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12-Dec-1999 - The intersection of 41N and 103W is on the high plains on the border of Colorado and Nebraska. This landscape has an austere and simple beauty, with wide open views to the horizon in all directions. At this time of year, there are primarily two colors: light brown field stubble, dry grass, and dirt roads and blue, clear sky.

Farming and ranching are the main activities in this area. Farming either depends entirely on the low rainfall in this semi-arid environment, or is irrigated by modern center pivot machinery, which draws water from deep wells. The huge Ogallala aquifer is under eastern Colorado. In the early part of this century, many people moved to eastern Colorado with hopes of setting up successful and highly productive dry-land farms. Since they believed rain followed the plow, they were confident the arid land would soon bloom. But after a number of years of good rainfall and harvests, drought wiped out many of these early settlers' crops, and their communities, such as Keota, were largely abandoned over time. The Dust Bowl hit this part of Colorado hard, and the USDA set aside large tracts of land for restoration of the native short grass and preservation of the soil. The nearby Pawnee National Grassland, which includes the landmark Pawnee Buttes, is run by the USDA.

To get to the confluence, I travelled from the Denver area and went up state highway 85 to 14, north of Greeley. I then drove east to Briggsdale and north and east to Grover, in the National Grassland. The grassland is host to a variety of wildlife. Raptors nest in the buttes and burrowing owls live in the prairie. Two herds of mule deer crossed my path on the way to the confluence. From Grover, I worked my way north and east on county roads to the small community of Peetz. From there it was a few miles on more dirt roads until I reached Road 61, situated practically directly on 103W. I went north over a low rise and reached 41N, the border with Nebraska. The confluence was about a hundred feet east of the road. I arrived there just after noon.

The pictures give you a poor sense of how expansive the landscape is. All photos were taken with a 50mm lens. Pictures 1 through 4 are the west, north, east and south views. Far in the distance to the east is a homestead. Picture 5 is a view of the intersection point, looking west. The GPS unit is on a box I put in the field. Picture 6 is the nearby town of Peetz.

While Colorado is widely known for its mountains, much of the land area is high plains. This is only one of a lot of confluences out in the eastern part of the state.