Another 20 miles east down the road from Chimney Rock you will find a pair of geological landmarks known as Courthouse Rock and Jail Rock. Look for the tombstone-shaped marker that says Seybolt Park for the entrance road. (Not shown here because I missed it: the Historical Marker found directly on NE-88 as you are heading south towards the turn off.)
Access is found just off NE-88 by turning off on Rd 81/Rd84 which is this lovely gravel road bordered at times by some happy little trees.
The access road runs for just shy of 1 mile until it dead ends into a large parking area. From here you really can’t miss it. According to the signs these rocks rise up some 400 feet above the valley below which compared to the other terrain in the area is quite the contrast.
Fear not if you miss the other historical marker sign on the highway like me – there is another sign at the rock itself that more or less encapsulates the same text. Both rocks are on the National Register of Historic Places as well as the Nebraska Natural Areas Register.
Here’s a tighter shot looking up towards Courthouse Rock. It is said that these along with Chimney Rock are the most written about natural landmarks in emigrant’s journals and letters. Courthouse Rock was often referred to as looking like a “courthouse” but also often called a “castle”. To my modern eye I would also say it looks like a big naval battleship. There is a short trail to walk closer but this also seems like a great place to find rattlesnakes so I’m chickening out.
From the parking area if you turn 90 degrees to the left you can also see Jail Rock. It is called the “jail” only because it sits close to the “courthouse” and is a bit smaller. Still a very tall prominence for the area and something fun to see.
You can spend as much or as little time here as you like but I only stayed for about 20 minutes to get pictures and grab a snack from the cooler. Temps are getting a bit warm today out on the plains and the sun doesn’t last long in autumn. Doing some quick math on the next stop it was clear I had to get moving again so it’s back on the road racing against the remaining light.
Lat = 41.5970154 , Long = -103.1142883 -- Show at Google Maps