located_in_the_administrative_territorial_entity bighorn mountain
___MASK83___ is a state that lies in both the Great Plains and the Midwestern United States . The state is bordered by South Dakota to the north , Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast , both across the Missouri River , Kansas to the south , Colorado to the southwest and Wyoming to the west . Its area is just over 77 , 220 sq mi ( 200 , 000 km ) with almost 1 . 9 million people . Its state capital is Lincoln . Its largest city is Omaha , which is on the Missouri River . An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as an effect ___MASK31___ faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas ___MASK31___ differing elevations . Usually " escarpment " is used interchangeably with scarp ( from the Italian " scarpa ", shoe ). But some sources differentiate the two terms , where " escarpment " refers to the margin between two landforms , while " scarp " is synonymous with a cliff or steep slope . The surface ___MASK31___ the steep slope is called a scarp face . This ( escarpment ) is a ridge which has a gentle ( dip ) slope on one side and a steep ( scarp ) slope on the other side . The ___MASK13___ Platte River is a major tributary ___MASK31___ the Platte River and is approximately long counting its many curves . It travels about distance . Its course lies in the U . S . states ___MASK31___ ___MASK30___ , Wyoming , and ___MASK83___ . The Great Plains is the broad expanse ___MASK31___ flat land ( a plain ), much ___MASK31___ it covered in prairie , steppe and grassland , that lies west ___MASK31___ the Mississippi River tallgrass prairie states and east ___MASK31___ the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada . This area covers parts , but not all , ___MASK31___ the states ___MASK31___ ___MASK30___ , Kansas , Montana , ___MASK83___ , New Mexico , North Dakota , Oklahoma , South Dakota , Texas , and Wyoming , Minnesota , Iowa and the Canadian provinces ___MASK31___ Alberta , Manitoba and Saskatchewan . The region is known for supporting extensive cattle ranching and dry farming . A ___MASK69___ ( Spanish : cañón ) or gorge is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from the erosive activity ___MASK31___ a river over geologic timescales . Rivers have a natural tendency to cut through underlying surfaces so will eventually wear away rock layers to lessen their own pitch slowing their waters ; given enough time , their bottoms will gradually reach a baseline elevation  which is the same elevation as the body ___MASK31___ water it will eventually drain into . This action , when the river source and mouth are at much different base elevations will form a ___MASK69___ , particularly through regions where softer rock layers are intermingled with harder layers more resistant to weathering . The Wildcat Hills are an escarpment between the ___MASK13___ Platte River and Pumpkin Creek in the western Panhandle , in the state ___MASK31___ ___MASK83___ in the Great Plains region ___MASK31___ the United States . Located in Banner , Morrill , and Scotts Bluff counties , the high tableland between the streams has been eroded by wind and water into a region ___MASK31___ forested buttes , ridges and canyons that rise above the surrounding landscape . A ___MASK33___ is an isolated hill with steep , often vertical sides and a small , relatively flat top ; buttes are smaller than mesas , plateaus , and table landforms . The word ___MASK33___ comes from a French word meaning " small hill "; its use is prevalent in the Western United States , including the ___MASK71___ where " mesa " is also used for the larger landform . Because ___MASK31___ their distinctive shapes , buttes are frequently landmarks in plains and mountainous areas . In differentiating mesas and buttes , geographers use the rule ___MASK31___ thumb that a mesa has a top that is wider than its height , while a ___MASK33___ has a top that is narrower than its height . Bighorn Mountain , or He Sha , is located in Banner County , about 10 . 8 miles ( 17 . 4 km ) ___MASK23___ ___MASK31___ the county seat ___MASK31___ Harrisburg , in the Wildcat Hills . The peak was named for the bighorn sheep that once roamed its flanks , and were reintroduced in the 1970s . Many residents ___MASK31___ the county have carved their names at the top ___MASK31___ the peak ; the practice dates back at least to 1887 .