Wichita Means "Scattered Lodges" - Thursday, June 1, 2017

When we loaded the car at 6:45 this morning, rain had obviously fallen overnight. Big puddles were evidence of this. However, we did not have any rain the rest of the day.

The drive north on I-35, I-135 and U.S. 81 was through farmland and rolling hills. We made a short potty-break stop, and then continued on our journey. Our one long stop was in Wichita, Kansas to do the 10k Delano-River Walk-Old Town Volksmarch. 

Susan and Darren on a bridge
over the Arkansas River

A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned how some minor league baseball teams have weird names. Today we walked past the stadium of the Wichita "Wingnuts." They were on that list of weirdly named teams.

The walk took us through a few neighborhoods, and along Delano Street where there are a number of eateries which were recommended on our instructions. It was lunchtime and we opted to eat at La Galette, a deli and bakery.

The food was good. I had a tuna croissant sandwich. They had toasted the whole sandwich which made the croissant warm and crunchy and the tuna was warm as well. I would have that again. Darren had a salad and some kind of cold cucumber soup. Susan had potato pie and potato soup.

Darren and Susan at La Galette

My tuna croissant sandwich

Susan's potato pie and potato soup

We continued to the river and were instructed to go down to river level to continue the walk. However, where we were supposed to go was blocked by construction fences! Luckily, we could cross the bridge and take the path along the river on the opposite side. At the next bridge, we crossed back over to where we could continue on our walk. 

The path followed the river past museums to the Keeper of the Plains, a 44' tall sculpture on a 30' tall pedestal. At 9:00 p.m. every night, there is a Ring of Fire show at Keeper of the Plains. Apparently, big fire drums create a spectacular scene, with the Keeper rising from the flames as flickering light bounces off the dramatic surroundings. It's too bad we won't be staying here tonight to see it.

Walking past the science museum

Keeper of the Plains comes into view.

A close-up view

Susan and Darren waving from the
bridge leading to Keeper of the Plains

A fun perspective shot of the bridge

Informative displays at Keeper of the Plains

Location of Indian tribes

"The Wisdom of Storytelling"

The "Keeper of the Plains" stands at the confluence of the Arkansas and Little Arkansas Rivers, the place where his ancestors camped.

Keeper of the Plains

A field of claret cups

 We followed the river around to Riverside Park where there is a very small exhibit of Kansas Wildlife, a sun calendar, playground, and a water feature which is great for hot days like today. I think it was about 84 degrees when we reached this part of the walk. We had a very nice breeze, though.

Riverside Park water feature

Looks like a blast!

 Riverside Park is very large and we walked through quite a bit of it. From the park, we crossed a pretty bridge and headed into downtown Wichita.

Sun calendar

Bridge over the river

Historic County Courthouse

Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum

Our six miles in the sun wore us out and we couldn't wait to get back to the car! As we headed north, we found a DQ and we all had Guardians of the Galaxy Blizzards. Now those were some very tasty and much-appreciated Blizzards!

We then drove 2-1/2 hours north to spend the night in Belleville, Kansas. Another 400 miles with a 10k walk is now under our belts. 

Belleville, Kansas, doesn't have much going on. We ate dinner at a so-so place, then had a couple of glasses of Moscato wine in Susan and Darren's room and talked about our busy day tomorrow.

Itinerary for Friday:

• Leave motel at 7:00 a.m.
• Do the Lincoln, Nebraska, Capitol Volksmarch (and tour)
• Go to Kearney, Nebraska, to visit the Great Platte River Road Arch
• Go to North Platte to visit the Golden Spike Tower and Union Pacific's Bailey Yard
• Drive to Pierre, South Dakota, and if time, do the 5k State Capitol Volksmarch

Sounds like a plan, Stan! Multiple states are being checked off due to our rapid travels. Nighty night.