Panhandle Nebraska
The Panhandle is Nebraska’s western end: eleven counties where the plains climb to the High Plains and break into buttes, with the pine-covered Pine Ridge in the north and the Wildcat Hills in the south. About 83,000 people lived here in 2020, more than four in ten of them in Scotts Bluff County, where Scottsbluff (14,436) and Gering (8,564) face each other across the North Platte. Alliance, Sidney and Chadron are the other main towns. The whole Panhandle is on Mountain Time.
Counties in the Panhandle
Scotts Bluff County
Seat: Gering · 36,084 people · Scotts Bluff National Monument, the Wildcat Hills and the North Platte valley
Box Butte County
Seat: Alliance · 10,842 people · Carhenge, and NE 2 and US 385 across the High Plains
Cheyenne County
Seat: Sidney · 9,468 people · I-80 and US 385; Cabela’s headquarters until 2017
Dawes County
Seat: Chadron · 8,199 people · Fort Robinson, Chadron State Park and the Pine Ridge
Sheridan County
Seat: Rushville · 5,127 people · US 20 ranch country, Gordon and the Pine Ridge
Morrill County
Seat: Bridgeport · 4,555 people · Chimney Rock and the North Platte valley
Kimball County
Seat: Kimball · 3,434 people · Panorama Point, Nebraska’s highest point
Garden County
Seat: Oshkosh · 1,874 people · Ash Hollow and the Crescent Lake refuge
Deuel County
Seat: Chappell · 1,838 people · I-80 and Lodgepole Creek; where Cabela’s began
Sioux County
Seat: Harrison · 1,135 people · Agate Fossil Beds, Toadstool and the Oglala National Grassland
Banner County
Seat: Harrisburg · 674 people · the Wildcat Hills and the dry tableland called the Divide
Towns
Travel Corridors & Trails
US 26 follows the North Platte from Ogallala through Garden, Morrill and Scotts Bluff counties; US 385 runs north–south through Sidney, Bridgeport, Alliance and Chadron. Emigrant trails: Oregon Trail · California Trail · Mormon Pioneer Trail · Pony Express.
Explore the Panhandle
Landmarks & Attractions
Scotts Bluff National Monument (Gering) — the bluff that guided wagon parties on the Oregon Trail, with a summit road and trails. The Legacy of the Plains Museum is in Gering.
Chimney Rock National Historic Site (near Bayard, Morrill County) — the best-known landmark of the emigrant trails.
Fort Robinson State Park (near Crawford) — the largest park in the state system; the former army post where Crazy Horse was killed in 1877. Lodge, cabins, campgrounds and trail rides.
Chadron State Park (south of Chadron) — Nebraska’s oldest state park, in the Pine Ridge; the Pine Ridge National Recreation Area is nearby, and Chadron has the Museum of the Fur Trade.
Toadstool Geologic Park and the Hudson-Meng site — badlands and a bison bonebed on the Oglala National Grassland, about 94,500 acres in Sioux and Dawes counties.
Agate Fossil Beds National Monument — fossil hills on the Niobrara in Sioux County.
Wildcat Hills State Recreation Area (south of Gering) — nature center, trails and bighorn sheep.
Ash Hollow State Historical Park (near Lewellen) — the emigrant trails’ descent from Windlass Hill to the North Platte; Crescent Lake National Wildlife Refuge lies north in the Sandhills.
Carhenge (north of Alliance) and Panorama Point (Kimball County, 5,424 feet, Nebraska’s highest point).
Cameras in the Panhandle
Road cameras by county (Nebraska 511 images). Road conditions: Nebraska 511.
Directory Listings
Each county page lists its towns and sorts its businesses and places by category.
The Eleven Counties of the Nebraska Panhandle
The Panhandle is the part of Nebraska that stops looking like Nebraska. The land climbs steadily west to the High Plains, and the flat horizon breaks into buttes, escarpments and pine-covered ridges — the Pine Ridge in the north, the Wildcat Hills in the south, and the badlands of the Oglala National Grassland between.
This is where the emigrant trails came through. Chimney Rock and Scotts Bluff were the landmarks that told wagon parties on the Oregon, California and Mormon trails how far they had come, and both still stand over the North Platte valley. All eleven counties are on Mountain Time.
Each summary below comes from its county page, which has the full list of towns, places and businesses.
Banner County at a Glance
Banner County, Nebraska — ranch country between the Wildcat Hills and Kimball, with one community, the unincorporated county seat of Harrisburg. Mountain Time.
Getting there: NE 71 from Kimball (I-80) or Scottsbluff, then Spur 4A to Harrisburg; NE 88 from Bridgeport or Wyoming.
For visitors: the Banner County Museum and Historical Day in Harrisburg; Williams Gap and Buffalo Creek WMAs. No hospital: Scottsbluff and Kimball.
Box Butte County at a Glance
Box Butte County, Nebraska — 1,078 square miles of irrigated tableland with 10,842 people, county seat Alliance. 204 listings across 5 towns. Mountain Time.
Getting there: US 385 from Bridgeport or Chadron; NE 2 from the Sandhills or from Crawford; NE 87 from Hay Springs. Alliance has a commercial airport.
For visitors: Carhenge, the Knight Museum and the Sallows Military Museum in Alliance, the county fair in Hemingford, and Box Butte Reservoir just north. Hospital in Alliance.
Cheyenne County at a Glance
Cheyenne County, Nebraska — the southern Panhandle along Lodgepole Creek and I-80. County seat Sidney; Mountain Time.
