After a very stressful night of getting into the pleasant Goodland KOA in the dark, and not retiring until 11, i was hoping to get a good night's sleep, but that was not the case. But since i have a long drive today, i forced myself to sleep late and woke at 7:40. after a pleasant conversation with the lovely couple who own the camp, Richard and Alicia, we got on the road at 9:40.
Although i was hoping to get a cozy primitive cabin last night, now that i am an expert at setting up camp in the dark, and quickly, i decided to stay in State Parks for the rest of the trip. But because i hate driving at night, especially trying to find camps for the first time, i will leave earlier in the morning, which may cut my remaining postings short.
Our goal today is to make it no farther than Oak Ridge Missouri, 450 miles away, but also to be off the road as soon after 5 as possible. I know there's a KOA in Oak Ridge, so unless a good state park appears before there, that's our goal.
The highway 70 was fast moving, posted 75 mph, with little traffic. In fact, the wide open flat lands all around were quite beautiful without the signs of "civilization."
At noon we took a break at one of the nice pet-friendy rest stops Kansas offers. I did my homework and discovered a nice state park not to far from Topeka and a short trip off the highway in Perry,Kansas, 50 miles short of our goal. At the next rest stop at 2:30, i filled in the blanks in my planning snd decided finally that that was our goal, and to get there by 5:00, with almost two hours if usuable daylight left.
At 5:03, we pulled onto the road to the park. There are actually two parks next to each other, the state park and the Rock Creek camp run by the army corp of engineers, and we settled on the latter, and what a great decision that was. We are alone on this wonderful lake with only 12 lights viible in the distance across the lake, which seems to stetch for 15 miles. The only sounds are from thousands of different kinds of birds on the lake, an occasional train whistle in the distance and the too-frequent sound of hunters' guns going off close by. With the lake named Perry, thank goodness we are in this part of Kansas and not near Holcomb, Kansas.
As hoped, we finished setting up camp and dinner precisely when we lost usuable daylight shortly after 7. We even had time for Erde to take her customary dip in the lake. It's her trip, so Erde does what Erde wants to do.
Because we cut the trip short today, Erde have a 500-mile drive ahead of us tomorrow to get to Lieber State Park in Indiana where Leben and Erde and i camped last on our trip last year. I want to reignite some memories there. My hope is to get on the road by 8, pay my fee for tonight, and get into Lieber by 6:00, so i have to end this posting now.
Sounds of gunfire continue nearby.....i had better get my head down. Maybe this is why the park is empty.
Photos for the day..
Our pleasant camp at the Goodland KOA...
The flat and wide open plains of Kansas...i cleaned the windshield today, so these photos might be spotless
Erde enjoying a rest break on the road in Kansas...on tgese days of intense driving, every two hours of driving we take a 30-minute break at the next rest stop that comes along.
Erde taking a well deserved dip in Perry Lake. Her ritual is always the same, just like us humans.
Our wonderful camp on Perry Lake, wonderful except for the hunters's guns popping nearby, even at night, especially for the hapless animals caught in the guns' sights. Erde has on her red kerchief and blinking red light. I put on my red shirt. Who can find Erde in this photo?
Ed and Erde, On The Road
P.S. Sorry for any errors in this message or posting. The iPad spellcheck is not known for its attention to detail.
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