Bellevue, NE Outdoor Activities

Throughout Husker Paintball Adventures’ rural backcountry speckled with trees and tangled thickets, paintballers explore six battlefields spread across 20 acres and find refuge behind plastic barriers and stacks of timber. After traipsing through creeks and crouching along the low ridges of shallow gullies, players seal their truces with lunch by bringing their grills for a picnic among the spindly trees and garden of organically grown target symbols. In the interest of sportsmanship and making the hobby accessible to everyone, the staff never pits pros against rookies and enforces a 20-foot shooting rule. Safety is also paramount, so they turn down firing velocity on all paintball markers for groups of younger players.

The fairways on Table Creek Golf Course's 18 holes bound across the rolling hills of southeast Nebraska for a challenging 6,253-yard pin-hunting exhibition. A relatively short course even when played from the tips, the truncated layout has slick, bent--grass greens, deceptive elevation changes, and flagsticks that covertly shift as players approach the greens. Rippling waters pool and flow throughout the picturesque par 71 course, adding a sense of tranquility and threatening to absorb ill-struck shots. To augment their birdie-garnering form, clubbers can fine-tune their swing at the driving range, recruit the latest course fashions at the pro shop, or learn to cut tender steaks using a divot tool at the cozy clubhouse.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 71 course

• Bent-grass greens

• Length of 6,253 yards from the farthest tees

• Course rating of 71.3 from the farthest tees

• Slope rating of 122 from the farthest tees

• Three tee options

Wildwood Golf Course’s nine-hole layout spans 2,945 yards of relatively open, parkland terrain cleaved through the shadows of scenic trees. Clubbers can send balls somersaulting into the stratos with their driver or T-shirt cannon, as wide fairways provide generous margins for slightly inaccurate tee shots. The bulk of the course’s difficulty awaits at the end of each hole, where large, undulating greens turn even routine two-putts into testy trials of steady-handed strokes. Golfers in need of new clubs, collared shirts, or other accessories can visit the pro shop, which is patrolled by resident aces who are available to schedule lessons or discuss the science behind recent, closed-door attempts at growing natural spikes out of their feet.

Course at a Glance:

• 9-hole, par-36 course

• Length of 2,945 yards from the farthest tees

• Course rating of 34.7 from the farthest tees

• Slope rating of 122 from the farthest tees

• Three tee options

Perched atop hills that overlook the Platte and Missouri River valleys, Bay Hills Golf Club’s 18-hole course arches across 6,411 yards of undulating, tree-lined fairways. As carts crest the verdant banks, golfers can pause to take in views of the surrounding tree lines, which harbor wildlife such as deer, turkey, fox, and feral ball washers. An expansive driving range, putting green, and chipping area act as the diminutive sidekick to the par 72 course. The staff of PGA professionals roams the club's full-service pro shop, shoring up swings with individual and group lessons and mending clubs with repair services. To keep swing-weary muscles well nourished, Bay Hills Grill serves up a menu of savory, greenside fare.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 72 course
• Total length of 6,411 yards from the back tees
• Four sets of tees per hole

A par-3 municipal course owned and operated by Omaha Parks and Recreation, Steve Hogan Golf Course fosters short-game improvement over nine holes of stress-free golf. Jealous drivers will be best kept in the golf bag, for the course is relatively short at 2,674 yards and favors precise short-iron play and putting prowess. All revenue taken in by the course goes directly to The First Tee of Omaha, helping to impact the lives of young people by making the game of golf and its values more accessible.

Course at a Glance:

• Nine-hole, par-27 course
• Total length of 2,674 yards from the farthest tees
• Three sets of tees per hole:m]]

Carol Joy Holling Camp, helmed by Nebraska Lutheran Outdoor Ministries and accredited by the American Camp Association, opens up a natural wonderland to campers to carry out its mission of teaching people about Jesus. During programs for kids and families, campers take to the lake to angle for fish or paddleboat across the water. Three high-ropes courses challenge harness-strapped campers to face their fear of heights and low-flying satellites as they scamper across the course and zipline off a 25-foot cliff through the air. A typical day at the camp starts with camper-led worship and devotions before everyone scurries back to their cabins, platform tents, tepees, and bunkhouses.