Golf, Scenic Tours & Parks

Located 7 miles northwest of Burwell and directly east of the Calamus Reservoir SRA is Calamus Golf. The course is open April 1st – November 1st each year. The Calamus Golf Course features a 2,845 yard course with fully watered bluegrass fairways and bent grass greens along with water hazards and grass bunkers. The newly completed clubhouse offers refreshments and food and is open weekday afternoons and all day on weekends. The clubhouse is available to rent for business meetings, receptions and other events. For additional information on the Calamus Golf Course contact 308-380-6176.

Located on the north side of town is the Burwell City Park, open to the public. Burwell’s city park is bordered by the North Loup River and includes a number of enjoyable activities including 2 tennis courts, a Frisbee Disc Golf Course, a new playground, a baseball field and a fishing pond. Burwell’s City Park also includes picnic facilities and camping facilities.

Located in the Burwell City Park area is the Burwell Swimming Pool. The Burwell Swimming Pool facilities include 2 diving boards, a baby pool and locker room facility. Community members and visitors can participate in Red Cross swimming lessons and adult aerobics. The Burwell Swimming Pool is open daily Memorial Day weekend through mid-August. For additional information contact the Burwell City Hall at 308-346-4509.

Kamp Kaleo, 2 miles east of Burwell offers more than 200 acres of woods and grasslands, stretching over a mile of riverfront. Set in the Sandhills of Nebraska, Kamp Kaleo calls out to yearning spirits seeking retreat from life’s stress. Kamp Kaleo is the perfect setting for meetings, learning retreats, family, school and church reunions as well as special camp experiences. For further information on Kamp Kaleo call 308-346-5083.

The Loup Rivers Scenic Byway acquired its name from the North, Middle and South Loup Rivers swirling through the heart of Nebraska’s Sandhills. The view along the Loup Rivers Scenic Byway is breathtaking as the rivers pass through the gently rolling farmland and Sandhills. Habitat along the river makes the Loup Rivers Scenic Byway a home for countless wildlife. The Loup Rivers Scenic Byway stretches 150 miles along Highway 11 from Wood River (along I-80 west of Grand Island) to Burwell, then along Highway 91 from Burwell to Dunning. At the point, you’ll have arrived at the junction of highway 2 (another scenic route) and will be close to the Bessey Division of the Nebraska National Forest.

If you travel north or west of Burwell, the rugged grasslands take on a different look-sort of like a storm-tossed sea covered with grass. That means you’ve entered the Sandhills, a 19,000 square mile region that is unique in the Western hemisphere. The hills here are actually sand dunes held in place by a thin covering of grass.

Considered an inhospitable desert by early settlers, the Sandhills proved instead to be prime rangeland. Today, it’s no accident that cows out-number people here. The Sandhills sit atop the Ogallala Aquifer, one of the largest sources of groundwater in the world. Much of the area is dotted with small, spring fed lakes and marshes-providing, outstanding wildlife habitat. Beautiful wildflowers can be seen along the route from springtime to autumn.