Carhenge: Why Not?
We rolled out at 7 a.m. with a long day of driving ahead and a list of stops that all seemed to lead to one place: Carhenge. No trip to western Nebraska is complete without it, and honestly, no trip to western Nebraska prepares you for it.
There's something about half-buried cars standing in for one of the world's most iconic prehistoric monuments that just brings out a grin. All of us were smiling within minutes - and that was before we even wandered over to the other metal sculptures dotting the grounds. Whatever your expectations are, Carhenge lifts them. And your spirits.
What in the World Is Carhenge?
Just north of Alliance, Nebraska, along Highway 87, a full-scale replica of England's Stonehenge rises out of the plains. Stonehenge stands alone on its plain in England; Carhenge towers over the plains of Nebraska in exactly the same spirit.
The structure follows the original faithfully: a circle of cars about 96 feet across, three standing trilithons within the circle, plus a heel stone, a slaughter stone, and two station stones - all built to the same proportions as the ancient original. Thirty-nine automobiles make up the whole thing. Some are planted trunk-end down in five-foot-deep pits; the ones forming the arches are welded in place. Every car gets the same gray spray paint treatment, which somehow makes the whole thing even better.
The honor of playing the heel stone goes to a 1962 Cadillac. Of course it does.
A Family Memorial, Five Years in the Making
The story behind Carhenge is the part that sticks with you. Artist Jim Reinders, who had lived in England and studied Stonehenge's design and purpose, wanted to recreate it in physical size and placement. But Carhenge wasn't built as an art stunt. It was built as a memorial to his father, who once lived on the very farm where Carhenge now stands.
When Reinders' father passed in 1982, the family gathered, the conversation turned to a memorial, and someone floated the idea of a Stonehenge replica. The clan agreed to reunite five years later and build it. Sure enough, about 35 family members converged on the farm in June 1987 and went to work. The dedication was held on the summer solstice that year - complete with champagne, poetry, songs, and a play the family wrote themselves.
Reinders' answer to the question "Why Carhenge?" is simply another question: "Why not?" That's the whole philosophy of the place, right there.
Don't Skip the Car Art Reserve
The big circle gets the attention, but the surrounding Car Art Reserve deserves a slow stroll. One of the first additions was "Spawning Salmon," created by 29-year-old Geoff Sandhurst of Canada, who won a $2,500 prize and a permanent spot at the Reserve. There's "Dino" the dinosaur, built by Merle Stone of Hemingford. And Reinders himself contributed "Fourd Seasons" - a sculpture made entirely of Fords and inspired by Vivaldi's Four Seasons, suggesting the Nebraska landscape's cycle from planted wheat to barren winter wind.
There are also three bells built by Reinders representing the three Reinders siblings, and "Car-sules" - time capsules contributed by local people over the years. The Reserve keeps growing, and it shows.
The Details
- Location: Just north of Alliance, Nebraska, along Highway 87
- Hours: Open year-round, dawn to dusk
- Visitor center: "The Pit Stop," built in 2007, open seasonally (online gift shop covers the off-season)
- History: Built June 1987 as a memorial to Jim Reinders' father; dedicated on the summer solstice; gifted to the Friends of Carhenge, then to the City of Alliance in October 2013
- Draw: More than 80,000 visitors a year from all over the world, plus film and TV production crews
- Make a day of it: Stick around Alliance for dinner, drinks, and main street shopping in its charming business district
Bottom Line
We came for a laugh and got so much more: a genuinely moving family story welded into 39 cars, set against the endless Nebraska sky. It's quirky, it's pop culture, it's art, and it's heart.
Would we go back? Why not?