Cragies and Snackies

This one goes out to all our friends in Nebraska!  Nebraska is not known as a climbing destination.  In fact, Nebraska has the 2^nd fewest climbs of any state in the entire USA.  By comparison, Florida is a swamp and has 8 times more climbs than Nebraska.  California has 38,486 more listed routes than Nebraska.  Nebraska has a whopping grand total of 8 routes.

There are two “Crags”.  There is the Schramm Road Crag, which has one route.  It’s a V2 sit start called Almost Cave-ish.   You can find it near the corner of HWY 31 and 204^th Street.  If you happen to go there and you see Betty out there selling her fresh strawberry rhubarb jam, then tell her I says hello.  I made Betty up, but she’s absolutely a believable character. In addition to the Schramm Road Crag, there is also the Goon Stretch Crag.

Goon Stretch offers climbers a variety of routes ranging from V1 all the way up to V2.  The seven routes at Goon Stretch although few, do offer high “shit your pants” potential, as two of the seven routes are rated X and one is rated R.  Route ratings are kind of like movie ratings, where G is safe for anyone, R means that you could get seriously hurt if you fall, and X means that you will get seriously hurt or die if you fall.

The reason for the sketchy ratings is that all seven routes are 15-25 foot highballs.  Although they are all pretty doable routes, a foot slip at the wrong spot could be devasting, so please if you are ever in the area climb with caution.

Goon Stretch is just minutes from Omaha in a town called Chicago, Nebraska.  You can’t miss the crag as it bumps right up to The Elkhorn River on S. 245^th Street.  Now as we all know anything east of 244^th Street is Mable’s territory, so if you happen to be climbing and see Mable selling her sweet huckleberry pie, make sure to tell her I says hello too.  Mable is also fake, but she’s easy to imagine.

The seven routes at Goon Stretch are called Morning Butter, Sketchy Toast, Wacker, Paradox Lane, Ribeye, Tree Chimney, and Magdalene.  I like the route names, especially Morning Butter and Sketchy Toast.  However, I would rename Wacker to Mable’s Huckleberry Pie if given the opportunity.

Those are the seven routes.  After you climb them, clean the shit out of your pants, because I have a great place for post climb snackies!

While there are only eight climbing routes in the state, Nebraska can boast of numerous unbelievable restaurants.  Omaha has an unexpectedly spectacular food scene.  It took a lot of digging before finally settling on some snackies to compliment this cragie.

I settled on the community breakfast spot Over Easy.  Over Easy is only open from 7AM – 2PM, but with only eight routes worry about, getting a late start won’t really be an issue.

I like Over Easy, because their community mission seems to really overlap with what the climbing community is all about.  They list the local companies who helped make the restaurant possible, as well as the local farms from which their food is sourced.

The menu is beyond what you would expect from a typical breakfast/lunch joint.  While they seem to offer all the standards from corned beef hash to quiche, Over Easy goes the extra mile to make the menu pop!  Why have buttermilk pancakes when you could have vanilla buttermilk pancakes?  My favorite offerings are the homemade Nutella pop tarts, seasonal baked oatmeal, hash brown rounds, and the avocado toast.

Their menu is remarkable, but the specials at Over Easy are what really stand out.  Previous specials include eggnog pancakes, red velvet French toast, and a Meyer Lemon Dutch Baby.  The lunch menu which includes classic sandwiches, salads, and soups is nearly as appetizing as the breakfast menu.  The plating aesthetic is striking, and the farmhouse style building is the perfect complement to the food!

If you’re heading to the Goon Stretch, then stopping at Over Easy is a must.  Carl will be out front waiting for you with a fresh pot of hot coffee and a smile, tell him I says hello (Carl isn’t real).

So, while Nebraska isn’t topping anyone’s list of climbing termini, it’s not a place you want to sleep on.  Nebraska Climbing: Come for the food, stay for pant filling, fear invoking highballs.  

Location: Omaha Nebraska “The Cornhusker State”

Crag: Schramm Road/Good Stretch

Restaurant: Over Easy

Distance: 7 Miles