The Wildcat Hills are an escarpment

Escarpment

An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that occurs from erosion or faulting and separates two relatively level areas of differing elevations.-Description and variants:...

 between the North Platte River

North Platte River

The North Platte River is a major tributary of the Platte River and is approximately long counting its many curves, It travels about distance. Its course lies in the U.S...

 and Pumpkin Creek in the western Nebraska

Nebraska

Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....

 Panhandle

Nebraska Panhandle

The Nebraska Panhandle is an area in the west of the state of Nebraska. A panhandle is an area extending from the rest of a political unit; the Nebraska panhandle is two-thirds as broad as the rest of the state. It is approximately 100 miles east to west and 125 miles north to south...

. Located in Banner

Banner County, Nebraska

Banner County is a county located in the U.S. state of Nebraska. The population was 690 at the 2010 census. Its county seat is Harrisburg.Banner County is part of the Scottsbluff, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area....

, Morrill

Morrill County, Nebraska

-History:Morrill County was formed in 1908 "carved out of Cheyenne County". It was named after Charles Henry Morrill, a president of the Lincoln Land Company.-Demographics:...

, and Scotts Bluff

Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska

-National protected area:* North Platte National Wildlife Refuge* Scotts Bluff National Monument-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 36,951 people, 14,887 households, and 10,167 families residing in the county. The population density was 50 people per square mile . There were 16,119...

 counties, the high tableland between the streams has been eroded by wind and water into a region of forested butte

Butte

A butte is a conspicuous isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; it is smaller than mesas, plateaus, and table landform tables. In some regions, such as the north central and northwestern United States, the word is used for any hill...

s, ridges and canyon

Canyon

A canyon or gorge is a deep ravine between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Rivers have a natural tendency to reach a baseline elevation, which is the same elevation as the body of water it will eventually drain into. This forms a canyon. Most canyons were formed by a process of...

s that rise 150 to 300 m (500 to 1000 ft.) above the surrounding landscape.

Chimney Rock

Chimney Rock National Historic Site

Chimney Rock is a prominent geological rock formation in Morrill County in western Nebraska. Rising nearly 300 feet above the surrounding North Platte River valley, the peak of Chimney Rock is above sea level. During the middle 19th century it served as a landmark along the Oregon Trail, the...

, Scotts Bluff

Scotts Bluff National Monument

Scotts Bluff National Monument in western Nebraska includes an important 19th century landmark on the Oregon Trail and Mormon Trail. The National Monument contains multiple bluffs located on the south side of the North Platte River; it is named for one prominent bluff called Scotts Bluff, which...

, and Courthouse and Jail Rocks

Courthouse and Jail Rocks

Courthouse and Jail Rocks are two rock formations located near Bridgeport, Nebraska.The Oregon-California Trail, the Mormon Trail, the Pony Express Trail and the Sidney-Deadwood Trail all ran near the rocks. The pair of rock formations served as a landmark along the trails for many pioneers...

 are outcrops along the northern and western edges of the Wildcat Hills.

Ecology

The plant and animal life in the Wildcat Hills is atypical for Nebraska; the ecology resembles that of the Laramie Mountains

Laramie Mountains

The Laramie Mountains are a range of moderately high peaks on the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains in the U.S states of Wyoming and Colorado. The range is the northernmost extension of the line of the ranges along the eastern side of the Rockies, and in particular of the higher peaks of the...

, 60 miles to the west. The dominant tree in the region is the ponderosa pine

Ponderosa Pine

Pinus ponderosa, commonly known as the Ponderosa Pine, Bull Pine, Blackjack Pine, or Western Yellow Pine, is a widespread and variable pine native to western North America. It was first described by David Douglas in 1826, from eastern Washington near present-day Spokane...

. Bighorn sheep

Bighorn Sheep

The bighorn sheep is a species of sheep in North America named for its large horns. These horns can weigh up to , while the sheep themselves weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates that there are three distinct subspecies of Ovis canadensis, one of which is endangered: Ovis canadensis sierrae...

, pronghorn

Pronghorn

The pronghorn is a species of artiodactyl mammal endemic to interior western and central North America. Though not an antelope, it is often known colloquially in North America as the prong buck, pronghorn antelope, or simply antelope, as it closely resembles the true antelopes of the Old World and...

, elk

Elk

The Elk is the large deer, also called Cervus canadensis or wapiti, of North America and eastern Asia.Elk may also refer to:Other antlered mammals:...

, mule deer

Mule Deer

The mule deer is a deer indigenous to western North America. The Mule Deer gets its name from its large mule-like ears. There are believed to be several subspecies, including the black-tailed deer...

, and wild turkey

Wild Turkey

The Wild Turkey is native to North America and is the heaviest member of the Galliformes. It is the same species as the domestic turkey, which derives from the South Mexican subspecies of wild turkey .Adult wild turkeys have long reddish-yellow to grayish-green...

s live in and around the hills.

Cougars (mountain lion), which had been eradicated from the region around 1900, returned to the area in the early 1990s. The Wildcat Hills (along with the Pine Ridge

Pine Ridge (region)

The Pine Ridge is an escarpment between the Niobrara River and the White River in far northwestern Nebraska...

), are the only areas in Nebraska with a permanent population.

The deer and big horn sheep population has increased dramatically . The big horn sheep were transported here a few years ago. Rattlesnakes are common in the area, but the chance of a bite is rare if the right precautions are taken.

History

The Emigrant Trail

Emigrant Trail

The Emigrant Trails were the northern networks of overland wagon trails throughout the American West, used by emigrants from the eastern United States to settle lands west of the Interior Plains during the overland migrations of the mid-19th century...

 passed through the northern Wildcat Hills at Roubadeau Pass

Roubadeau Pass

Roubadeau Pass, also known as Robidoux Pass, Roubedeau Pass, Roubideau Pass, Roubidoux Passis and Roubadeau Pass Gap, is a gap passing through the Wildcat Hills near Scottsbluff, Nebraska on the Emigrant Trail. It is at an elevation of 4,554 feet, 1,388 meters The pass is a National Historic Landmark...

 and after 1851, at Mitchell Pass

Mitchell Pass

Mitchell Pass is a gap which after 1851 replaced Robidoux Pass as a way through the Wildcat Hills on the Emigrant Trail near Scottsbluff, Nebraska. Mitchell Pass, immediately south of Scotts Bluff and directly west of Gering, Nebraska, eliminated a detour to the south more distant from the North...

; the rock formations were frequently mentioned in emigrant journals and letters. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is a public agency of the government of the State of Nebraska in the United States. The commission is charged with stewardship of the state's fish, wildlife, state park, and outdoor recreation resources. The commission is also charged with issuing of state...

 acquired land for the Wildcat Hills State Recreation Area 41°42′08"N 103°40′02"W in stages between 1929 and 1980; the Wildcat Hills Nature Center, featuring a half-mile boardwalk

Boardwalk

A boardwalk, in the conventional sense, is a wooden walkway for pedestrians and sometimes vehicles, often found along beaches, but they are also common as paths through wetlands, coastal dunes, and other sensitive environments....

 trail, opened in 1995. Today, the Wildcat Hills are a popular hiking

Hiking

Hiking is an outdoor activity which consists of walking in natural environments, often in mountainous or other scenic terrain. People often hike on hiking trails. It is such a popular activity that there are numerous hiking organizations worldwide. The health benefits of different types of hiking...

and wildlife viewing destination.

External links

• Wildcat Hills State Recreation Area