State: Nebraska

Peak Name: Panorama Point

The very first state high point I completed was Nebraska. My grandparents live in west Iowa, so whenever I would drive from Denver to Iowa I would take I-76 to I-80 through the heartland of Nebraska. I-80 is the most boring, godforsaken bit of road I have ever driven. Even I-70 through west Kansas has more going on. On the way back from my grandparents, I skipped the exit for I-76 and continued towards Panorama Point, located in the bottom left corner of the state.

As soon as you exit the freeway, the road turns to dirt and the sparsity of the region overwhelms. I saw two other cars during the 30 minute drive, the only interesting landmarks were missile silos and buffalo farms. The hill, or bluff or whatever it may be, is just a bench with a stone marker one mile from the Colorado/Wyoming/Nebraska tri-point. The view towards Nebraska is nice, one can see the wheat farms and grazing ranch land. Immediately after the border into Colorado, a wind farm begins, clearly supported by Colorado’s favorable wind policies. After a few pictures, I resumed my journey south towards Denver, through the desolate space of northeast Colorado.