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Nebraska National Forest (March 2025)

raqball

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Nebraska National Forest Trip

I hit up the Nebraska National Forest for a 3 day - 2 night camping and off road trip.

Day 1:

I arrived in the area at about 10am, stopped to air down, and then found a good area to set up base camp. After setting up camp I hit the trails at about noon for a few hours of off-roading fun.

I stopped for lunch about 1pm and grabbed a sandwich out of my car fridge and an ice cold water. After lunch it was back on the trails.

Most of the trails today were easy with areas of deep sand and soft sand. A few sand berms were mixed in but nothing crazy.

I got back to camp around 6pm and relaxed for about an hour before cooking up some hamburgers for dinner. I also had some potato salad with the burgers. It was yummy. Tried out my new Coleman Cascade 3 in 1 camp stove and while it performed like a champ, I think I am going back to my JetBoil HalfGen. The Coleman is nice and having a griddle and a grill is nice but it takes up a lot of space in the TigerMoths smallish kitchen.

I brought my Wolfbox car fridge and kept it in the Bronco so I could have cold drinks when out on the trail. The car fridge is dual zone and holds a lot of food. Since it’s a dual zone, I was able to bring along some Ice Cream and keep it in the freezer section of the car fridge. Very happy with the Wolfbox car fridge.

I chilled by the fire for the rest of the night and listened to some music through my small BT speaker..

I went to bed around 9pm and slept great. Overnight temps dropped into the mid 30’s and I did have to fire up my Mr. Buddy propane heater once. I ran it the rest of the night and the TigerMoth warmed up fast and was kept nice and toasty. The Mr Buddy heater runs off a 1lb propane tank and will give you about 5 hours of run time.

Day 2:

I woke up about 5am and made some Life Support Juice (read; coffee). I drank a few cups while sitting by the fire and relaxing. I chilled at the camp site until about 9am then hit the trails for a full day of 4-wheeling.

I wheeled several trails and had an absolute blast. I stopped for lunch around noon and cooked up some ramen noodles I had packed with my Jetboil Minimo. I chilled on my lunch break for about a half an hour. After lunch, it was back on the trails for the rest of the day.

A few of the trails today were a little more challenging with one in particular being very narrow with a few berms that put me at about 20 degrees off-camber. No risk of tip over but increased pucker factor for sure.

Another trail had several very steep accents and descents. It was obvious that I was the only person who has been on this trail in a very, very long time. The sand was soft, loose and deep.

One in particular took me several attempts. Each attempt I’d make it up a bit further before having to back down and make another run.. After several attempts, and digging a track into the sand, I was able to make it up.. This accent was very steep and semi-long.

Massive pucker factor on this trail from almost start to finish..

I got back to camp at about 6pm and relaxed for about an hour. At about 7pm I decided to cook dinner and I had some hotdogs and potato salad. After dinner I relaxed by my fire and just soaked it all in. I had an Ice Cream for desert and then decided to watch a movie inside the TigerMoth on my iPad. After that I went to bed at about 9pm..

Overnight temps were warmer and in the low 40’s. I did not need to fire up the heater and slept well.

Day 3:

I woke up about 5am and again made some Life Support Juice and chilled by my fire. Decided to make breakfast and cooked up some eggs and sausages.

I had 2 more trails that I had previously marked in onX that I wanted to do so I headed out around 7am. After doing those trails, I got back to camp at about 11am, broke down camp and headed home.

Got back home about 4pm and unpacked.

Overall the trip was a blast and I had a great time.

I captured a few videos using my Wolfbox G900 Pro. While it’s a dash cam, it actually does well as a camera for capturing videos when out 4-wheelin’. I use the G900 Pro’s rear camera as a front trail camera and that worked out great during this trip..

Other trip notes:

The Wolfbox car fridge performed like a champ. I dig having a freezer and it kept everything to the temps I set. I keep the car fringe in my Bronco and power ii with a Dometic 40Ah power bank. When the Bronco is running, it powers the fridge and when the Bronco is off the power bank takes over.

Most nights it ran off the power bank for 15+ hours and the power bank would drop from 100% charge to about 70%. The Wolfbox car fridge is not very thirsty, power consumption wise, considering that it has a freezer. I estimate that you could easily get 48+ hours from a 40Ah battery pack.

The Woldbox G900 Pro dash cam performed well and gave me the ability to record trail videos. I have the rear camera set as a front trail camera. No issues at all with the camera or the Woffbox app that I used to transfer and download videos..

