Comfort Suites Salina

... an 1881 historic ranch house, limestone barn and outbuildings, and one-room schoolhouse. Today's Prairie is home to an astonishing variety of life: over 450 species of plants, 150 kinds of birds, 39 types of reptiles and amphibians, and 31 species of mammals.

Although Mushroom Rock State Park is the smallest state park in Kansas, it's the most interesting. The Park has Dakota sandstone concretions. There are many concretions in this Park, but some of it still remains and has been supporting three of the rocks for many years.

The resulting combination of rocks have a mushroom shape. The unusual shapes caught the imaginations of the Native Americans and pioneers, some of whom have left graffiti in softer sandstone.

... the railroad was completed through Kansas, the fort was abandoned.

Santa Fe Trail Museum:

The Santa Fe Trail originated in Independence, MO through Kansas and ended in New Mexico. The Trail began in 1821 and carried a stream of merchant wagons and pioneers until replaced by the railroad system in 1880. The Santa Fe Trail Museum tells the story of the transportation route once known as the Santa Fe Trail which blended the Indian, Mexican, and American cultures.

Dwight D. Eisenhower was elected the 34th President of the U.S. He served two terms – 1952 to 1961. He was elected President primarily because of his military accomplishments. President Roosevelt designated Eisenhower as Supreme Allied Commander. As such, Eisenhower's duties were to direct and coordinate all military efforts to end tyranny in WWII. He successfully commanded the Allied invasion of northern Europe and brought an end to WWII ...

Brown V. Board of Education NHS:

On May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court unanimously declared that segregated educational facilities are "inherently unequal" and, as such, violate the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. This decision by the Supreme Court was one of the most significant in U.S. history. Its affirmation of the 14th Amendment made it clear to all Americans that the federal government would ...

... as if they may have been from the original movie.

I had longed for a "Mom and Pop" restaurant and wasn't disappointed. Across the street from the Museum, was the "Friendly Cookery". Inside vinyl booths lined up down the wall and two old ladies and a young teen bustled about serving what appeared to be most of the elders in town. "Perfect" I thought to myself. "They have grilled cheese sandwiches." I ordered ...

... through the state who knew that this is the birthplace of Annie Oakly, Walter Chryslter, Eisenhower's Museum and Library, Dalton Gang Hideout and the original Boot Hill at Dodge City. We also passed a place that advertised the worlds larges prarie dog and a 5 legged steer.

When we got to the middle of the state we saw wind turbins for at least 10 miles and I stopped counting at 50 just at the beginning. I guess this must be the windy state

We ...

In the morning after eating cereal and packing the trailer up, we were just about to leave when dad noticed that the rear left tire on the van was loosing air pressure. So we went to an auto tire shop and got a new wheel .Fortunately, we were able to start heading west again only about an hour later than we planed. For lunch we ended up eating at McDonalds. Later in the after noon, we ...

... guzzled down their first Root Beer out of the paper Dora the Explorer cups. With 5 large bags of trash, Meaw and Rebecca went to take the trash to the dumpster happily located (we just learned) on the other side of the campground (note for others: KOA picks up trash daily at each RV pad). Luckily, a man in a golf cart packed with his entire family (golf carts were very popular there - we didn't have one) offered to load the trash on the ...

This is the day I'll remember most from the trip. I headed north up I-25 briefly which means that, yes, I did take a left turn at Albuquerque and, no, I did not end up in Napolean's Palace or a Persian cave filled with treasure. I did see some wonderful things as I drove through the beautiful Jemez Mountains, through the lush forest along the Rio San Diego, and through the heartbreaking Indian Reservations of the Zia, and Santa Ana. It's a stunning drive and ...