Welcome to the Lied (pronounced like "lead") Lodge in Nebraska City, home of Arbor Day! Lied Lodge appropriately feels nestled into and integrated with the magnificent trees which surround the facility, which is all part of the 260 acre Arbor Day Farm. Nebraska City itself is just a small raft in the middle of an ocean of corn fields, so all of those stately trees at the Arbor Day Farm are really a pleasant reprieve from all of that corniness!
The giant timbers which lined the grand hall did give you the impression of being in a true lodge.
Yet despite its size, there was a certain warmth to the place created by the muted lighting and glowing wood tones.
You could tell that there was a heartfelt commitment to stewardship of the environment, such as by the multiple recycling bins in the room.
Out in the back yard of the lounge was an orchard of nut and fruit trees, the produce of which is used in the on-site restaurant when in season.
There is a splendid walking path through a pocket of forest which connects the Lied Lodge to the actual Arbor Day Farm. It's a great place to enjoy a little leafy shade and the sweet melody of bird calls.
The Arbor Day Farm isn't all about trees. They do have pleasant gardens as well.
In one of those gardens I saw this strange beast. It hovered and suckled the flowers like a humming bird, but it seemed to have antennae and it buzzed like a bee. Any guess as to what it is?
One of the neat things they has was a huge tree house in the forest canopy. Here's where you pick up the trail to the tree house.
It was really difficult to get a good picture of the tree house due to all of the trees. Go figure.
There was this cool curl of tree bark on the deck of the tree house. It must have been about two and a half to three feet in diameter!
At the top of the canopy tree house, you are at an elevation of 1044.5 feet! So I hope your lungs aren't flat like mine, because otherwise you are going to have trouble getting up the steps of the tree house! See you later!
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