Relocation along the Santa Fe

Crossing western Kansas into Colorado along the Sante Fe Trail

Choices for breakfast before leaving Dodge City were clear. A review of Miss Kitty's Cafe identified it as the only place in town one could get a "normal" breakfast. After enjoying pancakes, bacon and eggs, the remains of the Santa Fe Trail Tracks followed soon thereafter. Having already made an attempt to observe the phenomenon and failed, survey of the situation was turned over to the navigator, who remained equally hard-pressed to identify a situation suitably representative either.

Crossing the empty plains and blue skies of western Kansas, pausing seemed a generally poor idea for this particular region.  An outbreak in one of the biggest counties along the trail encouraged a speedy and environmentally controlled crossing of what little remained of the Sunflower state.

The first exploration of the day discovered the Granada Relocation Center, affectionately known as Amache.  Once host to thousands of Japanese-Americans forcibly incarcerated at the facility in Colorado during World War II, this was home for them from 1942 to 1945.  All but rattlesnakes and a few building remain now.

Passing through Hasty, a weathered blaze appeared burning out of control.  Experts already on the scene were preparing a daring rescue of one endangered citizen.  Rather than add to the massing onlookers, it seemed more appropriate to stay out of the way, and simply move on down the road.

The opportunity to stop and explore the new fort fell out of my and flew on by.  Bent's Old Fort continued to hold strong though, even though Bill and Chuck had abandoned the proposition long ago. The new fort relocated some kilometres east to a new spot, but no longer stands.  They just do not build forts the way they used to.

Small town continued to flash by, occasionally offering a moment to pause and puzzle.  Manzanola hosted several interesting old structures, seemingly recently rehabilitated in daring and unique colors.

A 1914 schoolhouse in Crowley stood proud as one of the oldest public buildings in the county. Serving the community until the 1960s, it deteriorated over the years, but came back strong in the 1990s.  It now serves a grateful community as town hall, museum, and meeting space.  Another structure stands nearby, with all the signs of being another historic school, but hosting more specific signs warning of the relative privacy of the grounds.

Pueblo is quite an artful town, with a distinct history and community all its own.  Every expedition captures one unique treasure or another.  This occasion discovered an interesting creative community space in what had been three old abandoned and previously boarded up homes.  It serves the local community through education, music, art, gardens, technology and media.

On the other side of town, the last spot left to explore met a battalion of geese standing guard, though doing a rather poor job of it.  They seemed more consumed with the abundance of snacks in the area, and were easily flanked.

A disembodied voice crackled over speakers within minutes after arrival at Lake Pueblo.  However, toes and ankles enjoyed momentary pleasure in the cool clear waters of the pond below the dam.  Several future exploration may be required to determine the true potential for enjoyment.

Valiant efforts to enjoy a little time at the beach did not go unrewarded, an alternate cooling solution suddenly appeared on the grounds, as if by magic.  The robotic servant vacuumed-delivered wares readily upon receipt of legal tender, without argument or confusion about selection.

Base camp lay another 60 km west of Lake Pueblo State Park, usually requiring an hour or so to attain.  Flying low to the ground, a cool and rested pilot accomplished the feat in just over two minutes, with only a couple of pauses along the way.

Dodge City in Kansas to Florence in Colorado - July 2020

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Further Reading

Amache Museum
Amache.org

Granada Relocation Center National Historic Landmark
National Park Service

Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site
National Park Service

Crowley County Heritage Center
CrowleyHeritageCenter.com

Pueblo Music House
PuebloHouse.org

Lake Pueblo State Park
Colorado Parks & Wildlife

Saharan Dust Plume Safari

Across Kansas from Sand Hills State Park to Dodge City, on expedition to Colorado.

In a rare occurrence, the same path traveled the fall previous filled the windshield for this summer journey across Kansas to Colorado.  It offered the navigator a chance to witness these sights first hand, having only seen them through photos.  Not everything was the same though. A few other oddities made their usual appearance.

Sand Hills State Park covered new ground to all involved, and without any further research than the location on the map.  That turned out incorrect on Google, leading to the wrong side of the park.  Trails were still accessible, but the east access point involved a longer hike than time constraints permitted. A minor course correction, with the aid of paper maps, resolved the issue.

The west entrance offered a stroll through a few hundred meters of forested trail, opening on small rolling hills covered in native grasses, wildflowers, and wild raspberries, along with a decision.  The trail splits, and in one direction, wanders aimlessly between mounds.  An alternate path drives intently up a nearby knob 10-20 meters high.

The latter choice prevailed, possessing the virtue of enabling greater visibility of the surrounding situation and said dunes.  About halfway up the knoll it became apparent that it hailed as one of the dunes, hidden discretely beneath grass, yucca, and assortment of other creatures.  Viewing from the pinnacle confirmed a landscape littered with similar features and very little else.  It was time to press on.

The Saharan dust plume passing through the region continued to intensify, bringing with it a herd of camels in Nickerson.  Having recently parachuted in, they gathered around the table Hedrick's Inn enjoying a good breakfast, mostly segregated from their Zebra comrades who landed only a short distance away.

In the exact same location as the previous October, without having changed at all, Pawnee Rock State Historic Site stood firm.  The air quality was an entirely different story. Harvesting added more dust to air already saturated with the dirt and filth from the Dark Continent.  A more conditioned and filtered situation became the standard for the remainder of journey on this date.

Fort Larned National Historic Site was also found exactly the same as it had been, and at about the same time of day, again deterring anything beyond a passing glance tour.  However, more appropriately maintained grass heights licensed a stroll to the cemetery grounds at the site on this occasion, while the navigator became enthralled with the blacksmith.  At the cemetery, all residents had moved on.  According to one sign, they had packed up and left, and are believed to have moved off to Fort Leavenworth, likely seeking a more moderate climate.

Without so much as intending to, an unexpected arrival at midpoint of the country necessitated a pause to validate location and reflect.  The Edwards County Sod House and Museum was just then closing up, but a gregarious and generous caretaker lingered allowing a peek inside the resident 1884 church, further offering to open the whole place up for review.  

Hidden intrigues of the Sod Museum would have to wait for another occasion.  A more intense urge to review food and beverage requirements insisted on immediate forward progress across the final 65 km of expansive fields filled with bovines and windmills.

Dodge City continues to impress on every visit.  The community is making great strides to improve the friendliness of odors in the air.  This visit to the bustling metropolis found no stockyard smells lurking in the air, just as with last time, but not the time before.  It might simply be a matter of timing.

After checking into accommodations that surpassed expectations, enough daylight remained to seek local refreshment from a day in the saddle.  The brief journey back to downtown produced discovery of a relatively new establishment, which offered sublime pizza to accompany their beverages.  A brief wandering of the mostly empty sidewalks downtown followed immediately thereafter, connecting finally with the Snow Station.

Sand Hills State Park to Dodge City - Google Maps - July 2020

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Reflections on the second part of the journey to the Southern Rocky Mountains will follow soon, with a link posted in this space.  Until then, enjoy a glimpse of this path, accompanied by music

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Further Reading

Sand Hills State Park
Kansas Wildlife, Parks & Tourism

Sand Hills State Park
Kansas Geological Survey

Hedrick's Bed, Breakfast, and Exotic Animal Farm

Hendricks.com

Fort Larned National Historic Site
National Park Service

Edwards County Historical Society Museum

EdwardsCountyMuseum.com

Dodge City Brewing

DodgeCityBrewing.com

Boot Hill Museum

Boothill.org

Draft of Student Security Risk

I am concerned student identities are often unwittingly leaked on the internet, posing threat to their current and future well-being. I am not looking to call out any one person, though feel this topic needs addressed in our community. 

 I already emailed this colleague, expressing my concern with her post.  She had not realized their names were showing up and has since deleted her posts, thanking me for bringing this to her attention. Attached is only one example of several I have noted in recent times, where screenshots of Microsoft Teams meetings display student faces and their names.  Other instances sometimes show awards with names, or a name is used in a post, identifying the student. A long successful career in Information Technology sector instilled in me an acute awareness of the problems associated with distribution of names, faces, and other identifying factors.   These things are an extremely high information security risk to student identity, families, not to mention the personal safety of their children. I feel that all staff within the district would benefit from a soft reminder of the potential harm from these situations, as well as a future PD designed to inform of potential online threats and how to avoid them. I am willing and able to help with that. Too often, students do not have a clear choice, or possess enough knowledge of potential risks associated with the simple distribution of their name and/or face online.  It is imperative we do our best to protect them and their future.

gTodd