Nebraska is one of those American states that, had it not been separated from Iowa in its extreme eastern edge by the sinuous course of the Missouri River, the most important tributary of the Mississippi with its 4170 kilometers in length (for this reason it is considered the longest tributary of the world), would be confined in the map of the United States by four straight pen marks: Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado and Kansas, the other neighboring states, are separated by hasty traits identified at the time of the pioneers without taking into account the natural elements of the places.

Perhaps thanks to this, Nebraska has ended up boasting the highest concentration of streams and rivers in the entire North American continent, at least in terms of the number of miles. Water is therefore the dominant element of the state despite its distance from the sea being over one thousand and five hundred kilometers.

But brackish water is not essential to arouse original and enthusiastic sensations, especially if those streams, all destined to end up in others, are exploited in an appropriate manner. In Nebraska it is said that only boring people are bored: this is why its inhabitants are known in the country for being incorrigible pranksters, a characteristic that those who reach their territory from the outside can only end up appreciating.

Fun and water are two terms that put together can give rise to extraordinary opportunities. One of these is the so-called “tanking”: no one knows who was the first to imagine such an activity, certainly, there is that it is practiced almost everywhere in the country, especially in correspondence with those streams that descend placidly and calmly towards their final destination.

The flash of genius came from those who noticed that the huge metal containers used to water grazing animals if left in the water, float. And that getting on board and letting yourself be carried away by the current of rivers as far as you want is a relaxing and fun activity.

Thus were born the first enterprising entrepreneurs who, accumulating some metal tanks that the herdsmen no longer used, adapted them to the new use, mounting benches on the entire side edge and equipping them with more or less useful accessories for a crossing, and they rented.

There are now numerous watercourses in which it is possible to find one of these “reservoirs” for rent: in Nebraska, “tanking” has now become a typical activity, so much so that one cannot leave before having experienced the thrill of a stroll on the river.

The itineraries are different depending on the availability of the crew, both in number and in resistance, since you can “embark” on two-hour journeys, but also six or seven hours. The only tools, beyond the basic accessories, that are delivered are the life jackets and a pair of oars: the latter is not used to advance the pan in the water, the current takes care of that, but to give the direction and, on particularly crowded days, to avoid collisions.

This is the evolution in a tourist key of the ancient Nebraska stereotype of cowboys: of the cows, however, only the drinking container has been preserved.