We started a new series recently at Oh My! Omaha called “Off the Beaten Path.” I asked friends, and fellow writers and bloggers to share some of their lesser known haunts, be it a park, shop or attraction. Here’s the next installment: Off the Beaten Path – First National’s Spirit of Nebraska’s Pioneer Courage Park at 1400 Capitol St.
I’ve written about this neat little park in Omaha recently in regards to the public art there. The bronze statues are worth checking out, but I’m writing about the park for a different reason today.
A great escape in the middle of downtown Omaha, Pioneer Courage Park offers shade, tranquility and a nice view.
I’ve found this park to be an excellent picnic site, or for those working downtown, it’s an accessible spot to have a lunch outdoors. Never crowded, I like the tranquility of the place (it’s not quiet by any means, but where in downtown Omaha will you find quiet?). There are trees to sit under for shade, or if you’re not a sit-on-the-grass kind of person, there are large boulders there, as well.
Call me anti-social, but I like to eat undisturbed, and at Pioneer Courage Park, no one passes by or tries to sit down for a chat. In other spots I’ve tested out over lunch breaks, I’ve had some chatty people cozy up to me on the bench, even if my nose was buried in a book.
If you love wide-open spaces allowing your kids to burn off some energy, here’s the place. That’s Farley off in the distance. Wish I could bottle his energy.
Picnic-wise, there is a huge grass field to enjoy. Bring a ball for a pick-up game of soccer or football if you think of it.
Side note: Promise the next time I write an Off the Beaten Path Omaha post, I’ll pick somewhere not downtown.