Wamego, Alma & Alta Vista

Larry and I met at Casey’s, Johnson Drive and Woodland, at 10:00 to ride to Wamego, KS for lunch.  A friend of mine had somebody post a link to an article on Facebook that listed 10 great diners in Kansas (http://www.onlyinyourstate.com/kansas/ks-diners/).  The Friendly Cooker in Wamego was on the list.

We rode through Bonner Springs on K-32 to its intersection with Hwy 24, which took us west through Lawrence (almost), Perry, Topeka, and St. Mary’sto Wamego.  The Friendly Cooker was a typical small town diner with good food and a friendly waitress.  My only complaint was that I got fries instead of tater-tots with my chopped beef steak.  The cook was a big guy wearing a Wildcat shirt, which was a good sign.

From Wamego we rode south, crossed the Kansas River, and at Alma we hopped on the Skyline Mill Creek Scenic Drive, which runs southwest to Alta Vista.  It was a pretty ride but not with a lot of fall color.  In fact, many trees had dropped their leaves already.  What I really found interesting was that the cut prairie grass, in places, had coloring from reddish brown to orange to yellow that was very pretty when the sun hit it right.This picture doesn’t do it justice but it was the best I could do without getting off my motorcycle and walking into a field.

At Alta Vista we hopped on Hwy 4 eastbound through the Flint Hills and it was an enjoyable ride, despite the wind.

We stopped in Burlingame for gas and a break.The temperature had risen to 86 so we also took off our jackets for the rest of the ride.

From Burlingame we rode Hwy 56 east through Baldwin City, then north to Eudora and back home via Hwy 10.  It was a fun ride of 256 miles with a good lunch along the way.  I think I’m going to try some of those other diners listed in that article.

Click on the following link to see pictures taken today: https://goo.gl/photos/cWfvELJPvZuGzuVU6