Ponca State Park

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Ponca State Park, located two miles north of Ponca in northeastern Nebraska, is situated on 892 acres among the high bluffs and forested steep hills along the banks of the Missouri River. The park is adjacent to the Missouri National Recreational River. Originally created in 1934 from 200 acres of donated land, Ponca State Park and the town of Ponca itself are named after the Ponca tribe, who inhabited the area before European settlement, and whose chief, Standing Bear, won a celebrated court battle to have the Indian declared a "person" under U.S. law.

The park is noted for its biodiversity. Eastern woodland flowers such as bloodroot, Canada Violet, phlox and sweet cicely can be found growing among prairie plants, including yucca, clover, and larkspur. The wild plum and gooseberry thickets were also noted by the Lewis and Clark Expedition, who passed these bluffs with their Corps of Discovery in the summer of 1804. Forested ravines and hillsides contain bur oak, basswood, elm, black walnut and hackberry. White-tailed deer and wild turkey are commonly seen. Coyotes, red and gray foxes, raccoons and bobcats might also be spotted. This area is also known for the concentrations of waterfowl that congregate during the spring and fall migrations. The barred owl is a vocal resident, and wintering bald eagles are often sighted. Many miles of trails wind through the deep ravines and over the windswept hilltop ridges of the park.