Welcome to Nebraska

Nebraska looks like a place you just drive through, until you catch it at the right moment. Every spring, more than half a million sandhill cranes drop onto the Platte River between Grand Island and Kearney — one of the greatest wildlife spectacles on the planet, and you can watch it from a quiet blind at dawn. The surprises keep coming: near Alliance sits Carhenge, a full-size copy of Stonehenge built entirely from vintage cars painted gray. Out west, Chimney Rock still spikes up from the prairie, the most famous landmark on the old Oregon Trail, with wagon ruts you can still see. There are white-sand beaches at Lake McConaughy, lazy tubing on the Niobrara River, and yes, both Kool-Aid and the Reuben sandwich were invented here. Below you will find every Nebraska map, trip, guide, and hidden gem we have.

• Nickname: The Cornhusker State
• State soft drink: Kool-Aid
• State bird: Western meadowlark
• State flower: Goldenrod
• State tree: Cottonwood
• State fossil: Mammoth