Cowboy Recreation and Nature Trail

Portions of the Cowboy Trail are closed because of damages from flooding of the Elkhorn River in 2010. Please refer to Nebraska's Game & Parks website for updates.

The Cowboy Recreation and Nature Trail, or for short, the Cowboy Trail, stretches 195 miles between the Nebraska towns of Valentine and Norfolk (beginning at Ta-Ha-Zouka Park south of town). When complete, the trail will continue west another 126 miles to Chadron. The Cowboy Trail is mostly surfaced in fine crushed gravel but horseback riders should stay on the adjacent natural surface only. Some short sections are paved.

One of the country's longest rail-trails, the Cowboy Trail follows the route of the old Chicago and Northwestern Railroad through some of the Midwest's most dramatic landscapes. On the east end near Norfolk the trail courses through the Elkhorn River valley, which is dotted with farmsteads and cultivated fields. The river banks are lined with tall trees. West of O'Neill you'll experience more native prairie lands, and in Long Pine the stunning Sandhill country takes over. These grass-covered dunes, the largest in the western hemisphere, carry you along the trail en route to Valentine. Here the Cowboy Trail crosses the Niobrara River Valley—where five major ecological systems converge—via a dramatic 0.25-mile trestle 150 feet above the river.

Each town along the way offers a variety of services and local attractions. For more detailed information about each segment, click on the link under Related Links.

There are numerous access points and places to park along the Cowboy Trail. For more detailed information about trail access and parking, click on the link under Related Links.