Rambling

Day 9-June 7

We are off for a busy day today. We want to check out the river to decide whether we want to find a shuttle for tomorrow. There is a reservoir that we have been told is a good place for fishing so we definitely plan to check it out. And we are way behind on our hikes. The first place we come to after leaving camp offers an opportunity to take a 2 mile hike to see a water fall. Sounds great so the hiking boots are on and we are ready to set off. About fifty feet into the hike we are attacked by a hoard of blood sucking mosquitoes. Time to head back to town for some bug spray. That accomplished, we are off again. The hike was actually very nice and Fort Falls made it well worth the trip. We then entered Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Preserve for a ride through a Prairie Dog town and another herd of buffalo. We travelled the dirt road on around by the river to get to Smith Falls. The short hike to the falls added another mile to our five mile challenge. Smith Falls are the highest falls in Nebraska and it was really nice to just stand close enough to feel the cooling spray. We are very disappointed in the river. It is wide, quite high and too fast. It would certainly not be a leisurely ride down a river. We have decided to focus on fishing. After all this strenuous exercise we were starving and since our camper is in the opposite direction than we are headed we absolutely must eat lunch at a restaurant in town. We did find a nice local cafe and the food was great. (So we will eat a light supper.)
The Merritt Reservoir is about 30 miles south west of Valentine and there is limited camping for an RV. The temperature is supposed to drop dramatically tomorrow but I am still not willing to give up my power if I don't have to. The wind is blowing about 18 miles an hour so the lake is quite rough especially for a canoe. Time to try another suggestion given to us by a guy in town. There is a Wildlife Reserve close by with numerous small lakes that we have been told are great for fishing. Off we go again. Jess is really excited about his prospects because he has read that the record bream weighing 2 lbs. was taken at Pelican Lake while ice fishing. Of course I don't know a lot about ice fishing except that I don't think it will happen in June. The smaller lakes certainly look more canoe friendly and we spoke to some guys that had been fishing there for a few days with some fantastic fish stories. I can believe at least one story because he showed us a picture of the pike he caught yesterday. Off to town for fishing supplies and out of state licenses. We will move the camper down closer tomorrow morning and hopefully spend the next three days catching our supper.