Dancing Leaf takes hike through Nebraska history
A look at the early days of Nebraska awaits visitors to Dancing Leaf cultural center.
By early look, I mean early – as in when present-day Nebraska lay under water as part of an ocean.
Les Hosick explained that’s the reason people find shark and other sea life fossils in Nebraska.
Les includes about a 20-minute presentation on the timeline covering Nebraska from prehistoric times through today.
He includes fossils as part of the presentation.
Mammoths once roamed the Nebraska plains. The largest mammoth in the world was found nearby at Medicine Creek. “Archie,” as it’s known, is on display at Morrill Hall on the campus of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
The cultural center’s main attraction is the earthen lodge Les and his wife Jan built by hand. He wanted it to be as authentic as possible.
Les, who has a deep interest in the prehistoric and early historic Native Americans of the region, has helped build a few lodges. His work has also included building lodges with Native Americans.
The lodge’s entrance is short and narrow. The living quarters are in a circle. A hole in the top of the roof allows light, as well as allows smoke to exit when a fire is lighted.
The lodge would have been common with a tribe referred to as the Upper Republican Culture. The tribe is considered forerunners of the Pawnee, according to the Dancing Leaf website.
The lodge would have been self-containing. The family would store food inside by digging chamber underground to store the food and keep it out of reach of pests, Les said.
The family would sleep on animal pelts on the higher level.
If interested, visitors can reserve the lodge for overnight. It strikes me as a cool scout trip or school field trip. They do work with groups on tours, Les said. A typical tour may last about 90 minutes.
The lodge is set up similar to how the family would have done 800-1,000 years ago. A larger campfire and sitting area is located outside. A couple of work areas set off to the side could be used to hang vegetables for drying.
Dancing Leaf also offers a few cabins for lodging. One cabin is fully outfitted like an apartment – living room, kitchen, bathroom and bedroom.
The view outside is beautiful.
They also have two bunk cabins – each with four beds. There is a community bathroom and shower area.
The cultural center offers several trails for hiking the cedar-covered ridge and valley areas. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the chance to take a longer hike. I would have loved it.
Dancing Leaf is an interesting place to visit and is worth the trip about 20 minutes south of North Platte, in Wellfleet. However, you will need to call ahead to make reservations. The owners are not always onsite. I believe more people may visit if they knew they didn’t have to make reservations. Sometimes, when traveling, a side trip may be a spur of the moment decision.
To learn more about Dancing Leaf or to check out reserving a visit, please see their website at http://www.dancingleaf.com/index.html.
Disclaimer: Thanks to the North Platte/Lincoln County Visitors Bureau and Dancing leaf for the complimentary tour. However, all opinions and views are ours.
