Day 4

Wow, it really hasn't been a long day, but it sure feels like it! We only rode about 300 miles today, 303 to be exact, but everyone is tired from last night. The storms were enormous and a real show to watch. When they moved us to a cabin we had to take down everything we had just put up.

All set up

Jim's tent doesn't like the wind.
We moved the bikes to the protected sides of the cabin. There was a wooden privacy fence on two sides. We parked the bikes between the cabin and the fence, then covered them with tarps.

Good thing we did, I think the hail would have damaged the paint quite a bit. The hail measured between 1/4" and 3/4". The first wave of the storms passed us about 9pm. It looked like it might be the last, but the radar showed a big system behind the 9 pm system. That one was the one that got us. It hit about 3 am. At this point none of us had gotten very much sleep.

Not to say anything against the cabins, but the beds were not the most comfortable things in the world. So from about 3 til 4 or so we were watching the show. That's why we're tired today. 
Moving on. We had breakfast at the WaKeeny  KOA. From there we left and took Rt. 283 south to rt.4 west. We took 4 to Oakley Kansas. There really is not a lot to see on 4 between WaKeeny and Oakley. Just lots of ranches. We did see some llamas chasing each other in a field by the road. Doug saw some buffalo, I missed it. I must have been sleeping. We also stopped at Scott Lake State park to view some Pueblo Indian
ruins. 

In Oakley Jim searched out a computer store to find a cable for Dougs camera. We found a place called S&T Communications. Doug asked about a cable and the young man at the counter checked and didn't find one in the store. He said he thought he might have one at home, just a couple minutes away. He said he would check and we could stop at the Bluffs Grill for lunch and stop back after we had eaten. We  were just parking the bikes when he pulled in beside us and handed Doug a cable. It fit. He wouldn't take any money for it. He said he would never use it anyway. There are still some just plain nice people out there. Thanks S&T.
After a lunch of smothered hamburgers and fries, and a pork tenderloin, we headed out again.
From Oakley, KS, we headed to Rt. 40 west. Route 40 west is a lot like Route 4 west, not a lot to see and talk about. Lots of ranches, cattle in various stages of rest and relaxation. Oblivious to their true purpose.  In some instances, ignorance IS bliss.
Now, we did have time to evaluate the effect of the turbulence generated by the various trucks that would blow us off the road on occasion. For some reason the tankers had the worst effect, then the open flatbeds carrying a full load. The stock trucks had the next worst turbulence and the straight 18 wheeler box trucks didn't seem to have much effect on us at all. Cars of course had no effect on us..... as long as they didn't hit us. So far, none has. This trip none have even tried, so far.....See how we keep our minds occupied on these long journeys?  Interesting huh?
Just a side note here, We seem to have settled on the correct tents this time. We can set up camp in just a few minutes. No one laughs as my tent falls over for the third time. Sorry Brian, I really don't like your tent with those silly crossed poles. Brian has a tent I borrowed last time. It has to be set up wrong first then corrected. If you try to set it up right first, forget it.
I hope to clean this up a bit but there really isn't a lot of time. So here goes.


Following here are some pictures from the ride today.On the road again

Jim watching me pack

Scott Lake State Park