Day 68 - Hermann, Missouri to Merriam, Kansas

Yes, blogisphere fans, the Happy Wanderers have NOT dropped off the end of the planet, nor have they put the RV on a ferry to Italy, but have landed safely in that much storied state of Kansas. Despite what you may have heard, I'm happy to say that Kansas comes complete with sunshine, rolling hills, and reasonably understandable road signs.

Last night, though we had no internet, due, I'm guessing, to Verizon not wanting to waste too many cell towers in the St. Louis area for some reason, we did manage to score a pretty nice camp in the bustling metropolis of Hermann, Missouri, that came with everything else -- including a bit of rain, which was still falling when we woke up this morning around 5:00 a.m.

Thankfully, by the time we were ready to break camp and retrace the previous evening's route over the Ohio River, the sun had popped out and it looked as though we had earned a pleasant day for driving. But before leaving Hermann, I managed to capture a couple of shots of the River to show you how large it is just before it meets with the Mississippi some miles east of us in St. Louis.

I parked the rig just before the bridge on a vacant piece of ground and climbed an adjacent hill to get a photo of the bridge (photo top right).

Then I decided I wanted the river without the bridge in the shot. So I came down from the hill, dashed across the thankfully lightly-traveled highway, and then found the perfect spot to show the river, the rail line and the red church up on the bluff. Then, just before clicking the shutter, I said to myself, "Now, if I only had a train this shot would be perfect." And presto, I immediately caught sight of a headlight. Seconds later a train appeared and I was able to take the shot just as I envisioned it (photo left). Right then and there I decided it was going to be a great day.

The road crossing the bridge, Missouri 19, led us back to Route 94, on which we had been traveling much of the previous day. Route 94 is sometimes pleasant and predicable and straight, and sometimes driving it is like riding the Matterhorn ride at Disneyland in California. It's narrow, and tree-shaded, and constantly twisting. One moment you're struggling to climb a very steep hill (at least for a motor home), and the next you're plunging down into a ravine with your foot on the brake.

The road parallels one of the longest linear parks we had ever seen anywhere. The park is called the "Katy," I assume because before the linear park was in place a rail line could be found there. In its earliest days the MKT was commonly referred to as "the K-T", which was its stock exchange symbol; this common designation soon evolved into "the Katy". The MKT stands for the Missouri, Kansas, and Texas Railway. According to Wikipedia, "The Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad is a former Class I railroad company in the United States, with its last headquarters in Dallas. It was established in 1865 under the name Union Pacific Railway, Southern Branch and served an extensive rail network in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri. In 1988, it merged with the Missouri Pacific Railroad and is now part of Union Pacific Railroad."

I suspect that the Katy linear park is one of those successful "Rails to Trails" programs that I think is just a terrific idea. As we cruised by, we could tell that the Katy is extensively used by bikers and joggers and walkers and the like. I don't believe motorized traffic is allowed.

The best thing we found about driving Route 94 which runs from St. Louis to Jefferson City is that it's marked with Lewis and Clark signs the entire way. If I remember my history, Lewis and Clark began their journey in St. Louis by heading up the Missouri River on flatboats. So, as you travel Route 94, you're basically paralleling their journey up the Missouri.

The countryside is absolutely wonderful. Farm fields full of baby corn plants are surrounded by forests that look, I suspect, very much like what Lewis and Clark would have seen from their flatboat. Knowing that you're traveling on the triangle of land formed where the Mississippi and Missouri come together makes it all the more breathtaking. We could just feel the history all around us. And when we would catch sight of the river you could just see the Corp of Discovery on their flatboats as easily as you could see the ripples on the water.

Route 94 finally ran out as we approached Jefferson City, Missouri. It had been my intent to go into Jefferson City to see what we could see, but as I attempted to move toward the exit a guy behind me decided that though he was on the exit he didn't want to exit. The upshot was he prevented me from getting over and I sailed past my exit opportunity. So.....we just decided to let serendipity have its way and we continue on up Route 63 toward Columbia, Missouri.

When we got to Columbia, we decided that we'd just go ahead and jump on Interstate 70 and head toward Kansas City. Since it was Sunday, we didn't think there would be that much traffic. Our guess turned out to be correct and we made good time as we headed west, just listening to our latest thriller on the disk player.

We stopped only a couple of times. Once for gas at a station that didn't have any, and once for lunch at, of all places, a cemetery for ex-Confederate soldiers who had survived the war, and who had eventually retired to an old soldiers home just outside of Higginsville, Missouri. The cemetery was on the soldiers home property and was surrounded by several hundred acres of the most beautiful parkland you ever saw. The park was a regular meeting spot for townspeople who wanted a pleasant lunch near the many lakes and forested glens.

At first we didn't see the cemetery. But since the traffic is one-way only, as we were leaving we drove very near a tiny white church and and we could see that the Confederate graves were arranged in the Churchyard. It was just so perfectly done. All the markers were in neat rows and there were multiple dedications and explanations of what you were seeing, as well as a commemorative centerpiece . I just couldn't resist stopping for a few photographs, and I hope the warriors resting peacefully didn't mind my presence.

Once back on the highway, we resumed our Interstate 70 run toward Kansas City. I was hoping to glide right on through KC and out the other side before looking for a camp. More or less, that's just what we did. About five miles into the country on the west side of the city, we pulled over and consulted the camp books and the map. Then, when we had decided on the perfect camp, we put the address into the GPS and took off. We did have to backtrack three miles before heading somewhat south, but we eventually landed in a very nice, small camp well out of any heavy-duty traffic. We can hear the horns from a rail line nearby, but aside from that lonesome-sounding melody, we don't have many distractions.

Tomorrow we plan on backtracking just a bit to Kansas City, Missouri. This evening we stumbled onto a discussion of a museum that I've wanted to see for years. In 1988, a treasure hunter determined that the Missouri had changed course slightly many decades in the past and the channel that it left was eventually filled in and became farm land. Rivers often do this type of thing. But in this instance, the man knew that in that exact part of the old riverbed that the Missouri had long ago abandoned, a steamboat had gone down. Long story short, the man found the wreck of the steamboat Arabia under 45 feet of mud with its cargo almost completely intact. Damn! Archeology and History, what more could you want? Wild horses couldn't keep us away!