Retired and Trippin

Tuesday, March 17, 2009. The day started with bright sunshine and temperatures in the low 50’s. The weatherman on TV said it might reach 80. I was alive. These are indicators of a great day for riding. My trophy bride, however, was otherwise engaged. My riding friends, also, were unavailable due to work, recuperations, out-of-town vacations, work, work, etc. This ride had to be a solo excursion. From Shawnee I rode north on K-7 Hwy to Bonner Springs where I caught Hwy 32 west towards Lawrence, KS. It was 57 degrees with hardly any wind – beautiful riding. Hwy 32 ends where it meets Hwy 24 and Hwy 40 just north and east of Lawrence. I want Hwy 24 west so, just north of Lawrence I take a right where 24 and 40 split ways a short distance later. As I rode west on 24 a few miles east of Hwy 4 there is a cross street named after a very famous (infamous?) family. Picture provided below: I picked up Hwy 4 west headed toward Topeka. Hwy 4 joins briefly with Interstate 70 as it goes through Tope

This was not a motorcycle trip, but I decided to blog it to share with family and friends. Chris and I left home on Tuesday, March 3, 2009, headed for Topeka. We shot out I-70, first stop the Kansas State Capitol. We took a tour of the Capitol where we saw many murals, the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the Governor’s ceremonial office where media shots are taken. We then took a dome tour, which started on the 5 th floor and went up 296 steps. We went above the glass dome, which is within the exterior copper dome, and then to the top of the copper dome and outside onto a small catwalk around the top of the dome. As you can see by the photos I thought an appropriate name for part of this tour would be the Brother Carl Acrophobia's Honorary Tour. From the Capitol we went to the Kansas Museum of History located on the northwest corner of Topeka. It was a nice museum. When done at the museum we drove to Abilene and holed up in a motel. Wednesday morning, March 4, we visite