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Kansas!
Tuesday May 31: Eads, CO to Tribune,
KS
Today was a much nicer day than yesterday, and we crossed the border into Kansas!
The first picture below shows the clounds last night. There were threatening
weather reports all around us. I don't know if there was bad weather at night,
though, because I slept right through.
We rode on very straight roads for 56 very straight miles, headed due east,
ending up in Tribune. We still had a head wind, but it was much less than the
winds we experienced yesterday, so they were a relief. We started under a full
overcast, but soon there were patches of sun and blue sky showing through. Most
of the rest of the day was in and out of sun and shade.
We met Kit on the road, he is a west bound biker who started on April 25 in
Yorktown, VA, and is headed for Portland, OR. Mom saw Fred, a biker we had met
back near Fry Canyon, UT, and he may catch up to us tonight in Tribune. Also
there are 3 women reported to be just ahead of us headed East, we have not caught
up with them yet.
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Dark skies last night, but this slot opened in the clouds
for a few minutes
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We met Kipp in Sheridon Lake, he is headed to Oregon
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We crossed Big Sandy Creek, where an Indian massacre
took place in 1864.
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This mule deer ran along beside us for about 1/2 mile,
then looked at us carefully from behind the tracks
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There were three kit fox standing at the lip of this
den when we rode by, but we could only get a picture of two ears
Eric & John hoping the kits will come out to get
their picture taken.
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Crossing the border into Kansas
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The road not taken
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Two friendly farm dogs came out to see us when we stopped
for a short break
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John and Annie trying to estimate the distance of grain
silos on the horizon
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Folks here in Kansas must know something we don't know,
to be tapping telephone poles!
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Wednesday June 1: Tribune to Dighton,
KS
Today was a beautiful riding day, although the wind was not yet behind us.
The wind was coming from the side most of the day, it started out fairly gentle,
but was blowing quite strongly by the end of the day (25 mph?). The weather
was sunny, with occasional clouds. The landscape was pure Kansas, with wheat
fields, some early corn, stock yards and grain elevators.
Today was also a big day for meeting other bikers. A biker named Rob was at
the motel with us last night, although we did not see too much of him. Today
during our ride we met Adrian, who is from France. Adrian started in Montrael,
came down through New Hampshire to Portsmouth, and then down the coast to Connecticut.
He then headed south west, and eventually picked up the TransAmerican path somewhere
in Virginia or West Virginia. He is headed for Yellowstone Park. Just at the
end of the day we met a group of 4 or 5 bikers from the East Coast, who are
doing the whole route, but over some number of years. This year they are going
from Missouri to Pueblo, Colorado. At the store where we met them, we also found
Erin, Jennifer and Meg, who Mom had met yesterday. They are headed east with
us, and we will probably see them again tomorrow or the next day. And lastly,
at the same store, we found Fred, who we have been travelling near ever since
Utah. Fred came by our motel so Annie could look at a noise he has been experiencing
in his rear axel. Pictures of Fred's bike on the Bejing Bike Shop rack can be
seen below.
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We met Adrian about 10 miles outside of Tribune.
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This monster machine was chewing up big bales of hay
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One of the feed yards we passed
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Sign at the feed yard says it all
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A bite to eat in Scott City |
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This is typical Kansas scenery
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This old barn is pretty, but it is not a timber frame.
John investigated.
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Wildflowers beside the road. Can anyone identify these
for us?
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Erin, Jennifer and Meg, keeping one day ahead of us
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Fred and Annie working on a troubled rear axel.
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Thursday June 2: Dighton to Bezine, KS
We rode a relatively short 30 miles today to Ness City, where we helped them
celebrate Old Settlers Days. Then after lunch we rode another 11 miles to Elain's
B&B Bicycle Oaisis, in an old farmhouse in Bezine. Much of the riding day
we had a strong south wind on our right shoulder, which slows us down considerabily.
The skies were cloudy at first, with some clearing later. When the sun hits
you here, it really starts to get hot. This evening it was pleasantly cool,
and we enjoyed walking around Ness City again after dinner (we drove back to
Ness City to eat.)
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Mom finds us mid-morning somewhere along Rt. 96
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Stopped in Ness City for Old Settlers Days. This young
man and I disagree!
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The old Mercantile Bldg. and Settlers Days festivities
in Ness City
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John and Annie inspecting old iron
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Annie and an older cousin (Red Power!)
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Annie hits a tough spot
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Annie considers a career modeling for tractor implements
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Elain's B&B Bicycle Oasis where we are spending
the night
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Friday June 3: Bezine to Larned, KS
Kansas <=> Wind. We left our B&B at about 10:00 and headed east along
Rt. 96. We had a strong south wind which kept trying to knock us off balance.
We plowed along with this wind for about 20 miles, and stopped for lunch. Somewhere
along the way Mom caught up to us, and just before we moved on, Remo came past
in the other direction. Remo is west-bound, because he wanted to follow the
direction of the early settlers.
After lunch at a local resturant we headed south on Rt. 183 for 20 miles. This
meant of course that we were headed directly into that south wind. The sky was
threatening a few times (see picture), and we were pelted with rain a couple
of times, although not in great quantities. We never put on rain jackets, and
the temperature was quite warm so we were never cold.
Finally we turned onto Rt. 156 and headed east again for 11 miles to get to
Larned. It appeared to me that the wind anticipated this move, and swung around
to the East so we could continue to experience a head wind. There were a few
gusts along this stretch that nearly blew us off the road, they were so strong.
We finally dragged into Larned at about 5:30 and slipped into the Best Western
Inn.
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This has been our route ever since Pueblo, but we turned
off today
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Mom checks out a stone fence post, made of limestone,
quarried in Bazine
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We met Remo, from Germany, who will be studing in Leipzieg
this fall
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Local mailbox
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And shortly after, this guy keeps smiling no matter
what the weather
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This is what we saw for much of the day (and did I mention
the head wind?)
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Saturday June 4: Larned to Sterling,
KS
We had a short and relatively easy ride today along a quiet county road. Near
lunch time we passed through the Quivira National Wildlife Preserve, but we
did not see any wildlife other than the bugs which tried to eat us. We rolled
into Sterling by 1:30, so we are having a restful, if hot, afternoon.
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Big irrigator at work in a local field
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A different kind of irrigator driving past us on the
road
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Lunch break at the Quivira National Wildlife Preserve
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John and Annie in front of a wheat field, corn field,
and fallow field respectively. The fallow doesn't seem to be up yet, but
it may just be early in the year.
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Sunday June 5: Sterling to Newton, KS
Today the weather was beautiful, and WE HAD A TAIL WIND! We left Sterling at
about 9:00 and rode south 3 miles to get back on the route, and then turned
east with the wind behind us. After a few miles we met Olaf and Hans, who are
from Germany, started in Virginia about 5 weeks ago and are headed along the
TransAmerican route to Oregon.
The rest of the ride was just as nice, and so we had an easy day. We took a
short detour off the documented track to see the farm where Arlen was raised,
as we are spending the next two nights with his parents, Orlando and Maxine
Fast, in Newton, KS. When we arrived at the Fast's house, we were welcomed with
a sign on the tree, so we were sure we were in the right place. We arrived at
about 3:10 PM. Nana arrived about a half an hour later, after spending much
of the day at the Cosmosphere in Hutchinson, KS.
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Olaf and his dad Hans are west bound on the TransAmerica
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Old Kansas barns in the wheat field
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This field had two different kinds of wheat side by
side
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A welcoming sign at the Fast's house |
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