Day 51, Ness City to Scott City, Kansas

We passed this train bridge just out of Ness City. There were several of these. Trains play a major roll in the wheat industry.

We ran across this farm equipment grave yard in the middle of no where. It looks as if people just bring what ever they have that don't work and park it here.

There was everything from tractors to trucks, and everything in between. I wish I would have stopped and taken a walk through there.

These are the only two cycling tourist we saw all day today. They were heading east.


We stopped to take a break at the George Washington Carver Historical marker. Click on the picture to read about this remarkable man. Lisa thought they were talking about her.

The Byrd Ranch. It just looked cool, so I took this picture.

Wheat, wheat, and more wheat. Just imagine. In the great depression, this was known as "The Dust Bowl"

These are brand new Derricks for sale at an equipment store. Kansas has oil derricks all over the place. And here I thought they were all left over from the good old days.

That's wheat being unloaded from those trucks until it can be loaded on to trains. The train track is right next to that thing unloading the wheat.


Day 51, Ness City to Scott City, Kansas. “Tail Winds Baby!” 55.8 miles.

Tail winds, it can mean many things to many people. Tail winds can be bad if you are stalking deer with a bow and arrow. It can be bad if the person behind you had beans for lunch. Bur for a touring cyclist. Tail winds mean smooth sailing, less effort, and an over all easier day. It can mean the difference between dead tired at twenty miles, or fresh after 50. Tail winds are a blessing. And today, was just that. You see, normally the wind on the plains blow from west to east. Which equals a head wind for west bound cyclist. It was like that the last few days for the most part. But today, the wind switched around, and stayed that way. If it stays like this tomorrow, we should be at our next destination by noon.
This morning, after a restless night of sleep, we pulled out of Ness City early, in hopes of escaping the afternoon heat, and the head wind that we have been experiencing lately. The Derrick Inn, was a strange place. It is an enclosed building, so all the rooms face in, where there is a swimming pool and Jacuzzi in the center. There is also a game room, lounge, and the only whiskey bar in the state of Kansas. Because the whole thing is enclosed. The odder of cigarette smoke was in the air all the time. I hated it.
The ride was smooth and fast for most of the day. It never got to a hundred degrees till shortly after noon. And it hovered right at 102 for the rest of the afternoon. Don’t get me wrong. 102 degrees is hot, but after ridding in temperatures of 110 and above for the last few days, 102 was a blessing.
We rode past thousands off acres of wheat fields. Some of them extending as far as the eye can see in either direction. We could see large combines working the fields way off in the distance by the cloud of dust that followed them. The roads were busy with large grain trucks hauling their load to the transfer facilities usually located near a train track. Large trailer trucks hauling combines with their attachments passed us going both ways for most of the day. These thins are huge, they take up most of the road, and because this is peak harvest season, they are all moving pretty fast. Lisa read in the local paper that this year was the best harvest they have had in years. And it is rated grade AA which means good quality, and plenty of it. They faster they can get rid of it the better, cause once the market gets flooded, the price will drop and the farmers with late crops will suffer the loss.
We Passed one of thee transfer stations with several trucks waiting to unload their load so they could go get some more. The store it in one big pile until the train comes I guess. We rolled into Dighton at 10:45AM. There was a Frosty Freeze on our right as we entered town, so we pulled in. The sign said open at 11:00AM. We were just about to leave, when a truck pulls up and a gentleman said, “If you can wait five minutes I’ll be open.” That was good enough for me. When he opened, I had the biggest root beer frosty he had.
We only had a little over 20 miles to go till Scott City, so we decided to keep going instead of taking a longer lunch break. We saw two east bounders pulling trailers coming the other way. It was our turn not to stop since we had momentum on our side. We waved, exchange pleasantries, and I snapped a picture as they smiled.
It seemed like in no time at all we were in Scott City. And found the Lazy R motel right at the edge of town. This place is pretty spread out. We could not find a place open to eat except the dinner right across the street. We must have walked a mile and a half, only to be right back at the dinner across the street. And believe it or not, they had the best French Dip I have had in years.
Tomorrow our destination is Tribune, Kansas. Right at the boarder of Colorado. We will also enter the Mountain Time Zone. Bye for now, Aloha, Ted.