Four States - Four Nights

After a very enjoyable and busy summer we began our trip south by crossing the border at Noonan on October 25, 2013.   There was no one in front of us at the crossing so it was a quick stop and the border guard was very pleasant.  We spent the week prior visiting with family in Estevan and it was great fun!  We enjoyed the muffins my mom sent for the last 3 on the run breakfasts.

We headed towards Minot and then basically followed highway 83 all the way to Liberal, Kansas where we are right now.  We also overnighted  in Bismarck ,ND, Valentine, NE, North Platte NE.

 The landscape was interesting as there were lots of corn and sunflower crops in the process of being harvested.  The contrast between the black sunflowers (which looked like silly little aliens with their huge heads and scrawny bodies) and the pale yellow corn was very pleasing.  There were lots of hills and what not to keep it interesting, however the last half of Kansas was very flat much like southern Sask.  So far this sounds like a Les Nessman crop report I think.

 Sorry, blurry again, but drive by shootings are not the best.  These are sunflowers.  I was dying to get out and take pictures but you are not able to just pull over in a big unit.  Also shoulders here are pretty narrow!

This last picture is a crop of Milo ready to be harvested.  The picture is blurry but you get the idea of the beautiful color.  We saw some of this crop in NE and a lot in Kansas.  Turns out this is the number one crop harvested in Kansas.

http://www.ksgrains.com/sorghum/MiloMania04.pdf     

I was reminded of both my nephews on this trip.

Of course this one is self explanatory, but the other was when we went by Lake Sakakawea which always reminds me of my nephew Ben.

                                                     We saw a lot of these in North Dakota.

This town was called Valentine and there were hearts everywhere!  Street signs even had hearts on them.

This was the night we stayed right on the borders of Nebraska and South Dakota.  If we would have pulled the motorhome up a few feet we could have each slept in a different state.

                                    this was at the worlds largest railway yard in North Platte, Nebraska.

                                                          That's a whole lot of humping!

                                                        I totally should have been a farmer!

We saw a bit of wildlife along the way, the usual raptors, ducks and geese.  We also saw some pelicans, cormorants and pheasants.  Not many hooved animals dead or alive.  We saw a huge flock,  I am guessing, thousands of black birds.  They looked really cool flying in huge flocks turning and making pretty decorations in the sky.

                                                  This is at our campground spot in Kansas

 I think that is Dorothy's house in the background,  it was a very windy day and Don had to hold on tight for most of the trip.   He was glad to get stopped.  There is a storm warning for this area tonight until midnight.  There are dark clouds and thunder in the distance.  Hopefully it will just pass by.  They are saying chance of big hail, but of course we are in Kansas so we immediately think - you know!

                                                    that thing was really rotating in the wind today.  

                                                                     Yes, yes we are
                        Off to Amarillo Texas tomorrow - hopefully we will land there for a few days.

Sorry - the next stuff is just so we can remember the places we stayed and the restaurants we ate at
Campgrounds -Bismark KOA  - nice place, clean, friendly, expensive like all KOA's
                        - North Platte Holiday Park RV - nice, clean, trees, friendly staff
Restaurants   - Olive Garden  -  mmmm I missed Olive garden, they have the best all you can eat salad!