Niobrara National Scenic River NE
Lat, Long: 42.79413083, -99.91870646
Designation: National Scenic River
With a little something for everyone, the Niobrara National Scenic River is a destination for crossing adventures off your bucket list. Most popular for river recreation, you can float the Niobrara River on a canoe, tube, or kayak as a beginner and have a blast. Hiking, biking, and wildlife watching keep our visitors busy. Oh! And we haven't even told you about the waterfalls yet.
Weather:
Summer (June-August): highs - low 80s to low 100s; lows - 50s to 60s, with occasional thunderstorms and associated strong winds. Moderate dry winds are common in the summer. 8.3" is average summer rainfall. Winter (November-April): Average highs 20-30s, average lows 0-10s with 5.5"/month average snowfall. Spring (April/May) and Fall (September/October) have cooler temperatures: average highs 60-70s, average lows 30-40s with 7.3" average rain/snowfall.
Directions:
Most visitors start their trip in the city of Valentine, Nebraska. Valentine is 76 miles south of I-90 (Murdo, SD Exit) on Hwy 83; or 130 miles north of I-80 (North Platte, NE Exit) on Hwy 83. The nearest major airports are in Rapid City, SD (220 miles); Denver, CO (391 miles); and Omaha, NE (300 miles)
For more details ›Address/Contact:
214 W US Highway 20
Valentine, US, 69201
Phone: 4023761901
Email: niobrara_nsr@nps.gov
Entrance Fees:
Entry is free
![A beautiful, if short, waterfall empties into the side of the Niobrara NSR.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nps.gov%2Fcommon%2Fuploads%2Fstructured_data%2F3C7C95AD-1DD8-B71B-0B9C962E8BA62E89.jpg&w=640&q=100)
![A man takes a photo of a meandering river from an overlook.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nps.gov%2Fcommon%2Fuploads%2Fstructured_data%2F3C7CA02C-1DD8-B71B-0BCEA25352ED688A.jpg&w=640&q=100)
![Yellows, oranges, and greens dominate the fall colors along the Niobrara NSR.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nps.gov%2Fcommon%2Fuploads%2Fstructured_data%2F3C7C9E7E-1DD8-B71B-0BA958173B164D34.jpg&w=640&q=100)
![Two people in one canoe paddle along the bluffs of the Niobrara NSR.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nps.gov%2Fcommon%2Fuploads%2Fstructured_data%2F3C7C948A-1DD8-B71B-0B91A2ACA9AACDDF.jpg&w=640&q=100)
![A view from a canoe, with the photographer's feet resting on the bow, of the Niobrara NSR.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nps.gov%2Fcommon%2Fuploads%2Fstructured_data%2F3C7C9873-1DD8-B71B-0B9C787CAE2BC09F.jpg&w=640&q=100)
![A paddler in a canoe goes through Class II Rapids on the Niobrara NSR.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nps.gov%2Fcommon%2Fuploads%2Fstructured_data%2F3C7C9A47-1DD8-B71B-0BFF627C036B27B1.jpg&w=640&q=100)
![Many people on tubes float down the Niobrara.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nps.gov%2Fcommon%2Fuploads%2Fstructured_data%2F3C7CA6F5-1DD8-B71B-0B9425F70CB40B05.jpg&w=640&q=100)