Favorite Place in NE

            The rocky broken in path of the driveway comes into my peripheral view as my dad drives our pickup up towards the bright green gate with an old rusted lock on it.  As we open the gate and drive down the driveway, our tan and green cabin comes into view at the end of an oval of trees circling the main part of our ranch.  My ranch along the Niobrara River is one of my favorite places because whatever we do, we have fun doing it. Whenever we have time, my family and I like to try and head out to our ranch.  Some of the fun things we do are ride 4-wheelers, go tubing, and roast marshmallows.

            Riding 4-wheelers is something fun I can do during any time of the year.  I can ride in the summer or in the winter, even though the fall is my favorite season.  The best part about riding is that I can go pretty much wherever I want.  I could go to the crystal creeks, or the black, fire-burnt tree areas.  I could go to my uncle’s ranch, being there in a blink of an eye, or to the other half of our ranch, seeming like it takes days to get there.

            The clear-blue rapids of the river make me want to jump in right away.  Ignoring my instinct, I wait until I can grab a tube to float down the river peacefully.  Since the river is normally shallow, that makes our tubing trips involve a lot of walking.  Walking isn’t always a bad thing.  Water wars start and laughing begins while everyone has a great time.

            Even though we don’t do it often, roasting marshmallows has always been a favorite of mine.  Just by the cabin, to the left when you go in, there’s a circle of rocks with a stick teepee in the middle of it.  My dad lights the match, making the sticks scream and burst up in flames.  The huge, fluffy marshmallows slide onto the roasting stick perfectly.  The fire slowly heats the marshmallow, making it expand like a glowing cloud.  As I put the sticky marshmallow in my mouth, it melts like butter.

            Some people would think that going to a ranch in the middle of nowhere would be boring.  I don’t think so.  They obviously aren’t doing the right things.  Doing the right things isn’t everything, it’s also spending time with your family or people you enjoy being around.  Riding 4-wheelers, tubing, and roasting marshmallows is always fun, but spending time with your family is the best part.