Toadstool Geologic Park and Campground

There are places that don't look anything like what you expect to find in Nebraska. Toadstool Geologic Park is one of them.

We made the trip there from Fishberry Campground near Valentine in October 2024. Once we got out of the truck and started walking, it felt a little like we'd stepped onto another planet.

The landscape is made up of pale badlands, gullies, exposed rock and the strange formations that gave Toadstool its name. Hard sandstone sits on top of softer layers of clay and siltstone. Wind and water gradually erode the softer material underneath, leaving formations that resemble giant stone mushrooms. 

The geology is interesting enough on its own, but there is much more beneath your feet. This area preserves evidence of animals that lived here roughly 30 million years ago, including early horses, camels, rhinoceroses and entelodonts — large pig-like mammals. Fossil bones and even ancient tracks have been found in the exposed layers. 

There's a one-mile loop trail through the formations. It isn't a manicured walk through a park; you're moving through gullies, streambeds and exposed sandstone, which is part of what makes the place so interesting. 

Mostly, though, what we remember is simply how strange the place felt. Nebraska wasn't what came to mind as we walked through it. For a while, it felt like we were exploring somewhere much farther from home.

This one was worth the trip.

Location: Oglala National Grassland, Nebraska
GPS: 42.85805556, -103.5838889