I 80 Nebraska ???

I was wondering if Nebraska had a 'grade ahead' roadsign. It didn't take too many tries to find one on US20:
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=sand+hills&hl=en&ll=42.661273,-103.577614&spn=0.277717,0.598755&sll=42.792377,-103.744583&sspn=0.277131,0.598755&t=p&hq=sand+hills&z=11&layer=c&cbll=42.661273,-103.577614&panoid=G6m0rk1861dLJyJWUEHAWw&cbp=12,103.89,,0,0

jessjerr1831 wrote:
To everyone who thinks Nebraska is flat, :Get off of the Interstate highway.: Lived in Nebraska for years. Still drive through it to get back to S.D. to visit relatives. It is definitely not flat. The Sandhills are great. Love to drive through them whenever we can. Northeast Nebraska is definitely not flat. Try driving those hills in the winter. The Pine Bluffs of Northwest Nebraska are not flat. Explore the state.

We're talking about I 80 here. Platte River! FLAT!

To everyone who thinks Nebraska is flat, :Get off of the Interstate highway.: Lived in Nebraska for years. Still drive through it to get back to S.D. to visit relatives. It is definitely not flat. The Sandhills are great. Love to drive through them whenever we can. Northeast Nebraska is definitely not flat. Try driving those hills in the winter. The Pine Bluffs of Northwest Nebraska are not flat. Explore the state.

Yeah, they are from building the interstate, BUT because Nebraska is so flat, the dirt removed was used to build mounds so the surveyors could see where to go next :B They decided to convert the mounds to overpasses later.






If you buy that, I've got a bridge for sale. LOL

They are all gravel pits from the interstate construction. The water is all ground water. Most of them are open to the public. The fishing can be really be great in them at times! Fishing is really good on the ice. So next time on your way through stop and spend some time. You will enjoy it!

Some states call them Storm water ponds some call them containment ponds. After They put a road threw a wetlands they need a place for the runoff to go to stop flooding. They also collect silt to keep it from destroying the surrounding environment.

Nebraska Game and Parks owns a few and they are descent fishing ponds; War Axe SRA near the Shelton exit is one of them. My father-in-law has worked at one of the sand pits near Kearney for several years..not sure about fishing from those ponds but it has been a good source of sand and gravel for the owners for a few decades. The dredge operators at some of those pits sometimes pull up mammoth teeth indicating they have been around a long, long time.

1mtnman wrote:
My understanding of them is that they were gravel pits in the past. The gravel was used to initially build the first interstate. They are now feed from springs and natural underground water.

That's my take on it and lord knows I could be wrong. I was once before!

As stated, when these Interstate and toll roads were constructed, soil samples were also done on the intended route. MANY places were found to have sand or gravel deposits locate just a few feet under the farmers fields where the highway was being built, It was far cheaper and easier to dig out this gravel and sand along the intended route than trucking this same material from miles away. So now we see these small ponds and sometimes rather large ones along the roadways. Some people have even built small 3 season cottages next to these larger ponds.

Those are called borrow pits. They "borrowed" the dirt to build the interstate and shallow ponds along the road way are the result. They are not uncommon in the midwest along I 35 in Kansas, I70 and I80. I am sure there are probably some along other interstates but I am only familiar with these.

Like this?
https://maps.google.com/?ll=40.698519,-99.615719&spn=0.00937,0.021136&t=h&z=16

Much of I80 follows the Platte ('flat') River. So the water table is close to the surface. The pits themselves might be left over from the freeway construction, especially ones close to interchanges where they needed extra soil to build up the overpass.

This river was too shallow to use for boat travel, but wagon trains followed it because it was a reliable water source.

http://www.nebraskafishing.com/article.aspx?ID=369
fishing these borrow pits