Heartland Elk Guest Ranch

If you want to stay off the beaten path on your tubing trip along the Niobrara National Scenic River, this ranch provides a nice getaway. Be careful when booking your two-night minimum stay though, because the lodging options are very different. Four cabins, sleeping from 6-14 people, nestle among evergreens in a private setting. Trails lead to a pond, and there are horseshoe pits and a swing set nearby. The cabins are furnished and have full kitchens and air-conditioning. It's a pretty setting, and we'd happily stay there. The stable quarters are a different matter. We stayed there on a hot June evening with no air-conditioning and no fans. There is also no TV, no outdoor entertainment equipment and no screen door. We could live with the dated, inexpensive furnishings, but the temps were just too hot to sleep comfortably. This spot is probably more suited to be a fall hunting lodging rather than a summer vacation getaway, and at $150 per night, we expected more. We did like seeing the horses at the stable and the elk on the main property. We chose not use the ranch as our river tubing outfitter because it did not offer the large, two-person tubes.