Tuesday Sept 15 2015
We departed Lake Norfork Arkansas and
drove north into Missouri. With sadness we passed right by Branson
but vowing to return when we can stay for 4 or 5 days. Most of the
headliners have left the music mecca but you can see some really
talented but unknown acts for not much $$. We went north as far as
Springfield and then turned west to Kansas.
There are two reasons we have veered
north once again on this trip 1. Millie and I have never been to
Kansas. 2. Big Brutus is in the lower right hand corner of the state.
The rational of #1 is obvious but who or what is Big Brutus, you ask.
Big Brutus is the largest electric
shovel in the world. For about ten years in the sixties and seventies
it was used to strip mine coal. It did not dig the coal but removed
the overburden (dirt and rocks covering the coal seam). By 1974 it
was no longer cost effective to operate the giant shovel and Big
Brutus was left to sit at the edge of its last strip mine. In 1984
the owners donated it to a non profit foundation. The huge excavator
is now a museum and memorial to the southeast Kansas coal mining
industry. You can walk around many of the equipment rooms
inside Brutus as well as climb into the giant bucket. It's one of
those things you have to see and touch to appreciate the enormity of
this behemoth.
Just the facts about Big Brutus:
Largest electric shovel in the world
160 feet tall
weight=11 million pounds
boom=150 feet long
dipper capacity=90 cubic yards (150
tons) enough to fill three railroad cars
maximum speed=.22 mph, that's 1/5th
of one mile per hour
Cost in 1962=$6.5 million
three man crew=operator, ground man,
oiler. There was also an electrician but he was not considered crew
as he had duties off the shovel as well.
The main hoist was operated by eight
500 hp direct current electric motors.
Brutus was not independently powered,
it received 7,200 volts of 3 phase alternating current thru large
extension cords from the power company.
Inside Brutus were two 3500 hp motors
that ran 13 DC generator sets used to produce the DC voltage which in
turn operated the drive motors, winches and hydraulic pumps.
After visiting Big Brutus we continued
our drive west for about an hour to our overnight stop. Along the way
we were looking for the never ending fields of amber waves of grain.
To our dismay this corner of Kansas has an unkept appearance,
overgrown fields and hedgerows, with weeds growing right up to the
roads. The two lane roads had no shoulders and were heavily used by
over the road truckers. Every time we passed an oncoming truck on the
narrow roads the air wave they push would rock the motorhome. Poor
Maggie was scared of them and Millie had to hold her the entire way.
When we stopped at Parsons for fuel I
discovered that the rush of air from the truckers had torn part of a
rear fender loose on the motorhome. Hard to believe but it was only
attached with pressure sensitive tape. I duct taped a repair and we
continued on our way.
At Fall River dam we stayed overnight
at the adjacent Corp of Engineers campground. Once again it was only
$10 for the night with our America the Beautiful pass.
Falls River COE campground=$10.
Fuel at Parsons, KS. $2.20 per gallon,
38.9 Gallons, $86.06 total
Fuel at Mountain Home AR. $2.12 per
gallon, 31.2 gallons, $66.42 total
all meals eaten onboard today cost=$0
Big Brutus T shirts for Marcus and
Evan= $12. each
Miles driven 9/15=330
end of day odometer=65518
Wednesday Sept 16 2015
We got up at our normal 7 am and
departed Fall River at 9 am, also a normal time for us. Thus began a
long day of driving across southern Kansas on route 400. Mostly a two
lane road the trek west was kept lively by a brisk cross wind the
whole day. The terrain became more scenic as we progressed west,
first with rolling hills and open range and later some agriculture
Soon we passed Wichita and we still
hadn't seen endless flat fields, they must be up in the northern or
midsection of the state. Later in the day over toward Dodge City we
started seeing huge feed lots where poor cattle are corralled in
small pens. Forced to stand in their own poop with no shade and no
grass, they are feed and watered to fatten them up before going to
the slaughter house. I know there are a lot of beef eaters out there
who would rather not know about this but its true and its a sad thing
to see.
Our day ended just above the Oklahoma
line in the southwest corner of Kansas in the small town of Elkhart.
Prairie RV Park was small, about 15 sites and very neat and clean. It
even had grass strips in between the gravel camper sites. There is no
office just a little covered counter with pay envelopes and a drop
box.
I planned on getting this posted to the
blog on Wednesday but we had a really strong 4G signal on my phone so
we used it as a hotspot to stream the CNN coverage of the Republican
debate to my laptop.
Prairie RV Park= $20 a night with full
hook up including cable.
Fuel at Dodge City Flying J, $2.12,
40.3 gallons, $85.84 total
miles driven today=371
end of day odometer reading=65857
Thursday Sept 17 2015
We woke up at 7 am and were surprised
that it was still dark outside, We have been driving away from the
rising morning sun and finally got to the point were we are rising
before the sun.
We refueled before leaving Elkhart at a
co-op fuel depot, not members we didn't get the discounted rate but
it was still 10 cents cheaper than either of the stations on the
highway. BTW, the co-op was also unattended, paid at the pump and
left Elkhart never having spoken with anyone from town.
Soon we crossed the border into
Oklahoma and much to our dismay found the roads are in the same wash
board condition as the last time we passed thru the panhandle. Two
lane road, 65mph speed limit, we drove a lot of it at 45 mph, luckily
there was very little traffic.
When we got to Boise City OK the road
conditions improved and we were able to drive the posted speed. A few
miles down the road we passed the upper left corner of the top hat
portion of Texas, which was soon followed b the New Mexico border.
On our way west thru New Mexico we
crossed the actual path of the historic Santee Fee Trail. At Simarron
the Santa Fee Trail converged with the modern road to pass thru the
Rocky mountains. A long journey now on asphalt, back in pioneer days
it had the added element of being an arduous passage on two ruts in
the dirt trail.
In one of the larger valleys in the
middle of the mountain range is a settlement called Eagles Nest. It
was here we saw a sight we're been looking for in all four of our
cross country adventures. I know this is hard to believe but today
was the first time we've seen cowboys on horses herding cattle! I've
come to believe that most ranch chores are performed using all
terrain vehicles. Now if we could see some buffalo in the wild!
About half way thru the mountains you
pass the ski resort area called Angel Fire. If you look north up on
the hill you will see a white sculpture sweeping up out of the ground
and going skyward. Originally built by the grieving parents of a
Vietnam war casualty, it was willed to the state and is now a
memorial to all Vietnam veterans, it shares the name of the
surrounding area, Angel fire.
Many twists and turns in the road later
we arrived on the other side of the mountain range and our stopping
spot for the night. We are parked at Taos Valley RV Resort in the
artist colony called Taos. After settling in and walking Maggie, we
treated ourselves to a dinner out, We chose a Mexican restaurant and
had an enjoyable meal. Afterwards we drove to the city center tourist
shopping district where we walked off some of our meal and
bought,...... what else..... T shirts!
Fuel at Elkhart CO-OP $2.34 a gallon,
35.3 gallons, $82.92 total
Taos Valley RV Resort $36.92 a night
Guadalajara Mexican Restaurant Dinner
for two $19.25
end of day odometer reading 66103
