Downton KC

We started the day with a quick visit to

This is only part of the lake, it is really very large.

We headed downtown KC next.. our first stop  National World War 1 Museum

It was very well laid out and very interesting.  recommend making this place a visit if you are in town.  We were able to go to the top of the tower.  KC...

as you can see very windy..

since we spent well over 2 hours here it was time for lunch.  BBQ!

we got the meat plate... ham, beef and ribs with fries and bread

we were very hungry so began eating before taking the picture! The ham was very good, smoke flavor, tender and juicy.  The beef was good, a few pieces were tough but others very tender, good flavor and smoke ring.  The ribs were St Louis style, again too fatty, ok flavor but they put sauce on everything... 

Next stop the Fed Reserve of KC

we had to go through security to get into the museum..

we were able to make our own money..

 

 

they gave us each a bag of money!  each bag has about $165 of shredded money...

we might try to put the shreds together this winter!

Back to our campsite for our last night.  one of our neighbors lives in a pontoon!

there are people who live here in the park all year.  they must work somewhere close by and for $7 a night they live in the park.  this one is the strangest we have seen so far..

Heading out tomorrow, just going about 150 miles south to El Dorado Kansas.  Plan on staying there until Saturday. 

Steamboat, BBQ, Harley D, Bullalo Mon & Fed Pen

Today was very gloomy, misty and a bit cool.  We headed to KC to see the

The steamboat Arabia was a side wheeler steamboat which hit a snag in the Missouri River and sank near what today is Parkville, Missouri, on September 5, 1856. It was rediscovered in 1988 by a team of researchers. Today, the artifacts recovered from the site are housed in the Arabia Steamboat Museum.^[1]


this was my third visit, Eric's first.  it is well worth going to, the family that unearthed the steamboat and its artifacts run the museum.  They did a really good job of presenting the artifacts and history.  Not too much to take pictures of so no pics.

Next it is lunch time,

I had the ribs and Eric had the buffet..  the ribs were St Louis style, too fatty for me but very good,  Eric's buffet was very good too..

next to:

Plant tour!  again no pics in the plant but in the lobby we could:

Next to Leavenworth KS  we went into the fort area after showing id's and getting the truck searched to see:

Buffalo Soldiers originally were members of the U.S. 10th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army, formed on September 21, 1866 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. This nickname was given to the "Negro Cavalry" by the Native American tribes they fought; the term eventually became synonymous with all of the African-American regiments formed in 1866:

• 9th Cavalry Regiment
• 10th Cavalry Regiment
• 24th Infantry Regiment
• 25th Infantry Regiment

Although several African-American regiments were raised during the Civil War to fight alongside the Union Army (including the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry and the many United States Colored Troops Regiments), the "Buffalo Soldiers" were established by Congress as the first peacetime all-black regiments in the regular U.S. Army.^[1] On September 6, 2005, Mark Matthews, who was the oldest living Buffalo Soldier, died at the age of 111. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.^[2]

after leaving the fort we tried to get into:

Yes the Penitentiary!!    you might remember last year when we tried to take a tour of the Pen in OK but they no longer gave tours then I called again (hit redial, thinking I was calling an RV park in South Texas) and asked if they had any availability for one night!! 

quiet evening at the laundromat!!  tomorrow is another day here in the KC area...

Truman, Frontier and BBQ

Last Sunday I finally finished a biography on Harry S. Truman.  It actually took me a years to read so we had to take a trip to Independence Mo today to see his home and Library. Our first stop was at

In front of the court house

we toured the house but again no pictures from the inside..

they lived here after his terms as president until their deaths, his in 1972, hers in 1982.  The house was willed to the National Park Service by Bess.  They opened it in 1984 to the public.  Everything is exactly the same as it was in 1982.  very modest house with a very ugly kitchen.

Our next stop was at the

where Truman began his political career

Independence is also where the Oregon Trail and Santa Fe Trails began.

which led us to

It told the story of Lewis and Clark, the Oregon Trail, the Santa Fe Trail, the California trail and the Mormon trail.  very interesting and well told stories. 

Our RV is a bit fancier than this one..

our last stop in Independence was at the Truman Library.  not as fancy as Johnson's but very interesting and it really depicts his down home way of thinking and life.

finally it is time for BBQ

Eric had the ribs and beans and I the pulled pork and fries.  the ribs were not as thick as the ones we had yesterday but they were very tender and smoked to perfection.  and served without sauce!!  the pulled pork was served with sauce that was a bit too spicy for me but very tender and very tasty.  Eric liked the beans, the fries were OK, looked better than they tasted.