***You can use my code: raqball to get 20% off anything at Wolfbox. Car fridge, dash cam, you name it, 20% off!

The Rotopax fuel cans came in clutch. I have 2ea - 3 gal tanks mounted to the TigerMoth. After day 1 I used one and added 3 gallons to the Bronco. I did the same at then end of day 2. If not for these fuel cans I would have needed to divert and drive to the nearest gas station that was 30 miles away from my base camp.

The Coleman Cascade 3 in 1 stove was nice but it is a little large for the TigerMoths kitchen area. I'll go back to using my Jetboil HalfGen.

Trip packing list:

Bronco:

Woflbox Car Fridge
Dometic 40Ah Power Bank
MaxTrax Recovery Boards
Winch Recovery Gear
Snatch Block
Soft Shackles
Tree saver
Tow strap
Gloves
ARB Air Hose and Gauge
Staun Tire Deflators
Midland GMRS and a Rocky Talky GMRS handheld
Garmin inReach Mini
Chainsaw
Small foldable shovel
Bronco Tool Kit
Duct Tape and Zip Ties
Safe Jack Hi-Lift Bottle Jack
Extra Tie Rods

TigerMoth:

Exped Air Mattress
Pillows and Blankets
Coleman Cascade 3 in 1 Camping Stove (new, trying it out)
Jetboil HalfGen (backup to the above)
Jetboil Minimo
Cooking Gear:
Pots
Pans
Plates
AreoPress
Cooking spices, salt and pepper
Kitchen towels
Trash bags
Mr Buddy Propane Heater
Battery Powered Fan
Sonos Roam BT Speaker for some nighttime jams
11” iPad to watch a movie or show if I want
5 gallon water jug
3 gallon Rotopax fuel containers 2ea (6 gallons total)
Camping Toilet for dispersed camping

Other:

Ignik Fire Can w/ 5lb Propane Tank
Camp Table
Camp Chair
Bear Spray (works on other animals and on human animals as well)
Personal Protection Device (if the above fails)
Change of clothes, underoos, socks
Personal Care Items

Photos:

Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) data


Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) data


Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) data


Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) data


Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) data


Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) data


Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) data


Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) data


Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) data


Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) data


Ford Bronco Nebraska National Forest (March 2025) IMG_0089


Videos: ( taken with the Wolfbox G900 Pro )



Random Video of the areas sand dunes and prairies:







Slopes and Dunes: (main cam and trail cam views)











Climb with very deep and soft sand: (5th attempt)





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ScLeCo

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Huh, they have trees in Nebraska?
looks at the pictures
Kind of.
 
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raqball

raqball

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Huh, they have trees in Nebraska?
looks at the pictures
Kind of.
There are a few areas in the National Forest that have trees.. It's mainly sand dunes and prairies though..
 

duel007

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Cool pics! I have heard of this place but never would have guessed Nebraska from the pictures.
 
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raqball

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Cool pics! I have heard of this place but never would have guessed Nebraska from the pictures.
There is another forest further North, by the South Dakota border that I might hit up next. It's the McKelvie National Forest.

It's my understanding that is almost all parries, grasslands and sand dunes..
 

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Great write-up! Thanks for sharing. Seems like a ton of fun.
 
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raqball

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Great write-up! Thanks for sharing. Seems like a ton of fun.
Thanks! I had a blast. Spent all 3 days on the trails and the Bronco performed like a champ! ❤
 

Dugout

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Thanks! I had a blast. Spent all 3 days on the trails and the Bronco performed like a champ! ❤
Makes me wanna do a road camp/golf trip. Combine my hobbies. How are the tent campsites?
 
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raqball

raqball

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Makes me wanna do a road camp/golf trip. Combine my hobbies. How are the tent campsites?
There are 3 established campsites in the Nebraska National Forest. There is an abundance of spots to dispersed camp.

1. Bessey Recreation Complex - Very nice campsite with full bathrooms, showers etc but I'd avoid it at all costs. There are trains that pass right by it several times a night and they all blow their horns long and loud. You will not get any sleep here.

2. Natick Campground - Primitive campground with one vault toilet and potable water. Very quiet and you won't hear the trains I mentioned above.

3. Whitetail Campground - Primitive campground with vault toilets and potable water. Very quiet and you won't hear the trains I mentioned. The Dismal River runs along the campground.
 

TrailDust

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Great pics, have done a lot of hunting in there, Uncle's ranch is one of them bordering the west side. You picked probably the best time to go, turns into a UTV/ATV hell hole in the summers.
 
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raqball

raqball

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Great pics, have done a lot of hunting in there, Uncle's ranch is one of them bordering the west side. You picked probably the best time to go, turns into a UTV/ATV hell hole in the summers.
Nice!

I am retired and most of my trips are during the weekdays to avoid trail traffic.. I did hear it's packed on the weekends in the summer time with UTV's and ATV's..
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