My wife and I just went on a weekend road trip across Nebraska. Our first stop was the Great Platte River Road Archway Monument in Kearney. It’s a massive archway literally spanning Interstate 80, impossible to miss as you’re driving along. We pulled off to check it out. And I’m glad we did!

Talk about a bridge through time. The Archway tells the incredible story of how the Platte River Valley became America’s highway to the west. This was the same route that the pioneers used on the Oregon Trail, California Trail, and Mormon Trail. The valley was basically the GPS of the 1800s. The river provided water, the terrain was relatively flat, and it became the perfect pathway west. Later, the transcontinental railroad followed the same route, and eventually, so did Interstate 80.

Walking through the exhibits was quite an experience. It felt like time traveling between wagon trains and steam locomotives. I imagined following in the footsteps of hundreds of thousands of people who made this same journey with so much more at stake. They were leaving everything behind for a new life, while I’m just road tripping with a can of Pringles, listening to an audiobook.

There were a couple of small windows you could peek through to see I-80 and the endless Nebraska sky stretching over the Platte River Valley. You can almost imagine those wagon trains stretched out across the landscape.

Okay! One stop in, and Nebraska’s already surprising me. This state’s got stories to tell, and I’m here to listen.