Getting there: I-80 and US 30 across the county; US 385 north to Bridgeport and east to Chappell; NE 19 south toward Sterling, Colorado.
For visitors: Fort Sidney, Boot Hill and the Cabela's flagship store in Sidney; the Potter Sundry and duckpin lanes; depot museums in Potter and Lodgepole. Hospital: Sidney Regional Medical Center.
Dawes County at a Glance
Dawes County, Nebraska — the heart of the Pine Ridge. County seat Chadron, home of Chadron State College. 285 listings across 9 towns. Mountain Time.
Getting there: US 20 east–west through Chadron, Whitney and Crawford; US 385 north–south through Chadron; NE 2/71 from Hemingford through Marsland to Crawford.
For visitors: Fort Robinson State Park, Chadron State Park, the Museum of the Fur Trade and the Pine Ridge National Recreation Area. Hospital in Chadron; clinic in Crawford.
Deuel County at a Glance
Deuel County, Nebraska — the southeast corner of the Panhandle, on I-80 where I-76 splits off for Denver. County seat Chappell; Mountain Time.
Getting there: I-80 and US 30 across the county; US 385 and US 138 from Julesburg, Colorado; NE 27 from Oshkosh.
For visitors: the courthouse and Heritage House in Chappell, where Cabela's began; the Phelps Hotel, depot museum and Sam Bass robbery marker in Big Springs; the Waterman Sod House. Nearest hospitals: Julesburg, Colorado, and Sidney.
Garden County at a Glance
Garden County, Nebraska — 1,731 square miles of Sandhills lakes and North Platte valley with 1,874 people, county seat Oshkosh. 166 listings across 3 towns. Mountain Time.
Getting there: US 26 and NE 92 up the North Platte from Ogallala or down from Bridgeport; NE 27 from I-80 Exit 95 near Chappell.
For visitors: Ash Hollow and Windlass Hill on the Oregon Trail, Crescent Lake refuge (much of it burned in March 2026), Clear Creek WMA at the head of Lake McConaughy, and a hospital in Oshkosh.
Kimball County at a Glance
Kimball County, Nebraska — the southwestern corner of the state, on I-80 at the Wyoming line, with Panorama Point, Nebraska's highest point. County seat Kimball; Mountain Time.
Getting there: I-80 and US 30 across the county; NE 71 north to Scottsbluff and south to Colorado.
For visitors: Panorama Point by way of Bushnell; the Plains Historical Museum and Farmers Day in Kimball; Oliver Reservoir. Hospital: Kimball Health Services.
Morrill County at a Glance
Morrill County, Nebraska — 1,430 square miles of North Platte valley and tableland with 4,555 people, county seat Bridgeport. 146 listings across 19 towns. Mountain Time.
Getting there: US 26 up the North Platte from Ogallala or down from Scottsbluff; US 385, the Gold Rush Byway, from Sidney or Alliance; NE 92 from Gering past Chimney Rock.
For visitors: Chimney Rock and Courthouse and Jail Rocks on the Oregon Trail, camping and fishing at Bridgeport State Recreation Area, and a hospital in Bridgeport.
Scotts Bluff County at a Glance
Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska — the irrigated North Platte valley of the Panhandle, with Scotts Bluff National Monument. County seat Gering; largest city Scottsbluff; Mountain Time.
Getting there: US 26 along the valley; NE 71 (Heartland Expressway) from Kimball and I-80; NE 92 from Wyoming and Bridgeport; Western Nebraska Regional Airport.
For visitors: the national monument, Robidoux Pass, the Legacy of the Plains Museum, the Riverside Discovery Center, Wildcat Hills and Lake Minatare. Hospital: Regional West Medical Center, Scottsbluff.
Sheridan County at a Glance
Sheridan County, Nebraska — from the Pine Ridge to the Sandhills lakes. County seat Rushville; largest city Gordon. 250 listings across 11 towns. Mountain Time.
Getting there: US 20 east–west through Hay Springs, Rushville, Clinton and Gordon; NE 2 across the Sandhills in the south; NE 27, NE 87 and NE 250 north–south.
For visitors: Walgren Lake, Smith Lake, the Cowboy Trail, the Mari Sandoz sites on NE 27 and the county’s museums. Hospital in Gordon; clinics in Gordon and Rushville.
Sioux County at a Glance
Sioux County, Nebraska — the state's northwestern corner, on the Wyoming and South Dakota lines. County seat Harrison, the only town; Mountain Time.
Getting there: US 20 from Lusk, Wyoming, or Crawford; NE 29 from Mitchell.
For visitors: Agate Fossil Beds, Toadstool Geologic Park, Hudson-Meng and the Warbonnet battlefield. No hospital: Lusk, Wyoming, or Chadron. Fuel and food are scarce; plan ahead.
Explore the Region
US 20 enters Nebraska from Wyoming in Sioux County and crosses the northern Panhandle through Harrison, Crawford, Chadron, Hay Springs, Rushville and Gordon — the stretch known as the Bridges to Buttes Byway. US 26 follows the North Platte and the emigrant trails through Garden, Morrill and Scotts Bluff counties, and I-80 crosses the south through Chappell, Sidney and Kimball.
Fort Robinson State Park near Crawford is the largest park in the state system, and Chadron State Park is the oldest. Toadstool Geologic Park and the Hudson-Meng bison bonebed lie on the Oglala National Grassland, and Agate Fossil Beds National Monument sits on the Niobrara in Sioux County.
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