Four miles east of Valentine, an old 1879 cavalry fort’s grounds became one of Nebraska’s best wildlife refuges. Fort Niobrara holds about 350 bison and 100 elk on 19,000 acres of canyon, sandhills, and river — and the bison are often right along the 3.5-mile wildlife drive, close enough to hear.
The Fort Falls Trail is the walk to do: about a mile down into the canyon to a waterfall, with the Niobrara’s spring-fed clarity on full display. The refuge is also the classic put-in for floating the National Scenic River through the canyon stretch, with a small per-watercraft launch fee.
It’s free and open daylight hours year-round; the visitor center runs daily in summer, weekdays off-season. Give the bison real space on the trails — they are not scenery, and the refuge means it.