Heart City - Valentine, Nebraska, My Gateway to the West

Everybody says St. Louis is the Gateway to the West.  Not for me, at least not on my trip. I knew things were changing when I rolled into Valentine.  I noticed right away it had a National Parks office, my first so far.  (Niobrara National Scenic River is nearby.  The park ranger, Ms. Maxwell, told me it had a bison overlook, among other things.)  I camped that night in an area known for its ancient sand dunes, now curtailed by a layer of prairie.  It was windswept.  It was brown.  It was western.   

I did find a library, by the way.  A lovely, new one, complete with a fireplace and an interesting floor layout.  The librarians were professional, if not exactly friendly.  The weird thing about it is I actually went into the building next door, which also has a sign that says "library" on the outside.  When I asked the librarian, he told me that the other building is actually a book depository now.  I guess you have to live there to know that.  (The first image below is Not the Library.  Really.)