Tuesday
- September 3, 2024:
I'm off on an overnight trip exploring northeast Kansas. The first stop
was another visit to Grinter's
Sunflower Farm in Lawrence. The sunflowers are just beginning to open
and they should be nice by this weekend. Even at 9 AM on a Tuesday there
were already several cars of visitors to the field.
I
drove through Tonganoxie, taking updated photos of some of the murals and
the cool old building which once housed the Myers Hotel Bar. Part of the
building now houses Peace, Love and Yoga.
Continuing
on, I took a few photos in McLouth, Kansas, including a neat Halloween
display at McLouth Lumber Co.
Arriving
in Oskaloosa, Kansas. I took a few new photos of Old
Jefferson Town, then drove through town to see what caught my attention.
The handsome Oskaloosa United Methodist Church was unlocked and I took
photos inside and out.
Lunch
was at Ashlie's Homestyle Family Restaurant in Oskaloosa. It opens just
for breakfast and lunch and at 11 AM it was just me, the server and the
chef. I ordered the pork tenderloin and heard the meat being pounded in
the kitchen a couple of minutes later.
The
food came out quickly and it was a nicely seasoned, large. deep fried tenderloin.
I cut it in half to save the rest for later and it was still large enough
that I was tempted to cut it in half again. It was a thick tenderloin.
The menu said nothing about desserts and none were suggested.
Heading
north on Hwy 56, I passed a historic marker for the Battle of Hickory Point.
Its anniversary is next week.
I
drove to the Reformed Presbyterian Church in Winchester because the grave
of John Steuart Curry is in the Cemetery behind the church. When I saw
how attractive the church was, I stopped to photograph the church first,
and somone who was leaving invited me to come in and photograph the inside.
It is simple, but atractive and has nice stained glass windows.
John
Steuart Curry was an artist whose best known work is "Tragic Prelude,"
a murual in the Kansas Statehouse. His grave stone is flat and would be
easy to miss in a short row with other family members, but there is an
upridge stone with the family name and isting the individual members.
Continuing
north and west, I drove through Valley Falls, Kansas and photographed the
Historical Shrine Church which was relocated next to the Valley Falls Historical
Society Museum in March 2014. The building was unlocked so I was able to
photograph the interior as well. The church was built in 1857 and the sign
says that it was the first Lutheran Church built west of the Mississippi.
A
quick search online shows that a Lutheran Church was built in Sitka, Alaska
in 1843, so perhaps it would be better to call this the oldest Lutheran
Church building west of the Mississippi.
Passing
next through Dennison, Kansas, I photographed some interesting old buildings
and checked on the home which once was the Muleskinner
Lodge, a really cool B&B which we visited in 2008.
Finally
I arrived at Holton, where I was looking forward to seeing glass blowing
at More Than Lemons Art Glass. Unfortunately they were not creating glass
art today. I guess when contacting them in advance I should have asked
when the studio would be in use, rather than their hours.
Next
I drove straight through to White Cloud to take fresh photos around town
and drive north to the Nebraska State Line to photograph the historic marker
about the "Point of Beginning of the Public Land Surveys of the Sixth Principal
Meridian.
About
80 yards north, there is an easily not noticed trail which leads up to
the top of bluff and a short obelisk which is a monument to the actual
starting point for surveying the 40th Parallel. There is a guest register
- I was the first one to sign it since Monday. The trail up the bluff is
pretty steep and the walk is probably risky when the ground is wet, but
it was dry today, there is a railing to hold on to and anyone in average
condition can do it.
Before
leaving town, I also revisited the Four State Lookout.
One
of the volunteers with the Iowa and Sac & Fox Mission State Historic
Site near Highland, Kansas had agreed to let me into the building at 4
PM. He was already at work on exhibits when I arrived and they have a lot
which they hope to do before the Powwow they are hosting on September 20-22.
The
building was a state historical museum until 2008, but for many years only
the grounds were open. In 2021 the state gave control of the property to
the Iowa tribe of Kansas and it became part of the Ioway Tribal National
Park. The Museum was reopened in 2022, but I had not managed to be there
when it is open.
Quite
a bit needs to be done by the 20th. Although the second floor isn't really
ready for viewing at this time, I was invited to view it as well. The main
floor has two galleries lined with wonderful sketches and three paintings
by Rudolf Friedrich Kurz, a Swiss painter and writer who came to the United
States in 1846-52 to study Native Americans.
For
supper I tried Kirkwood and Co. in nearby Highland, Kansas. It is a nice
sports bar and my chicken fried steak, coleslaw and fries were fine, but
not the treat I am hoping to discover when exploring Kansas. I'm not a
fan of battered fries, but these were better than most. The chicken fried
steak was unusually small, and part way through the meal I got on my phone
seeking another restaurant to check out in the region.
Before
going to my second supper, I drove a few miles south to Severance, Kansas
to check out Wolf River Falls a little northwest of town. I went up river
a short ways, but it soon looked like I wasn't going to reach the falls
without going through a farmer's corn field and I gave it up.
The
second restaurant I tried was Cajun Food Coma in Troy, Kansas. There was
no sign and I hesitated when I first saw it, but the couple operating the
restaurant were friendly and welcoming.
I
had the Swamp Sampler. For $18.99 you select three appraisers from fried
shrimp, fried oysters, soft shell crab, frog legs and gator bites. I went
with oysters, crab and gator and was happy with them. enjoying the fried
oysters the most. The gator bites had a spicy coating.
I
suspect this is the only restaurant nearby where you can get oysters on
the half shell.
The
final stop of the day was southeast of Walnut Creek Falls, southwest of
Wathena, Kansas. Unfortunately, these was another location where I couldn't
find a way to approach where I understand the falls to be without going
through what felt too much like private property.
The
night was spent at Quality Inn Atchison in Atchison. Kansas. The room seemed
pretty bland for well over $100, but was clean and well kept. The public
areas are nicer and the stay included a better than average hotel breakfast
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