Kansas

Day 25 -Sun., June 1, 2008 -Dodge City, KS to Fort Scott, KS - "Get out of Dodge!" So we did. We continued on Route 50. Our goal was Fort Larned National Historic Site, so we soon turned north on 183 and then onto 156 to the fort. It was not at all like Bent's Old Fort that was a trading post built by William Bent. Fort Larned in Larned, KS was built by the military and looks very different than the trading post. Ted and I enjoyed looking through the museum and watching the movie. Fort Larned was there for protection along the Santa Fe Trail against Plains Indians and robbers and outlaws. It was built along the Pawnee Fork (river). The buildings were made out of rock and soldiers from 1877 carved their names in the stone. Cool! The park ranger was very knowledgeable and interesting to listen to. The parking lot was gravel and that was an interesting time too!

After leaving the fort behind we continued across Kansas from 156 to 56 to I-135 toward Wichita, KS, around Wichita by 196 to 54 which we stayed on until Fort Scott. We traveled through Kansas marveling at the beauty of this state. Flat farm land gave way to rolling hills. Ranches kept dwindling until it was hard to find an animal. It struck me that we hadn't seen any dairy farms, it was all beef cattle we had seen. We traveled through little towns where we slowed our speed to look around a bit and enjoyed the diagonal parking along the wide main streets, lined with old houses brimming with flower boxes and vegetable gardens. At one point as we traveled down a road at about 65 mph a deer ran through a field at our right. He was far from the road so it was neat to watch. There still was little traffic and Ted and I often found ourselves alone.

We've been in Kansas all day and we've enjoyed the ride. The weather was beautiful, sunny and clear. Tonight we spend at Fort Scott. It was closed by the time we arrived. We'll visit there first thing in the morning before heading on.

Miles - 375
Cattle grates - 0
Highest gas paid - $3.98