A Reflection on Traveling with an RV
This day is August 20, 2017, based on my journal, when we were scheduled to leave our camp site at Lake Scott State Park, just north of Scott City, Kansas. Having left Independence, MO, on June 14, 2017, we travelled at a faster pace than most campers. We had family and other campers encouraging us to slow down. But, being recently retired, we were excited to see new things and new places! Consider the fact that we first went to NY to see Niagara Falls, which included a visit to the Allegheny Mountains in PA. Then, going west, we stopped in WS, MN, and several stops in SD, including Mt. Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Monument. Then, we followed some historic sites in WY before meeting up with family in CO, where there are many familiar sites to see.
With sightseeing, by day trips from our various campgrounds, we have traveled thousands of miles over the past two months. We learned a lot. We met a lot of interesting people, with many in their RVs full time. We gained a lot of travel experience and learned a lot about our RV. We are making memories that I get to share with you who bother to read my blog. Thanks!
Rivers, Towns, and Highways
Some of us who live in larger towns, turn on our kitchen faucet and let the water run with little thought about where it comes from. For most towns, their water comes from a river or a lake made from a river that was dammed. In western Kansas, there are not many rivers. However, the central part of western Kansas has access to a very large aquafer. Our drive across southern Kansas followed the route of the Arkansas River, until we went through Wichita. This happens to be one of the longest rivers in the USA. It runs 1,469 miles, starting in Colorado, flowing through Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas into the Mississippi River.
Our route put us near the river at Garden City, Dodge City, and Wichita. The river takes a path north of our drive, where the towns of Great Bend and Hutchison benefit from its flow.
The highway system grew out of the most traveled routes. Depending on who would manage their repair, they became county, state, and federal roads.
We left our camp at Lake Scott about 9:30 a.m. We traveled south on US83 to Garden City. We turned east there using US50/US400. That took us to Dodge City, where we wanted to stop and walk around the old town. However, I could not find a good parking spot with the RV. Also, with my interest in elevation, I should note that we went from about 3k feet, at Scott City, to about 1k feet, at Dodge City. I saved a little fuel coasting down some of those hills.
I knew that US400 would take us to our next destination of Parsons, KS, where my Cousin Dean and Peggy Cramer live. I was just not sure how long it would take me to get there. I had considered our options for the night but had not made a commitment.
US400 separates from US50 at Dodge City. It goes southeast under its own name until we reached Bucklin, where we turned east and the road became US54/US400. We had not gone far when we came into the town of Greensburg, which had been nearly destroyed by an EF5 tornado in 2007. They had a lot of new buildings, of course, including a new visitors center at the World’s Largest Hand-Dug Well. That we had to stop and see! It was very well presented and a worthwhile stop for some local history.
Evidence of Farm Life
We did not see a lot of farm houses like you do in eastern Kansas or in Missouri. We saw many feed lots, with thousands of cattle. With that, we saw many cattle trucks on the highway. The farms are more like ranches with a house on a section of land, with hundreds of acres of grain crops to feed the cattle and other markets.
We saw evidence of the life style while eating lunch near a major intersection in Pratt, KS. We noticed trucks pulling field equipment, trailers of hay, and some smaller cattle trucks.
Decision Time
When we got to Wichita, we had to decide if we wanted to try seeing some local sights or continue on to Parsons. It was early enough and though the drive time would make for a long day we still had plenty of daylight to make Parsons. So, the decision was easy. We would make the stop for local sights another time and proceed to Parsons to visit with more family.
I called ahead to get directions to the campground at Parsons Lake. It was a few miles north of town. It was a city park. Dean called me back when he got back from church activities, later that day. He had to work the next day but Peggy was available to visit over lunch.
An Isolated Camp
The campground was off a dirt road, maybe three miles north of US400. It was a little tricky to find. In fact, the manager waited for me at the entrance of the road leading into it to guide me in. After settling in, I found that I had NO phone service. That was a first. However, we did have TV channels, including Grit TV!
The next day was Monday, August 21, 2017, which was to have an eclipse of the sun that day. The best place to be would have been back home in the Kansas City area. However, we did experience a darkening of the area, much like a cloudy day.
After the eclipse, we left camp about 2 p.m., heading to Parsons. As we got near the highway, my phone was back in business! I got a text from Peggy regarding BLTs for lunch. I called to apologize for not calling earlier and found that she still had food laid out. Yahoo!
We ate and talked for more than an hour, when Dean came in. He managed to get off work early! We were able to visit with him for more than an hour, as well. They both are busy people. So, managing to visit on such short notice was a real treat. They both had meetings to go to about 6 p.m. We had enjoyed the visit and did not want to interfere with their schedule. So, we decided that we would move out, the next day.
Working on a Change of Plan
We left Dean’s shortly before 6 p.m. to try and find a place to get a haircut. However, no luck. Although we did find a Braun’s Ice Cream shop, for a sundae. Since we needed the internet, we went on to McDonald’s. As we were making our reservations for our next camp stay at the Osage Prairie RV Park, in Nevada, MO, the smell of food was too much and we stayed for dinner.
The Transition to Home
Even though we were staying at a lake, I opted for working our way home with a two-day stay in Nevada, MO. It would prove relaxing and a good pause before heading back into town where friends and family were waiting to hear our travel tales first hand! So, until my next post, hopefully in two weeks, I will wish you safe travels!