NOW THAT'S A BIG BALL OF TWINE!

MONDAY

TRAVEL DAY
STOP #202

Today was an easy travel day, just 112 miles mostly on two lane backroads, with very little traffic. Why can't they all be like that?

Well I guess they could if we planned it that way, but on those longer hauls it would take forever to get anywhere.

We are now at our third an final stop in Kansas and it happens to be another state park campground. This one is Glen Elder State Park and we're here for only one reason, sightseeing!

Our first stop in Kansas highlighted the natural rock formations in the area, the second stop hightlighted the wildlife, specifically prairie dogs, and this stop is all about man-made attractions.

We are only here for three nights so we had better get busy.

Our waterfront campsite here at Glen Elder State Park in Kansas.

MONDAY - Before I share our sightseeing outiings from our new location I would like to tell you about something strange that occurred at the last stop.

Tricia took this short video at 7:00AM after her Friday morning walk. It clearly shows a tom turkey pacing back and forth in front of ROVER. My guess is that he is seeing his reflection in our shiny chrome bumper and is trying to intimidate "the intruder" into leaving "his territory" and leave "his hens" alone. Occasionally he would even give the bumper a nasty peck!

While the video is only 1-minute long, Tricia was watching for several minutes before she started filming. She finally got close enough to scare him off and came inside to show me the video. We found out later from the neighbors that when they left at 10:00AM to go into town he was back at it once again.

We didn't once move the truck on Saturday or Sunday and when we were preparing to pack up and move on Monday morning we noticed this.

That silly turkey had paced back and forth so much over the last two days that he had worn a path through the rocks and down into the dirt layer of the driveway.

I can imagine how proud he was with himself when he came to visit on Monday afternoon and saw that he had finally chased away the "big bad silver turkey".

WEDNESDAY - Today is our 3rd Nomadiversary! That's right we've been on the road for three years now.

To celebrate we are going sightseeing. First up on our list of three locations, and closest to our campsite, is the "World's Largest Ball of Twine".

When we started planning our retirement Tricia said that in addition to seeing all the National Parks she also wanted to see quirky roadside attractions. I remember she specifically mentioned the "World's Largest Ball of Twine", so today, we find ourselves in Cawker City, KS. In the 2010 census the city's population was recorded as 469 and it doesn't appear to have changed much in the last ten years. My guess is that they are still well below a population of 500.

Second on the list is visiting the "Geodetic Center of North America". The actual location is on a private ranch some 15 miles away, but the nearby town of Osbourne, KS has created a small park where a replica is available to be viewed by the public.

Last but not least is the more familiar "Geographic Center of the United States" located in Lebanon, KS which is 42 miles north of the geodetic center in Osbourne. This is the geographic center of the lower 48 states, if you add in Alaska and Hawaii the center would be located in the northwest corner of South Dakota.

Anyway here are some photos from our day out sightseeing in Kansas.

NOMADIVERSARY SIGHTSEEING

Wait for it...
Wait for it...
There it is! Now that's a big ball of twine.
Tricia demonstrating just how large it is.
Not all of the twine is the same color and some of it looks more like yarn.
There is a restored service station directly across the street form the big ball.
The Geodetic Center of North America historical marker.
A little closer so you can read it.
A replica of the disc used for surveying North America.
The Geographic Center of the Lower 48 United States
The small chapel and picnic pavillion located here.
The official marker location.
A close up for you to read.
Even a photo op sign to stand next to if you are so inclined.

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