Big Sky Tour; Day 1
We're off on another road trip with brother, Carl, and Marge - headed to Montana, big sky country. "They" say COVID-19 is ramping up again but we feel relatively safe headed north into sparsely populated country.
Chris and I left home at 7:45 and drove to meet with Carl and Marge at their house. It was sunny and 75 degrees. We departed Shawnee at 8:10. Our route was 7 north, I-70 west to exit 206; 232 north; 18 west; 24 west; 23 north; and 83 north to McCook, Nebraska.
Our first stop was in Junction City for gas. The Kansas governor recently mandated the use of masks at indoor businesses so I wore my mask into the gas station. Upon entering I noticed that nobody was wearing a mask, not even the employees. I took mine off.
West of Salina on I-70 we drove through a very large wind farm. There were hundreds of million-dollar wind turbines and hardly any of them were spinning.
We stopped again, for gas and lunch, in Lucas, KS. The K-18 Cafe provided a LARRAPIN good burger and fries. Carl and Marge's tater-tots looked excellent also.
Traveling west on K-18 it appears that Montana has nothing on Kansas when it comes to big sky.
Our tourist stop for the day was at the Nicodemus National Historic Site in Nicodemus, KS (or what's left of it). Nicodemus was settled in 1877 by African Americans, freed slaves, from Kentucky. The town prospered until they failed to attract the railroad and then it began to decline. In 1976 the original 161 acre town was listed as a National Historic Landmark. In 1996 it was established as a National Historic Site. Besides the visitor center, which was not open (thanks to COVID-19), the remaining historic buildings were the St. Francis Hotel, the First Baptist Church, the A.M.E. Church and the school. All these buildings, except for the visitor center and the AME Church are currently privately owned and in disrepair. The AME Church is being renovated. Gale Sayers was from Nicodemus as were three other men, who ended up playing in the NFL.
We arrived in McCook, NE at 4:15 having traveled 430 miles. The high temperature was 93. We drove through one brief rain shower just east of Abilene.
To see all the photos taken today click on this link: Day 1 Photos
Chris and I left home at 7:45 and drove to meet with Carl and Marge at their house. It was sunny and 75 degrees. We departed Shawnee at 8:10. Our route was 7 north, I-70 west to exit 206; 232 north; 18 west; 24 west; 23 north; and 83 north to McCook, Nebraska.
Our first stop was in Junction City for gas. The Kansas governor recently mandated the use of masks at indoor businesses so I wore my mask into the gas station. Upon entering I noticed that nobody was wearing a mask, not even the employees. I took mine off.
West of Salina on I-70 we drove through a very large wind farm. There were hundreds of million-dollar wind turbines and hardly any of them were spinning.
We stopped again, for gas and lunch, in Lucas, KS. The K-18 Cafe provided a LARRAPIN good burger and fries. Carl and Marge's tater-tots looked excellent also.
Traveling west on K-18 it appears that Montana has nothing on Kansas when it comes to big sky.
Our tourist stop for the day was at the Nicodemus National Historic Site in Nicodemus, KS (or what's left of it). Nicodemus was settled in 1877 by African Americans, freed slaves, from Kentucky. The town prospered until they failed to attract the railroad and then it began to decline. In 1976 the original 161 acre town was listed as a National Historic Landmark. In 1996 it was established as a National Historic Site. Besides the visitor center, which was not open (thanks to COVID-19), the remaining historic buildings were the St. Francis Hotel, the First Baptist Church, the A.M.E. Church and the school. All these buildings, except for the visitor center and the AME Church are currently privately owned and in disrepair. The AME Church is being renovated. Gale Sayers was from Nicodemus as were three other men, who ended up playing in the NFL.
We arrived in McCook, NE at 4:15 having traveled 430 miles. The high temperature was 93. We drove through one brief rain shower just east of Abilene.
To see all the photos taken today click on this link: Day 1 Photos
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