Looking for a day of outdoor fun? On Fridays, my kids and I pile in the car and go on Field Trips, aka, Field Trip Fridays. This year's theme is small towns in Nebraska and one of our favorite outdoor towns is Nebraksa City. We love to spend the day in Nebraska City climbing at the Arbor Day Farm Tree Adventure, playing at the pollinator playground at Kimmel Education & Research Center and swimming at the Steinhart Aquatic Center. Depending on where you live in Lincoln, Nebraska City is 30-50 minutes away, just head East on NE-2.
Our favorite part of Arbor Day Farm is the Tree Adventure. We have visited in the fall, spring and summer and it is unique in each season. It isn't just for families either, we often see solo hikers enjoying the scenery too. What is at Tree Adventure? There are two outdoor classrooms, a 2/3 mile walking trail where you will find bridges, streams, and nature all around and tree houses. You can easily spend 3-4 hours at Tree Adventure. In the outdoor classroom there are giant xylophones, hammocks, building materials and fun climbing structures.
 |  |
After playing in the outdoor classroom, we pack our lunch and head off onto the trail. The 2/3 hiking trail is the least used trail (according to staff members) but it is our favorite. There are so many hidden treasures along the way like a fairy door, wooden carvings of animals and large climbing structures. It is not easy to do with a stroller, even a jogging one, as there are stairs and steep inclines. Even though it is only 2/3 of a mile it seems to take us at least an hour because we are continually stopping to explore. To read more about Arbor Day Farm Tree Adventure click here for our full review.
Beach entry? Check. Lazy River? Check. Water slides? Check. Diving well? Check. Splash pad? Check. Does this pool exist? Yes! It is in Nebraska City, the Steinhart Aquatic Center. It is a pool for the whole family. I love the design of this pool, someone was really thinking about who uses what area and what each age group needs. The beach entry has three splash pad pieces of equipment: a slide, an umbrella and a mushroom. It goes to three feet and is separated from the deep part of the pool with a long peninsula. The majority of kids in this area are younger and are with caregivers. In the deeper part of the pool you can swim or use the diving well which has two heights of boards. There are two water slides to go down and a lazy river. The tubes are included in the cost of admission which is $5.50 for kids, $6.50 for adults and age 2 and under are free. We drove over intending to spend two hours at this pool and spent four. To read more about the Steinhart Aquatic Center click here.
 |  |  |
The Pollinator Garden at Kimmel Education & Research Center is next to Kimmel Orchard & Vineyard. It is such a fun and interactive playground! It's a nice place to stop, take a break, play and maybe even go apple picking if it is the right time of year. The Pollinator Garden is located at 5985 G Road. The Pollinator Garden is often our last stop after a day of fun.
Nebraska City has even more fun to offer, these are just a few of our favorite outdoor spots that we like to visit on our Field Trip Fridays.
 |  |
