Yes...Kansas is flat.
But...surprise, surprise...
we enjoyed the state and found it most interesting.
We followed the old Santa Fe Trail across the state...
and passed by many grain elevators and other outbuildings that had out-lived their usefulness.
Did I mention that it was windy in Kansas?
They are harnessing the wind!
One of our favorite stops was Dodge City...
...where they are making history again at the Boot Hill Museum.
Dodge City is one of the most notorious places on the Wild West frontier...
once the capital of the buffalo-hunting and cattle-driving Wild West.
In the first decade after the railroad arrived (1872)...
100 million buffalo hides and seven million head of cattle were shipped out from here.
It had a reputation back then...
hence the nickname "Hell on the Plains".
Who knew that Wyatt Earp was once a resident of Dodge City...
even a deputy city marshall there.
It was here that he cemented a friendship with Doc Holliday.
It looked like armed cowboys still saunter the streets of Dodge City.
It turned out they were the tour guides...
good will ambassadors.
I think John Deere put up their red brick building about the time the cattle drives ended.
Though the cattle drives are a thing of the past...
life in Dodge City still revolves around cattle.
Meat packing is the primary industry...
livestock raising is the major activity.
The cost of living in Dodge City, Kansas is relatively low...
with the average home price being $83,300.
(One cannot even buy a building lot for that price over here.)
We left cattle country...
...driving southwest along the yellow brick road to Liberal.
Guess who lived lives here?
Dorothy...
from the Wizard of Oz...
apparently.
She was just arriving for work at the museum...
and stopped to pose for us.
The red shoes were a dead give-away!
We passed the Oklahoma state line shortly after visiting Liberal...
and said with Dorothy,
"I think we're not in Kansas anymore."
Next stop...
Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Now that was an interesting city to spend some time in!
Great photo's, beautiful sunshine. We have huge winds here in the UK today and weather warnings of high tides around the coastline.
ReplyDeleteLots of history there!
ReplyDeleteShe's so cute that Dorothy! What a fun job she must have. Wonder how well that wind farm is doing...
ReplyDeleteYour journey through Kansas, would be worth it just to visit Dorothy. I love the flat, prairie look...the blue skies...it goes endless, and the winds that keep the turbines turning. And riding your bikes. Your photos and pictures are beautiful with your personal twist.
ReplyDeleteIn all my years of growing up in Kansas I had never been to Dodge City until two years ago when we were passing through to visit our son in Manhattan. We did all of the tourist-y stuff there and drove the residential area near the museum looking at all of the gorgeous older homes. Dodge City is a great place to visit. Guess I'll have to put Liberal on my list of place to stop next time we're driving through...
ReplyDeleteI like the flat prairies (though I wouldn't trade our mountains for them!). Did you speed through Oklahoma? We lived there back in the 80's. I think Kansas is a lot like it.
ReplyDeleteI grew up in Hutchinson and I'm not sure how you went through the state but as we drive to Colorado to see family we LOVE going by all those windmills. Too bad you didn't stop at Hutchinson...the Salt Mine Museum and the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center are both really amazing places. Its also too bad you didn't get to see the Flint Hills, the entire state is not just the gorgeous prairies. I MISS the summer spread of miles and miles of wheat about to be harvested, which take my breath away as the breezes blow ripples through those golden fields.... so beautiful. The Flint Hills are also a secret to most of the world. Miles and miles of rolling hills with thousands of cattle on the hillsides. My mom grew up in Dodge City. A friend used to own Boothill and I remember going out there. It was full of actors reinacting life in the 1800's, I know its changed a lot, but I have so many fun memories from those days. Kansas is a state rich in preserving its history, but my how LONG those drives clear across the state to get us to Colorado can be. lol
ReplyDeleteI remember driving through Kansas and thinking it would never end. You have given me a fresh new perspective on the state. Another great example of the fact that there is always more than first meets the eye. I think maybe your pictures and commentary, could make a drive through a cave, interesting. Thanks for providing me with new appreciation of the state of Kansas.
ReplyDeleteYour banner pictures are so pretty, cozy, and inviting!
That was a lot of fun! I love traveling with you guys - by way of Blog! We used to go to Colorado a lot and once we had our brakes go out coming down a mountain. Fortunately we were not hurt and we stopped by going off one of those truck lanes with padded stuff. It was super scary though! We decided to drive home to Texas by going through Kansas!! That flat land looked pretty darn good to US then!!
ReplyDeleteYou certainly found some fun spots in this flat state! Loved the Dorothy capture!
ReplyDeleteKansas has a beauty that you found and enjoyed. Thanks for taking us along.
ReplyDeleteThat side of the state does look flat, but there are a lot more hills the farther east you go. Kansas is actually a big slope that reaches from the Missouri River valley to the foothills of the Rockies. But compared to British Columbia, it's flat. :-)
ReplyDeleteThere's beauty everywhere, even in flat Kansas. You've shown us some wonderful sites.
ReplyDeleteYou made me want to visit Kansas, Judy! Everyone here tells us that there is 'nothing there' but now I see they are wrong! :)
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