Jesse James, BBQ and stars

We left 9 Eagles SP at about 8:45 this morning.  It was a bit cool but a sunny, clear sky. Again the traffic was pretty light on I35.  We made a stop in Kearney Mo at the Birthplace of Jesse James.

we watched a 20 minute film on the family.  very interesting and well worth the time.  we then took a tour of the house where Jesse was born.  just the short one story part was there when he was alive.  the addition was built after he was killed.

After the failed disastrous attempt to rob the bank in Northfield, Minnesota, many of the gang members were wounded and captured, However, Jesse slipped away and lived quietly in St. Joseph Missouri under an assumed name. Two of his gang members were tempted by a reward for his capture dead or alive. They went to his house and while his back was turned, Robert Ford shot him one time in the back of the head. His mother had him buried in the front yard of the James Farm with an imposing monument with a inscription condemning the assassin.

After the death of her son, a defiant mother sat on the front porch giving tours of the house and selling stones from the grave and supposed pistols owned by her famous son.  They still sell stones that were placed on the grave for 25 Cents. Of course I bought one and it will be on the sauna wall.. After her death and Jesse's wife, his body was moved from the farm to the family plot in Mount Olivet Cemetery Kearney and interred beside her. Frank James in his old age kept up the tours by charging 50 cents until his death.

It was a very good tour lots of interesting information.  worth the time and money..

We finally got to Clinton State Park in Lawrence Kansas.  Set up camp, went to purchase a new coffee maker with a stainless steel carafe and to

We both had the ribs, I had the baby back which were very good, a bit dry and not at all like our favorite Central from Memphis but dry rubbed with out sauce.  Eric had the St Louis style, a bit too fatty but very moist and the brisket that was very moist but no smokey taste.   our sides were all good.  this is not really KC style BBQ but hopefully we will get some this week..

We seen this guy on the way back to camp..

beautiful night for a camp fire. stars were really showing off their splendor and a few "shooting stars" too.  We plan on being here until Wednesday. 

In town day

We went out for breakfast at a cafe near here that the Park Ranger recommended.  Well of course it was closed...  went to another small town a few miles the other way to Grandma's House.  Walked in and of course there are 4-5 elderly men talking and drinking coffee..  We had a wonderful breakfast.  Grandma does the waitressing, cooking, cleaning etc...  Eric's pancakes were delightful and so was the bacon and ham. 

These young guys were standing on the horse drawn cart.  There are a lot of Amish in this area.

We then went to Liberty Hall.

Joseph Smith III (November 6, 1832 – December 10, 1914) was the eldest surviving son of Joseph Smith, Jr., founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, and Emma Hale Smith. Joseph Smith III was the Prophet–President of what became known as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, now called Community of Christ, which considers itself a continuation of the church established by Smith's father in 1830.^[2] For fifty-four years until his own death, Smith presided over the church. Smith's ideas and nature set much of the tone for the church's development.

The house had 10 bedrooms and was divided into two parts.  One for company the other for the family.  The house had been decorated to look like 1914. Our tour took more than an hour and was well worth the time.

There was a one room school house that had been moved to the property.  We were able to tour it also.

Our next stop was

One of the alumni is:

we did not run on the track..  should have but it was well past lunch and we still had to stop in downtown at an Amish shop.  The shop sold Amish handmade goods along with some antiques.  When we first walked into the store you could smell fresh homemade bread.  They only sell it on Fridays so we had to get one.  Ate it with our Wisconsin Amish butter!  very very good..

Well it happened again.  I broke the coffee carafe..  it happens at least once on the road and once at home each year.  I think I might look at getting a whole new coffee maker without a glass pot! 

another beautiful night for a camp fire.  Eric found a dead cedar tree and took off a couple of branches.  it smells so good in the fire.  I actually took a few pieces for the inside of the RV.  We brought a bucket of apples from our yard and they tend to smell up the place, especially when all the windows are closed..

we have been alone here at 9 Eagles State Park until tonight.  3 RV's pulled in..  Leaving Saturday for the Kansas City area. 

Nine Eagles State Park

We spent the day at the park.  Took a 2.5 hour hike around the lake.  Seen a lot of birds but again not any new to us. The birds were not very cooperative for picture taking.


The weather was perfect for hiking.

Juniper berries, if we had to could make some gin..

Not sure what these are.. or if they are poison..

these were too pretty not to take their picture...

The spillway on 9 Eagles Lake is not as impressive as the Beeds lake one.

a very relaxing day, one more night here before we head to Kansas.