The Pawnee Buttes are an interesting little landmark way out on the prairie of north east Colorado,  nearer to Nebraska than Denver.  The closest town to the buttes is a ghost town, Kiota.  There is, however, some high technology around, as there is now an electrical windmill farm within view of the buttes and there are a couple of nuclear missile silos nearby that I don't recall seeing the first time I went out to the buttes in the mid 90s.  There have been nuclear missiles in the Colorado prairie for many years, though, and I did see one farther away from the buttes on my first trip.

Anyway, it's a refreshing place to visit, a good place to get away from the big city for a day.  There is a short and fairly easy hike to the base of the buttes, about 3 miles round trip.  Don't plan to do it on a summer afternoon, unless you really like the heat.  There is almost no shade at all, very few trees anywhere within sight.

On my most recent trip, I saw a rattlesnake in the grass near the trail, right by the parking area.  Elsewhere in the grass was the biggest grasshopper I have ever seen.  I guess they grow 'em bigger out on the plains.

After the hike, I went over to a nearby lake and camped out to see the Perseid meteor shower, which was really keen.  In a couple of hours I saw about 25 meteors, some of which were quite spectacular.