Nebraska trails · Trooper
Trooper
A 9.3-mile out-and-back in Nebraska, with 626 ft of climbing. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
Elevation profile
Most of the climbing sits in the first third — 73% of the ascent, between mile 0.0 and mile 3.1. It gives back about 868 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Getting there
Trooper access. About 49 min drive (34 mi, 5 of them unpaved) from Chadron. 42.69912, -103.57268 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On October 14, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:37 a.m., the sun rises at 7:06 a.m. and sets at 6:13 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 6:42 p.m. (MDT) — 11 h 08 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 18.5-mile round trip takes roughly 7 h 30 min, so leaving the trailhead at sunrise puts you back around 2:35 p.m. — 3 h 38 min before sunset.
Loop options
- Boots And Saddle + Trooper — 8.9 mi loop, 1,979 ft gain
Nearby trails
- Boots And Saddle — 0.0 mi
- Wood Reserve Pasture Loop Trail — 1.6 mi
- Crazy Horse Trail — 3.0 mi
- Smiley Canyon Loop Trail — 3.7 mi