I really liked The Nebraska NATIONAL Forest, Bessey Recreation Complex Campground at Halsey. I stayed there the night of the solar eclipse. It was full, I got the last space. Nice place with good walking trails, just off of NE highway 2. Site fee was $11 in 2017. New showers, real nice. It is America's only HAND PLANTED forest! They started planting trees on the sand hills in the 1930's.
A couple of miles east of downtown Chadron on US 20 is the Museum of the Fur Trade......
https://www.furtrade.org/Well worth a couple of hours of your time.
If you go down to Alliance to pick up highway 2, stop at Carhinge, for a few moments and pay homage to the American automobile.
Charles