Pulled out from town at 0805, heading west. Trees were mostly that lighter shade of green we generally see earlier in the year. The grass was good and green, though, and many of the fields were prepped for planting. On MO-58 heading toward Holden, I noticed a new(?) 'watch for buggies' sign. South on MO-131, I passed a couple of feedlots; the old schoolhouse along the road has a nice coat of paint, but no sign to indicate its National Register status.
Now on MO-2, passing Boss Hog Fireworks, the sad old town of LaTour, and Index Road - “index” can have so many meanings! Gas in Harrisonville was 3.74, a bit further west near Freeman it was 3.69. Crosswinds were beginning to pick up. Louisburg gas was 3.65 – 3.69. There's a bunch of construction on KS-68 in that area. I think they're widening the road.
At 0939, I turned south on my first 'virgin road' of the trip – US-169, a very nice, well-maintained road. Near Osawatomie (home of that murdering scoundrel Brown) saw the first working oil well. The town,s between the Marais des Cynges and Pottawatomie Creek, is surrounded by high levees. Further south, the road enters a hilly section, providing a few nice views. The headwinds killed my gas mileage.
Nearing Iola, I'm running next to a rail-to-trail conversion. I also scored the first windfarm of the trip. Iola claims to have the largest town square in the U.S. It's surrounded by classic Victorian-era business buildings, but too much of the square itself is taken up by modern government buildings. I'm now on US-54 west, crossing the Neosho River. A pick-up driver puttering along at 50 mph in a 65 zone shook his fist when I passed him. A brick church, by itself on the prairie, has sprouted an internet antenna from its steeple.
Yates Center, which claims to be the Hay Capital of the World, sports a pink liquor store near the junction with US-75, another good road. It's hilly, with yellow rock showing in the cuts. KS-39 is coming up; other than single - lane for a bridge under repair, it's a good road with little traffic. It's part of National Bike Trail 76.
US-400 will lead me to Wichita, and it needs some maintenance – bumpiest road of the trip so far. This is part of the Flint Hills, rolling with thin soils and lots of rock outcrops. As is usual, many of the pastures had been burned to stimulate new growth to feed the cattle shipped up from Texas (by truck these days).
Roadside art alert: Needle in a Haystack (a silo with a yellow top and a projection from the top). A bit further, a creek bottom full of blooming redbuds caught my eye – tempted to stop & click a shutter, but clouds would have ruined the pic. A ways further: Sculpture Hill, with metal animals and figures along the road.
It was well past time for lunch when I found the Prairie House in Leon, KS. Their hot beef sandwich was tasty, but the seeing the meat in sharply-defined square chunks was a bit unusual.
Reached my my motel at 1425. It's an older motel being converted to a Candlewood Suites, and shows a lot of very recent construction activity. Room is a tad short on outlets, but otherwise seems comfortable. After checking in, I went to find Cowtown – about 5 miles and 20 minutes away. Will dress early and grab my musket and head back there for a day of 19th C activity.
On the day/trip: 307.6 miles. Gas bought: 11.536 gal @ 3.79/.
No comments:
Post a Comment