Trans-Am Five - 5.4 - Herington to Langley, Kansas: Kanapolis Cottonwoods
5.4 - Sunday July 11, 2021, 70 miles; Total so far: 238 miles
Chuck and I had gone out for a bit on the previous evening, so we felt the change in the air that was occurring. A breeze out of the Northwest was bringing cooler air and some clouds to the area. By morning, it was cooler, overcast, and it looked like it might rain. Since we had a longer day ahead, another early start was in order. The hotel was on US-77, the road we needed to use for a couple of miles to get onto K-4 (Kansas Route 4) where we would spend most of the day.
Since it was Sunday morning, the traffic was light. Our early start was peaceful and allowed us to get a good jump on the distance for the day. By the time we reached the small town of Hope, about 8 miles after turning onto K-4, a slight drizzle had developed. The guys stopped under some cover but the rain wasn't bothering me, so I continued on in my zone, putting several miles of wet blacktop under my wheels. Although the rain began to fall a bit heavier, I was really enjoying this wet and warm morning ride.
Fred is rolling along nicely in the early morning on Kansas Route 4 (K-4), a little to the South and West of Herrington.
Fred rides past the grain storage facility in Hope, Kansas as the rain began to fall.
Eventually, K-4 brought us to the small town of Gypsum, Kansas where we took a break. By then the rain had stopped but it was still overcast and cool. This was a very small town. Not many residents were out and about on this morning. Gypsum had a few amenities, the very clean public restrooms and a nice park, that gave it a welcoming feel to us. In the park, we read bits of information about members of a high school class that had graduated more than 50 years ago. There weren't many class members to begin with. A few had already passed away but several were still around and were apparently making sure this small town continues on as a tidy place that makes strangers feel at home. Later on, I learned that Gypsum was once the site of an active missile silo for the US Military.
K-4 continued West until shortly before crossing I-135, which ran in a North-South direction. At a place called Assaria, K-4 turned Southward. The road was flat as a pancake, nearly devoid of traffic, and we had a bonafide tailwind. Gentlemen, start your engines! This fortunate set of circumstances continued all the way to Lindsborg.
Lindsborg was originally settled by people of Swedish descent. We had heard there were some ethnic attractions but on this Sunday, it seemed the whole town was closed down. There was an Asian restaurant open only for take out, so we settled for a combination of it and offerings from a Casey's General Store nearby. I struck up a conversation with a young lady who was walking her dog down the main street of town. She unapologetically told me Lindsborg is a Christian community where businesses close down on Sundays and residents sometimes visit each other to have coffee. They like things that way and are not interested in changing any time soon. As far as I am concerned, it's their town and if this works for them, then so be it. I have to say, it is a pretty little town that is probably better explored on a day other than a Sunday. I'd like to go back sometime. But today, we had a few more miles to go to reach our final destination.
K-4 was our road for the day, so we got back on it and continued West. More agricultural countryside was passed in the 8 miles or so that it took to reach Marquette. This even smaller town also had a tidy business district but again, nothing was open and almost nobody was about on this Sunday afternoon. There was a friendly fellow who told us about the Kansas Motorcycle Museum in town that, according to him, was worth a visit when it would be open. Too bad we wouldn't be in a position to return on a week day for a tour.
From Marquette, we had about 8 more miles to go before reaching our destination, a campground at Kanapolis Lake State Park, near Langley. The landscape consisted of more wide open agricultural fields and some crossing county roads that seemed to run Northward and Southward, as far as the eye could see. I would imagine that living out here would provide a good measure of peace and quiet, unless there were a flock of Eurasian Collared Doves hanging around... which there were. I jest, but there truly is a lot of beauty in these vast fields of Kansas.
We finally reached K-141, the turn-off from K-4, to reach our campground. Kanapolis Lake State Park is a wooded area with a big lake for recreation and respite from all the work in the fields, I suppose. There seemed to be quite a few people there but our little campsite ended up being very quiet. Before this trip, I had heard of Cottonwood trees but had not ever seen any. There was one in Lawrence, near our Air BNB but I didn't "put 2 and 2 together" there. Here in the park, our campsite was in the Cottonwood area, which had plenty of its namesake trees overhead.
The trees drop a white cotton candy type substance that covers the ground below, almost looking like a dusting of snow. Very pretty but I wouldn't want to clean up a yard full of the stuff. The droppings are also highly flammable, as we found out when we had a small campfire. One stray spark got rid of all the cottonwood droppings in our immediate campsite. After a few tense moments, John-F nervously joked that we helped the park service clean up the campsite. We had a very nice evening in the park after a relatively long day in the saddle. Kanapolis State Park is a good stop, if you happen to be out that way.
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