I started my third day driving on “The Road to Nowhere” with fairly low expectations for what I’d find south of North Platte, Neb.
For the most part, Kansas proved those expectations were warranted.
It wasn’t long before I realized in west-central Kansas the livestock far outnumber the people, and any semblance of towns are few and far between. And even when you get to a populate area, a two-lane highway like U.S. 83 often wraps around the town instead of taking you through it.
I began the day hoping once I crossed into Kansas, I could find a nice local small-town diner where I could get a freshly cooked breakfast. Instead, I settled for a couple of gas station breakfast burritos when I filled up the car in Oberlin and hoped for better luck in the southern part of the state.
Although it wasn’t food-related, the most pleasant surprise I found in Kansas was found about an hour south of Oberlin in the town of Oakley, coincidentally where U.S. 83 meets Interstate 70.
There, on the west side of the U.S. 83 as it bypasses Oakley, stands the Buffalo Bill Cultural Center. The building easily stands out on the flat prairie and farmland surrounding it.
If the building or any signage doesn’t grab your attention, this sculpture will let you know you’ve found it.
And even if you don’t go inside, this storyboard provides a good summary of Buffalo Bill Cody’s legacy and impact on the area. It’s also interesting to note that Oakley, Kan., is NOT named after Annie Oakley as you might assume; rather, it’s named for the town founder’s mother.
By its own admission on its website, the Buffalo Bill Cultural Center is less of a museum and more of a roadside tourist information center/rest area.
Still, it’s worth giving the exhibits inside a bit of your time. And of course, they have a stuffed buffalo to share your selfie with.
I left Oakley with renewed hope of finding more touristy tidbits ahead to break up the rest of the drive through Kansas.
Unfortunately, this historical marker somewhere between Oakley and Scott City was the best I could find.
My ongoing search for a nice local diner – this time for lunch – went unfulfilled as the early afternoon found me zipping past increasingly rocky and barren terrain. The few towns of significance, such as Garden City and Liberal, were now being bypassed by newer portions of U.S. 83 built for expediency.
By the time I had crossed into the Oklahoma panhandle, I had nearly resigned myself to the belief that I wouldn’t be eating until after my scheduled stop for the night in Shamrock, Texas. If you’ve ever been to this part of Oklahoma, it quickly becomes apparent why it quite literally was once known as “No Man’s Land.” So, imagine my surprise when I spotted this building out of the corner of my eye as I sped through Turpin, Okla. It was open, and I had nothing to lose.
As fate would have it, I was well rewarded for giving the Panhandle Pizza & Café a chance. The menu was nothing unusual – just your typical pizzas, burger and sandwiches – but the café’s signature critter burger seemed close enough to an Oklahoma-classic onion burger to try, and was I ever glad I did! Loaded with grilled onions and mushrooms, and dressed with lettuce and pickles, it hit the spot. Having tots as an option instead of fries helped make the entire brief experience at Panhandle totally worthwhile.
Finally, with a satisfied belly, I was ready to enter the home stretch of my day’s drive through the Texas panhandle.
Oh well, at least I was beginning to notice a few more hills off in the distance.
By the time I reached the crossing of the Canadian River at the coincidentally named town of Canadian, Texas, the scenery was pretty enough to stop for a bona fide photo opportunity.
Of course, the original wagon bridge was replaced long ago with a more modern crossing for U.S. 83, but what remains provides a nice, scenic walkway and rest stop for travelers.
It’s even somewhat selfie-inducing.
My stop at the Canadian River crossing provided just enough of a recharge to make it the final 40 minutes of my drive to Shamrock, Texas, which turned out to be a very blog-worthy town itself. But that is for another post. To be continued …
2 comments:
Did you begin at the Canadian border?
I drove US Rt 83 in the Dakotas with my dad back in 1999. Back in the 1960s both Dakotas and Minnesota were his sales territory. He wanted to see a few sights again. We drove out of Phoenix and caught 83 at Liberal, KS and headed north. Pierre, the SD cap, and Bismark, the ND cap, were towns he did quite a bit of business in and 83 runs thru them both. We had great steak dinners in both towns. We took 83 all the way up to Westhope at the Canadian border. We then headed south and east to Minneapolis (we lived in Minnetonka from 1959 until 1969) to visit some of our one time neighbors.
Anonymous up above is yours truly... I screwed something up.
Good read!
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