological features of the United States: the largest natural sand dune system in the country, exceeding anything that our deserts contain and superceeded only by a few other places in the world (obvious places like the Sahara). The Sand Hills are not a desert; the land is covered in a thicket of low, tough grasses, small cactus and various little shrubs that lock the sand in place. Its origin is obviously glacial, but also the result of eons of wind-borne sand and dust settling the region from places throughout North America. The Sand Hills cover a few thousand square miles in West-Central Nebraska and include swaths of land that extend into Colorado as well. From a distance the Sand Hills look like any other hill system, but with some distinct differences: their shapes are more as one would expect with dunes, and there are literally hundreds of thousands of little sand hillock dunes, as far as the eye can see in some places. It's an unpopulated place, with ranching being the only realistic use of these lands. Farming has been tried but always fails in the nutrient-poor sand. The vast Ogallala aquifer, the largest in the nation, sits underneath the Sand Hills.

Alliance is actually not within the Sand Hills; it sits on the fringe on a flat stretch of land where farming does manage to survive, but from the east end of Alliance, one can see the distinct green dunes rising out of the horizon, like waves on a sea. I drove east along NE-2, and about seven miles later, the highway made a gentle right dogleg and descended a bit; in that one quick instant I went from flat farm land to undulating Sand Hills country. The change-over was that sudden! On the agenda today was the highpoints for three counties: Garden, Grant and Sheridan, all of which are bunched nearby one another (as are the highpoints of Cherry and Arthur Counties, which I opted to skip due to time and access concerns). I drove about 45 miles along NE-2 from Alliance to get to the Sheridan-Grant county line, then another few hundred feet to the first right turn at a small paved road marked by a big sign for the Rex Ranch. I turned right and went south on this road toward my first objectives, the two hills of equal height that tie for the Garden County county honors. I should note here that at this junction, the Grant County apex sits just north of the highway; I chose to get this one the way out.

The road is paved but only about 8 feet wide; just wide enough for one vehicle. The pavement wasn't the best either and it was a rather bumpy 5 mile drive south and west toward the first of the two hills. None of the hills have names; Alkali Lake is the biggest lake in the immediate area and about equidistant between the two highpoint hills. This hill sits just south of Longfellow Lake as seen on the map. From the paved road, I turned right onto a sandy two-track road, passing a wire crumple gate to get in, and went 1.4 miles west along this road, which turned out to be pretty solid (but had a high center, which I scraped with my vehicle's underside a few times). I came to a 'gate' at a fence line, a single wire strand spanning the opening. I could see my objective about a mile distant to the southwest. I used my GPS to verify my position, and got started hiking. There were no signs at any point about restricted access, but to be sure I left a note in my vehicle just in case anyone came upon it. I started in about 8 a.m. in cool, mostly clear weather.

I walked southwest along the sandy road that quickly degenerated into soft sand. Walking was slow but easy. After about 15 minutes I came to another fence line, putting me due north of the hill. Unfortunately a boggy stream/marsh feeding Longfellow Lake blocked my way. Without exploring my options, I decided to just suck it up and walk through the shin-high muck. It was only about 25 feet of it but I soaked my boots, socks and pants. I crossed another fence and spooked a small herd of cattle. They took off one way and I obliged them by walking the other way... then, still spooked and still full of cow-stupidity, ran 'away' from me by coming my way! So I stopped until they stopped, zigged hoping they would zag, but everytime, they'd scamper toward me. Finally they got a clue and went to an area I wasn't heading to. Damn cows are stupid; no wonder we eat them. They aren't useful for much else, for sure. Anywho, I was now at the base of the hill. The climbing was short and sometimes a bit steep, and seemed to take longer than at first planned, but soon enough I topped out and walked the small summit area, taking in the view of all the hills surrounding me. I also took this opportunity to look at the lake/marsh I crossed, and saw that if I went west some more I could probably avoid the wettest of the muck.

The hike down went quick and I did manage to stay dry on the hike out. The round trip mileage was about 2.5 which includes some indirect routing, and about an hour to gain the hill, with about a 300-foot net gain. I got back to my vehicle and changed into drier clothes and socks, and tied my boots to the bike-rack hoping they would dry fast while I was driving. It was a fast, enjoyable easy hike, and I was treated to numerous birds including hawks, geese, ducks and cranes. I drove out to the main road and went south 6 miles to the southern area. The pavement gave way near a ranch home but the road was solid.

The southern hill is right along the road with far easier access. I parked along the road due south of the highest point and simply scampered up the very steep hillside, and pretty much right to the top. Two or three little points on the top served as likely candidates and I visited all the areas, then hiked out. On the hiked down I had a fun time 'sand skiing' on the hillside, but also trying to avoid the snakes that probably live everywhere in this area. This hike took about 35 minutes and covered less than a mile round trip; together I put the stats at about 3.25 miles and almost 500 feet of net gain. I drove back out to the main highway and got myself situated for the Grant County hike.