Day 33, June 20th 2008, beginning in Syracuse, Kansas

We got our good breafest at the typical small diner down the street. There an old woman came up to us while we were eating and grabbed me by the shoulder to ask me where we were from. It was funny, and she also mentioned that she had traveled every state west of the Mississippi, and Kansas was her favorite. A bit surprised by that, we thought to each his own, and went back to the motel.

Trying to locate more couchsurfers and plan our path through Colorado, I spent some time on the laptop before we departed. Once we finally got out the door, I had a brake situation that took another 20 minutes or so to resolve. Once that was rectified, we hopped on the seats for a farewell to Kansas ride, as our first stop would be in Holly, Colorado.

Shortly into the ride, we entered "Colorful Colorado". Maybe it was reality, or maybe perception, but we immediately noticed the low humidity and how nice it felt even with the sun shining strongly around noon. There were also tons of prairie dogs that seemed to start right over the border as well. After fueling up in Holly we headed to Lamar. There was an information center there, oddly about 40 miles into the state.

We stopped at a Walmart because I will accept only the finest in clothing, and was in need of a decent looking shirt to wear out. Mind you this is over a month into the trip. Paul and I each grabbed a shirt, and some delicious fruit. As we were getting ready to leave, we noticed intense winds. What, we're in Colorado, I thought we were supposed to be out of this stuff. Sure enough there were tornado warnings in the area. We surveyed the area a bit, and found a nice break to head down the road about a mile to the visitor's center.

Upon arriving there, we were informed that tornadoes had touched down north of where we were, and Holly, where we had come from earlier that day! Craziness, but it was just a bit windy in Lamar at the time. We picked up tons of materials at the center, most of which would have to be shed before we tackled the Rockies head on, but would suit well for the time being.

Taking one of the worker's advice from the visitor's center, we went to a trucker's diner a bit ouf town. It was a cool place, with tons of souvenirs and a large dining area. The food was really good, and we both got milkshakes to top it off. There were two large flags outside, a U.S. And Colorado's awesome flag, and both were blowing furiously toward the direction we were heading. Sweet.

As we approached the campgrounds that we would be staying at that night, we were a bit disappointed to see a crappy gravel road we'd have to ride into the campground for 3 miles. We were really disappointed with the park on arrival. The young woman working at the front desk stuck us away from everyone else when we asked to be near the bathrooms. It was somewhat funny, but a little annoying too. They charged for showers as well. This was the first time we had seen this, and Paul was pretty angry, me not so much.

As we prepared for bed, the winds began to pickup. I'm no meteorologist, but I would say the winds were gusting to somewhere in the 40 mph range, throughout the night.  We would not have much sleep throughout the night, as we were fairly certain the tent would come down. It was pretty miserable sleep, but we didn't get swept up by a tornado, and we would be in Pueblo the following night with a couchsurfer, and some rest after a long week.

Life was good.

5 Replies to “Day 33, June 20th 2008, beginning in Syracuse, Kansas”

  1. If in doubt in a tornado, do what they do in Twister and tie yourself to a tree or something with a belt. I suppose you would have to go buy a belt, so you may want to think of something related to a belt… I bet you didn't know that I was interested in TV/movies, did you?

  2. In case you are looking for some new music, here are some fun suggestions: (I can send them to you if you want)
    Milk and Cereal- by G Love & Special Sauce
    Jerusalem- by Matisyahu
    I like cold beverages- G Love & Special Sauce
    This is why Africa is hot- Mims and Toto

    Woot!

  3. You went to Walmart for a shirt! You mean there are no Job Lots around!!!!! Remember if your are providing draft for Paul, you should have a clean shirt on!!!

    Glad you are paying attention to the tornado warnings. Truckers know where the good food is.

    later dudes,

    love,

    mom and dad

  4. What a beautiful sunset! Your trip is fun to read and see, especially on such a lousy day today. Here it is the 4th.
    Congratulations to Mark.
    Chris T. is up in Maine with a load of friends, looks as though Maine may be beautiful with great sun presently. Dad, Ralph, is surrounded with everyone, and he says he is going to read! Your trip is sure an eye opener seeing the country and not having to purchase any gas. The truckers have to look at you both with envy.
    Be careful, and watch out for the surprise showers where you may sleep.
    Karen

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