Monument Rocks National Natural Landmark

[TripLeader]

The trail is usually easy to follow. There are blue blazes painted on trees along the way. In addition, there are markers every mile to help you keep track of the distance and your location. The hardes part about routefinding are the times when the trail goes through fields. Then you have to check all along the opposite woodline to find the next blue blaze.


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Fall is definitely the time to do the trail. Summer, other than being hot and humid, also has too many spiderwebs and ticks. (Ask me how I know.)

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This was an old livestock ramp we came passed along the way.

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A bird's nest. (Perhaps it belonged to a Western Meadowlark? )

 

[roverrocks]

The trail is usually easy to follow. There are blue blazes painted on trees along the way. In addition, there are markers every mile to help you keep track of the distance and your location. The hardes part about routefinding are the times when the trail goes through fields. Then you have to check all along the opposite woodline to find the next blue blaze.
View attachment 209359
View attachment 209360
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Fall is definitely the time to do the trail. Summer, other than being hot and humid, also has too many spiderwebs and ticks. (Ask me how I know.)
View attachment 209361
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This was an old livestock ramp we came passed along the way.
View attachment 209362
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A bird's nest. (Perhaps it belonged to a Western Meadowlark? )
View attachment 209363

Gotta be a California Condor nest. The first one documented in Kansas!!!

 

[TripLeader]

A couple of views of the lake.


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More Hiking.


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We did about 10 miles the first day. One of my hiking partners discovered he had lost his cell phone along the way. He was convinced he could go back and find it. The rest of us were sure it was gone forever. But he was set on turning around, so we all decided to stick together. We ended up camping one more night along the trail, before getting picked up.

 

[TripLeader]

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We couldn't find the phone on the hike out. The day after, my buddy used a lost phone app to get a gps location on the phone. He then returned by himself and found the phone under a bunch of leaves.
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Completing Perry Lake Trail is still on my to-do list.

 

[TripLeader]

Gotta be a California Condor nest. The first one documented in Kansas!!!

I was kind of thinking Pterodactyl...

 

[FinsUp]

Cool Pics! We have hit the Perry trail a few times to get my daughters accommodated to backpacking. Last fall we gave them the option of going backpacking or going to Kansas City. The kids chose backpacking. Made me proud. We had classes on firemaking, first aid and just ran around and played outside.

 

[roverrocks]

I was kind of thinking Pterodactyl...

Have you ever been to Indian Cave State Park in SE Nebraska? Miles and miles of marvelous hiking trails in the Missouri River Bluffs bordering the river itself. Hardwood forest and small interspersed prairie knolls rising out of the woods in 5 sq. miles of parkland. Good place to hike, camp, birdwatch, and flower watch plus XC ski in the winter. Some nice backcountry backpack camp sites or at least there used to be. I worked there in 1978-79. Great place to get away to.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...V6h7srPFRVMuLng&bvm=bv.60444564,d.aWc&cad=rja

 

[TripLeader]

Cool Pics! We have hit the Perry trail a few times to get my daughters accommodated to backpacking. Last fall we gave them the option of going backpacking or going to Kansas City. The kids chose backpacking. Made me proud. We had classes on firemaking, first aid and just ran around and played outside.

I hope the kids taught you something in those classes! I've seen your outdoor skills...

Have you ever been to Indian Cave State Park in SE Nebraska? Miles and miles of marvelous hiking trails in the Missouri River Bluffs bordering the river itself. Hardwood forest and small interspersed prairie knolls rising out of the woods in 5 sq. miles of parkland. Good place to hike, camp, birdwatch, and flower watch plus XC ski in the winter. Some nice backcountry backpack camp sites or at least there used to be. I worked there in 1978-79. Great place to get away to.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...V6h7srPFRVMuLng&bvm=bv.60444564,d.aWc&cad=rja

Never had heard of it, but from some internet research, it looks like a pretty good place for a local backpacking trip (which aren't abundant around here).

 

[FinsUp]

We took our Scout troop to Indian Cave state Park two years ago. Very cool, we've been talking about taking our girls up there for a weekend.

 

[TripLeader]

We took our Scout troop to Indian Cave state Park two years ago. Very cool, we've been talking about taking our girls up there for a weekend.

I'll have to hit you up for some information and photos...

 

[FinsUp]

Anytime

 

[TripLeader]

Mt. Sunflower

I stopped at Mt. Sunflower on the way home from an August trip to Colorado. At 4039 feet, it is the highest point in all of Kansas. It's located about 1 mile east of the Colorado border and about 30 miles south of I-70.
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I took the long way, and I drove through a lot of what looked like this.

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I finally came to the sign. You can see Mt. Sunflower if you look closely.

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Here it is.

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The mailbox holds the summit register.

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I had the place all to myself. According to the register, someone had been there three hours earlier. Before that, no one had been there for days. I was happy to see another Kansas landmark.

 

[TripLeader]

Garden of Eden

Over this weekend, I did some camping and exploring. I ended up in Lucas, Kansas at the Garden of Eden.

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The Garden of Eden is a folk art mecca in Kansas. It was created by civil war veteran S.P. Dinsmoor. He moved to the town in the late 1800s and built his limestone house in 1907. He spent the next two decades creating his concrete artwork.

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The tour of the house and the mausoleum costs $7.

 

[TripLeader]

The interior of the house.


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Dinsmoor was married twice. His second wife was much younger.

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Dinsmoor died in a small room in the house.

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Dinsmoor built his own mausoleum (of course).

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The flag in front of the mausoleum.

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The mausoleum is the only place where photography is not allowed. Dinsmoor is buried inside, and the tour allows you to enter. Dinsmoor had himself mummified and buried in a concrete coffin he built himself. There is a glass plate over his face and the coffin is behind a large plate glass window. You can still view him today, after being dead for about 83 years. The staff member on duty said that about 13 years ago, the large plate glass window was broken. The break allowed air and moisture inside and now Dinsmoor is decaying at a more rapid fashion. The skin used to be intact on his face until the break.

 

[TripLeader]

More of the yard.