Paola Lunch Run

My son, Bryan, and I rarely get to ride together because of his job and family responsibilities.  When he suggested a ride today I was eager to go. We originally planned a morning ride to beat the heat, leaving at 7:00 am and eating breakfast somewhere. As luck would have it, when we awoke this morning it was raining. Our breakfast ride became a lunch ride and we decided our destination would be Paola, KS.

We left at about 11:30, maybe a little later. Two blocks into our ride, as were leaving my subdivision, I looked to my right and saw a deer approaching. It was very close to the road. I scared it as much as it scared me. It did an about-face and took off away from the road . . . . . thank God!

A short time later, westbound in the 15300 block of Johnson Drive, we approached cars stopped alongside the road. As we passed by slowly we could see a deer in the road by the curb with all its legs folded under its body. Its head was up looking around and a woman stood by it with her hand on its neck and a cell phone to her ear. Several others were standing by gawking. Strange people that want to bond with wild animals.

We rode to Paola mostly on back roads through Olathe, past Lake Olathe, past Gardner Lake, through Gardner and past Hillsdale Lake.IMG_0672The route took us over the Hillsdale Lake dam.

Fifty five miles later we arrived in Paola. There were several dining options but we chose Emery’s Steakhouse on the square. It was busy so we were hoping it would be good . . . . and it was.IMG_0673The lunch special was a half tenderloin sandwich with fries. It was big – all we could handle – and tasty.

To get back home we hopped on 169 Hwy and took off north to Olathe, where I-35 returned us to Lenexa / Shawnee.  It was a great ride of 95 miles, though it was a little steamy (90 degrees and humid) by the time we were done. And the bikes ran like champs.

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