Enjoying my cup of coffee. The temperature is probably in the low 40s and several critters, a collared fox, a deer and a hungry crow, have already made their way through the campground. The sun, however, is just beginning to peak over the trees and soon I will trade my sweater, jacket and robe combination for shorts and a T-shirt.

Yet I can’t help but think of Sydney, NE. It is a small speck on the map about a hundred miles between North Platte and Cheyenne. It has, though, a giant Cabela’s right off the interstate. Until 2017, it was actually the headquarters for the entire Cabela’s operation. But then it was bought by Bass Pro Shops which resulted in over 2,000 people being laid off (or about one third of Sydney ‘s population). So now many of the big houses on the hill surrounding Sydney are empty. But the giant Cabela’s remains, almost like a taunt to what used to be.