Another day in Paradise:

The weather this summer has been, well, interesting!  Our area of the plains has received rain, rain and more rain.  And up until last week we were enjoying cooler than normal temperatures.  Everything is beautifully green and lush.  This all makes for enjoyable traveling around the State of Nebraska, well, most of the State at least.

Looking forward to a journey up Nebraska Highway 2 to the northwest Sandhills area.  I have seen beautiful pictures of the Sandhills from residents, mostly ranchers, who appreciate the special beauty they have this summer.  The Northwest has officially come out of a drought period which makes for good grazing for the cattle being raised there.  Hopefully the rains have saturated down into the Ogalala aquifer which lies beneath the Sandhills.  If you are not familiar with the aquifer which lies underneath the majority of Nebraska google it and learn how important this underground water source is in our lives here in the midwest.

The small town of Boelus on Nebraska highway 58 is small but mighty.  It was originally named Howard City in 1885, but because of the confusion with Harvard City, the post office made the village change its name for postal and railroad purposes, to Boelus.  No one is really sure how the name Boelus came to be but there are a few stories floating around.  The town has a grocery store, Whitefoot Market, which also hosts a very successful, popular catering service, Whitefoot Catering.  The businesses are family owned and run and Gene Whitefoot is 92 years young at this writing.  There is the Boelus State Bank, an electric business, a well maintained and used Community Center and a restaurant/bar, Gold Nugget, which is popular on Friday and Saturday nights.  The Gold Nugget has a bit of history itself which includes a legal fight over its name which originally was The Golden Nugget with the giant of the same name in Las Vegas, Nevada.  Yes, they sued the business over en in the name.  The Middle Loup River runs near the town and there is a popular camping area and ballpark on the river bank.

Other local towns are Dannebrog, Rockville, Cairo and Ravenna.  St. Paul and Grand Island are also within a grocery run distance for items not found in the local stores.