"Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore!"
Yep, we finally left the fabulous state of Kansas. I had no idea how big Kansas was until we rode across it on our bicycles. Not counting the rest day, it too us six days to get from Liberal to the Missouri border.
Today, we have made another state line crossing. I stopped to sprinkle some Manhattan beach sand on the state line sign to appease the wind fairies. The Missouri sign needs a lot of help. Tracy has asked Ira to stop sprinkling as his supplications appear to be lacking.
From Topeka, we made our way out of town and rejoined K4 in a NE direction. The winds were mild and variable (big grin). Rolling green hills, recently planted corn fields, and small farms were the order of the day. When K4 ended, we transitioned to highway 59, crossed the Kansas River into Missouri, and followed the river bottomland into St. Joseph. The St. Joseph Bike Club provided free ice cream for us! (Much appreciated guys. If you are ever in Los Angeles, I owe you.) As we came into St. Jo., we rode along the SW Parkway, many miles of green park and traffic free, curving road - the prettiest part of the ride. Big Al, Chris, Fred and I came into the hotel together and then went next door for some barbecue and sodas - otherwise known as bike fuel.
Factoids:
Atchison, KS, is the birthplace of Amelia Earhart.
St. Joseph was the eastern terminus of the short-lived Pony Express. Jesse James was killed in St. Joe.
The Lewis and Clark trail goes through St. Joseph.
"From Natchez to Mobile, from Memphis to St. Joe,
wherever the four winds blow
I've been in some big towns and I heard me some big talk,
but there is one thing I know
A woman's a two-face, a worrisome thing
who'll leave ya to sing the blues in the night"
Barbara, great stuff I've seen along the roadside: truck tires, gravel, tools, cans, bottles, road kill…? For some reason, we've seen lots of bungie cords.
Rider of the day: Alec is one of the four Musketeers. He lives in Tahoe most of the year.
The trees lining the highway are gorgeous - looks quite different from MY ride in to work, let me tell you. I can't believe you're now in Missouri.
ReplyDeleteIn honor of the St. Joseph Bike Club, the members of the Beach Bike Trek Team are heading out for some ice cream...
Safe travels!
Ought to get prettier and prettier, and buggier and buggier from here on in! Keep your mouth closed when you ride :)
ReplyDeleteLove, an Easterner! B