Niobrara River: waterfalls and fossil rhinos
Waterfalls, bison and river floats around Valentine, then east along US-20 to fossil beds and the Missouri.
- Distance
- 326 km (203 mi)
- Driving
- 3 h 37 min
- Suggested days
- 3
- Stops
- 7
- States
- NE
- Updated
- May 18, 2026
At a glance: 3-day road trip of about 326 km (203 mi) with 7 stops, from Snake River Falls to Niobrara State Park. About 3 h 37 min of driving in total.
Route description
Start south-west of Valentine at Snake River Falls on NE-97, then drive into Valentine, the town at the heart of the Niobrara National Scenic River. Outfitters in town rent canoes, kayaks and tubes and run shuttles; a summer float between the sandstone bluffs is the highlight of the trip.
Just east of town, Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge has a drive through bison and elk range and a short walk to Fort Falls. Farther downstream, Smith Falls State Park is reached over a footbridge across the river; the falls are Nebraska’s highest, in a shady, fern-covered canyon.
US-20 then runs east for about two hours across ranch land to O’Neill. From there, head north-east to Ashfall Fossil Beds near Royal, where rhinos and horses killed by volcanic ash millions of years ago are preserved where they fell; it is open only in the warmer months.
End at Niobrara State Park, where the river meets the Missouri. A former railroad bridge is now a trail across the river, and the park’s cabins and campsites overlook the valley.
Stop-by-stop itinerary
In driving order. Distances are estimates between consecutive stops.
- 1Start
Snake River Falls
NatureValentine, NEOne of Nebraska’s largest waterfalls by volume, dropping into a sandstone canyon south-west of Valentine. A short path leads to viewpoints above the falls.
- 237 km
Valentine
NE - 38 km
Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge
NatureValentine, NEBison and elk graze the prairie above the Niobrara River on a site that was once an army post. Drive the wildlife loop and walk down to Fort Falls.
- 416 km
Smith Falls State Park
NatureSparks, NENebraska’s highest waterfall, reached over a footbridge across the Niobrara and a boardwalk through a cool, fern-lined canyon. A popular take-out for river floaters.
- 5173 km
O'Neill
NE - 648 km
Ashfall Fossil Beds
HistoryRoyal, NERhinos, horses and camels buried by volcanic ash about 12 million years ago, left exactly where they fell. Watch paleontologists at work inside the Rhino Barn; open in the warmer months.
- 744 km
Niobrara State Park
NatureNiobrara, NEBluffs over the meeting of the Niobrara and Missouri rivers, crossed by an old railroad bridge now used as a trail. Cabins and campsites look out over the river bottoms.
