Nomad Life - Day 372

It's time to move along again...  This morning, I woke up (no alarm) at 0520 - I was still tired.  Since it was a weekend morning, I went back to sleep until 0710.  Beyond that, I spent some time reading, doing Duolingo exercises and working on puzzles.  Next, I started getting packed and did some light planning (but didn't make any lodging reservations).  In addition, I tried to coordinate get togethers with some of my old Navy friends (John T in AR, Mark M in SW MO, Rick B near Branson and Bill B in east central MO).  Only one (Rick) replied immediately in the affirmative - but now I know where I'm headed!  With all the preliminaries completed, I packed up my car, checked out of the hotel and departed Emporia.  By then (0910), it was 38 F but sunny and cloudless.  After seeing a huge sign nearby that said fuel was $3.13 (wow!!!!), I drove over to the 5R station and filled up my gas tank (87 octane too!).  My gas mileage techniques had yielded 31.1 mpg and that felt good.  When I was done fueling (0920), I drove into Downtown Emporia and got on KS-99, which I used to drive south towards Eureka.  Thus began another full day of birding observations, which started with ID in Greenwood County (0950).  Next, I got on KS-58 and drove east.  At first, I thought it was my imagination but I was soon realized that almost all the drivers were waving hello to me - nice.  At 1005, I entered Coffey County and made my way to US-75.  At 1030, I entered Woodson County (45 F) and continued (bird IDs in hand) until I reached Yates Center and could get on US-54.  Continuing east, I reached Allen County (1105) and stopped for lunch at Sonic in the town of Iola (1115).  After finishing my meal in the car, I got back on the road at 1130.  About 15 minutes later, I entered Bourbon County and made my way to Fort Scott National Historic Site (arrived at 1215).  Unlike all the previous forts I've visited during the last few weeks, this one was planted right in the middle of the town, which had a Wild West feel.  For the next 30 minutes, I walked the grounds of the park and explored the 1840s fortress, which used to control the border of Indian territory and was the scene (in the 1850s) of Bleeding Kansas activities.  The dragoons stationed at this fort patrolled Santa Fe and Oregon Trails for many years.  After getting my fill of history, I departed Fort Scott and got on US-69 (four lane).  Soon after that, I entered Crawford County (1300) and then turned east on US-160.  Just before the border with Missouri, I turned south on 260th Street.  By then, the terrain was flat and green and the day was still sunny & warmer (52 F).  Before long, I got on KS-171 and entered the State of Missouri (Jasper County) by 1330 (the road became MO-171).  My target at this point was the town of Joplin, which I reached by 1345.  While making my way through stop/go traffic in Webb City, I saw lots of signs about Historic Route 66 and also noticed a bike trail that seemed promising (with have to hike it tomorrow).  Meanwhile, my mind was made up to visit the George Washington Carver National Monument, which was located about 20 miles to the east.  I made my way on to I-49 Business Loop and then used I-44, MO-249 and I-49 to make my way towards the NPS unit.  Eventually, I turned off the Interstate and on to MO-V.  From there, I was struck by the pointless ups and downs (some were pretty big).  By 1405, I reached the National Monument.  Almost immediately, I started experiencing Deja Vu.  Almost 50 years ago, my mother told me about the work of Dr. George Washington Carver, a man who grew up enslaved in southwestern Missouri but went on to make revolutionary discoveries related to the Peanut.  I wasn't even 10 years old yet but my mom was trying to put into my head the idea that almost anything is worth doing well and that expertise in a seemingly small area could lead to earthshattering success.  Our family made the journey to the site of Dr. Carver's birthplace back in 1977 and I'd never forgotten the impact of seeing the world where my mom's hero (and I don't think that is too strong a word) had lived.  As I've gotten older, I have started to believe that my mother hoped I'd be affected by the visit.  And she was correct - every time I've seen something about the famous man, I've remembered the ideas she shared and seen how they apply to my life today.  Re-visiting this National Monument, then, was a wonderful trip down memory lane and a reminder that we are formed by so many influences as we learn, grow and develop into adults...  I was very impressed by the interactive exhibits and the wonderful museum that was located inside the Visitor Center.  After that, I walked around on the property.  There were nice trails and some good birding (first sighting of Wilson’s Snipe).  I might have stayed until sunset but I figured out that there was a Mass at a nearby Catholic Church starting within the hour. So, at 1515, I headed west (via I-49 - I-49 BL to I-44 - US-166) towards Kansas.  Following up on a goal I have to attend church in every state, I departed from Missouri and made a short stop (1540) at the Tri-State Marker (OK-KS-MO), where I briefly did some birding in all three states.  Five minutes later, I was officially driving in Cherokee County (Kansas).  I arrived about 10 minutes later at St. Joseph's Parish in Baxter Springs - for the next 50 minutes, I attended 1600 Mass in the tiny church.  The young priest had a booming voice and almost seemed to insist on chanted prayers (rather than organ music).  He gave a good homily about prayer and I really enjoyed the vibe of the congregation.  Afterwards, I decided I was tired of driving and started looking for lodging.  I noticed one place "The Mollie Retreat on Route 66" but it was sold out (I shared the information with Mollie for a future visit, however).  Instead, I found a reasonably priced hotel in Baxter Springs - five minutes after making the online reservation, I was checked into the Baxter Inn 4 Less Hotel (1700).  Once I was settled, I went back outside the hotel and went walking for about 45 minutes.  Fortunately, I had some more good birding (including two kinds of owls) as the sun went down.  Finished with my walk at 1800, I made and ate dinner in my room.  The rest of the night was spent reading, working on Duolingo exercises and watching movies until I was tired.  For once, bedtime was early (2220).  This will likely be my last night in Kansas - it's been an interesting week!