Crane Trust Nature & Visitor Center

Sandhill crane cameras on the Platte River you can view live 24/7 on YouTube. They have a Bison (Buffalo) herd of about 150. Nature Center is on 6k acres of land. Bison are in various pastures for about 1,500 acres. Nature trails. Gift shop. Meeting room. Art for sale. Very child friendly with crafts. Just attended a free hayride with Bison evening with s'mores around a firepit. Last month they had Bison viewing, live music and food trucks. People have visited from all over the world to see the Sandhill cranes migrate through here in Feb/Mar. About a 5 mile stretch or so on the Platte River is the center of the hourglass for migrating cranes.

I visited the Crane Trust on my way to Gibbon for the Sandhill Cranes migration. The friendly staff provided great information. Inside, the walls showcase paintings and portraits by talented artists. There's a trail to the river and a chance to see buffalo. Before leaving, you can fill out a postcard, and they'll send it for you.

Everyone there was super friendly and very knowledgeable about the animals and happy to talk with you. Their preserve has a few miles worth of nature trails that were gorgeous and easy to find and navigate. Their building had a great gift shop and tons of photographs and art pieces available to purchase. They also have a good bit of educational / informational materials about the animals and the land they're surrounded by. I'm so glad I was able to explore their center and trails and would recommend it to anyone looking for a cool little adventure. I was also told the best time to see the birds is in March when they migrate here in huge numbers!

Love the Bison! What a great property run in conjunction with the US National Wildlife Service. Nice visitor center with art gallery, gift shop, snacks and bathrooms. Parking is plentiful and large enough for any size rig or RV. Bison heard happened to be right outside the visitor center. Great hiking trails about the property. I had 3 bars of Verizon 4G LTE Roaming throughout the property.

Great volunteers! Very helpful. Enjoyed the lovely walk to see the bison!

Great place for a quick visit on your road trip, right off of the highway. Wonderful education center for adults and kids, beautiful art gallery where you can buy prints, gift shop, and a total of 3.5 miles of trail to stretch your legs. The trail has two path options and a great way to get a feel for Nebraska nature and a chance to see bison and other wild life

I’ve stopped by the Crane Trust Visitor Center many times over the years. This was the first time to do an evening blind tour. The orientation presentation was informative and helpful to get all of us organized to drive out to the blinds about a mile further south. The blinds were well located with a view out onto the river. Trevor was our volunteer host. He was friendly, sharing a great deal of local knowledge. We didn’t have the fanciest camera to get up close with the birds but the borrowed binoculars were appreciated. Just take the time to enjoy the sunset and hear the birds landing in the river. It’s worth experiencing!

Visiting here is highly recommended. Every volunteer and member of staff I encountered was so passionate about the work they do I couldn't help but be excited at every turn. The migration of the cranes is an awe inspiring event that everyone should see in person. The VIP experience is a must do! The cabins have everything you could need, the meals were delicious, and the HEATED blinds made the whole event more enjoyable.

We came to the Grand Island area for the Sandhill Crane migration. We stopped here at the Crane Trust. It is just off the Interstate so is easy to get to. There are nature trails, art displays, nature films, gift shop, etc. It's all very nice. There is a snack bar (nachos, hot dogs, etc) but I don't know if that is always open. This is a great resource. If you are making a long trip to see the cranes I suggest you look into the information for here and for Rowe Sanctuary (well in advance of your visit) if you want to have a really thorough experience. If you just show up, it's totally fine - but just be aware that during the spring migration, there will be thousands of humans coming through here - in addition to 710,000 cranes. It's a busy place.

What can you say...it is absolutely Biblical!! When thousands and thousands...and I do mean THOUSANDS of birds take flight...it is as God has woken up and shaken out his celestial sheets. It is close to the most memorable events in my life. I wasn't expecting too much. After all, it's just a bunch of dumb birds (Sand Hill Cranes) ....but the uncomfortableness of waiting for the birds to do their thing was rewarded when a bald eagle came in for a looksy. ALL HELL broke loose. The sky went dark and the Noise of all of those birds screeching was overwhelming!!! I was expecting Moses to cruise by to part the waters for us. 300,000 to 500,000 birds swing by this stretch of river in Nebraska each year. I happened to be back at home and a good friend had a opening for me to tag along. Wow!! The director of the sanctuary, Brad Mellema, was able to take us on a side trip to view several Bald Eagles. Led Zepplin's "Kashmir" was ringing in my ears as the eagles struted around the sand bars in the middle of the river. Incredible creatures!!! I would call the center to arraigned a viewing. It was rather crowed the day we went. Check it out!!! Simply Amazing!!!

I'm rating the Center, not the cranes. I mean, obviously, they're amazing. Everyone we talked to at the visitor center was nice, pleasant, and very helpful. They gave us great information about exactly where to drive to see the crane migration. We picked up several maps and pamphlets. We walked the trail along the river; and enjoyed the sun and fresh air. Unfortunately, while we had seen the bison while driving in, we were unable to see them from the trail.

Great little nature center with information on sandhill cranes, also the rare whooping crane, and other species of birds and animals. Has a Grow Nebraska shop on the premises, too! A trail from the center crosses a bridge over the Platte and then splits into several trails that follow along the river or go into the woods and fields. Before the bridge, there is a watch tower next the adjoining cow farm (the cows were calving the weekend we were there). Beautiful location, helpful staff. Also has the dawn/dusk tours with some of same guides from Rowe.

I would have chosen lower rating, even a negative number if I could have. Their photos of the blinds were false advertising. I'm 6' 3" tall, I couldn't stand up in the blind. The viewing windows were tiny and set at a level of a child. The windows were also so small there wasn't any viewing area, unlike all the other blinds I have been at at both the Crane Trust and at Rowe. I was the first to check in (at noon) and was given no choice which of the blinds to use, two which were horrible and two that were 1st class. Guess I didn't know the right people to get the good blinds. I drove 500+ miles to be treated like dirt? This is the 4th time I had gone and taken a tour at the Crane Trust, 1st time overnight. The emergency number given to us wouldn't pick up in the morning when they didn't come to pick us up for over 1 1/2 hours past the pickup time. I was sick as a dog all night long with diarrhea due to the food I ate at the Crane Trust at lunch. Only after we called the 2nd time did anyone respond, and then they told us that they couldn't pick us up because the cranes were roosting? Say what? I will do so many negative reviews the Crane Trust will never use those 2 blinds again, and hopefully when someone gives out an emergency number they will pick up. This was a waste of my time, effort and expense. Thanks Crane Trust, I wouldn't ever come back! And to think that this overnight stay was on my bucket list for years. . . and you ruined it!

The Nebraska Nature center has a very sincere and educated staff. Everyone feels right at home! Amazing center, surprisingly large gift shop and an amazing nature photography display. And of course there's the cranes. They never disappoint.

Super helpful and friendly people. They really do their best to give you up to date info to help you locate the birds and treat you with respect. Also a beautiful facility and pretty walk over the platte. The buffalo herd is pretty cool too, and they have some buffalo/cattle crosses that are interesting to see.

Beautiful place to go hiking, see some Bison, and take some wonderful pictures! We were a few months late to see the cranes but it was still worth visiting.