Lake Minatare State Recreation Area is managed by Bureau of Reclamation and is located near Minatare, Nebraska. Lake Minatare is a feature of the North Platte Project. Managed as a State recreation area by the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Lake Minatare, with a surface area of 2,158 acres and about 12 miles of shoreline is a part of the North Platte National Wildlife Refuge. Available species include channel catfish, crappie, small mouth bass, white bass, walleye (15 inch minimum), wipers, and yellow perch. Walleye, channel catfish, and gizzard shad are stocked in the reservoir annually. Motorized boats are permitted. The area is open to the public from Jan. 15 to Sept. 30. A number of Civilian Conservation Corps structures dating to the 1930's exist at Lake Minatare. Included among them is a stone picnic shelter designed to look like a lighthouse. Minatare Dam, constructed between 1912-1915, is a historic structure determined eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.
Popular activities at Lake Minatare State Recreation Area include:
North from Scottsbluff, Nebraska off State Hwy. 71.
GPS Coordinates: 41.94958000000000, -103.50800000000000
All visitors who enter the cavern are required to walk on bio-cleaning mats after exiting. This extraordinary measure is due to the potential presence of the fungus which causes White-Nose Syndrome in New Mexico.
Kennel Information
The park concessioner, Carlsbad Caverns Trading Company, operates a kennel service where you may leave your pet in a temperature controlled environment while you tour the cavern. The kennel is for day use only—no overnight stays.
Fee: $15/day
Vaccine Requirements
For dogs: Rabies, Distemper, Bordetella (kennel cough) and Canine Influenza
For cats: Rabies, Distemper and Panleukopenia
Owners are required to show a copy of the pet’s vaccination record with the expiration date when boarding a pet.
No exceptions. Collar tags do not meet this requirement.
Please be prepared with pet vaccine information when checking in.
Service Animals
Dogs that are task trained for people with disabilities are permitted in the Big Room and Natural Entrance trails, King’s Palace and the Bat Flight Amphitheater.
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, emotional support animals are not considered service animals and are not permitted in the cavern.
Phone: 308-783-2911
Additional Information: