Thursday: Fulton KY to Wichita, KS

Heading west, across the Mississippi, the Ozarks, and into the Great Plains

We spent the night in Fulton KY, which is right on the KY/TN border

GREAT hotel!
This opened last year, and it's beautiful and very comfortable.
Compare the pic below with what it looked like last year (google street view)

Across the street is the breakfast place, which is actually in TN (the state line runs down the middle of street). Reminded us of Blackwater Junction back home.

I read the local newspaper over breakfast

Upon checking out, I chatted with the hotel guy. He asked why we were in Fulton, and I told him it's the childhood home of a good friend. He asked the name, and I said Mark Pennell, upon which the guy said he knew Mark - they went to grade and Middle school together, and played trumpet together, and that Mark was really good. (His name is Chad). So I guess Mark really is from here!

Here's Mark's childhood home in South Fulton, the TN side of town

 



From Fulton, we drove northwest toward the Mississippi river
Anyone need a used car?
(note the name on the sign)

Looking north toward the confluence of the Ohio (right) and Mississippi rivers at Cairo, IL

We crossed the Ohio river to Cairo, IL, then immediately crossed the Mississippi river into Missouri.
There are not many bridges across the rivers, so you cross where you can.

(We skipped Branson MO as the weather was iffy and we wanted to gain time toward the west)


A few hours later we visited the home of Laura Ingalls Wilder in Mansfield MO. This is where she lived from age 27 until 92, and where she wrote the Little House books. It was fun to see her home, and we both remembered many details from my reading the books to Bee when she was 5 or 6.

Next was Independence Community College in Independence MO.
Looks exactly like it does in season 3 the Netflix series Last Chance U.
And its easy to see why the players from D1 schools think this is the middle of nowhere.

Heading west, we passed thru some big thunderstorms rolling across the Kansas prairie.
As the storm cleared, there were many beautiful clouds, like this one backlit by the sun

Our original destination was Arkansas City KS, but we chose to head to Wichita instead for better beds, better food, and to cut an hour off tomorrow's drive.
As we entered town, we found this cool locomotive on display

We had dinner at a BBQ place in Wichita's Old Town. It was really good.

Tomorrow we head thru west Kansas and east Colorado, ending in Denver