The old, old west. Classic American history 101. Gunslingers, bison, cowboys, lawmen... is there anything more iconic? I would submit that there is
not!
The Kansas landscape is commonly referred to as part of "flyover country"- that part of America that is not worth the time it would take to drive through it. Yet in it, I see the heartland, small-town America, the values and culture and history of how this country was built. As we flew over the western part of the state, I noticed the beautiful churches and towns built back when the west was only a dream for most people. Yes, I know I'm getting close to waxing poetic, but what can I say... I love my country!
We started out on a day-trip to Dodge City in our rented Cessna 182. The sky was blue, the air clear, and the flight swift and steady. Our initial objective was to fly over some land purchased by my parents, to observe the farming being done on it. Yet why stop there? We were headed to Dodge City after all!
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| Boot Hill Casino |
After flying over the property, we landed at the Dodge City airport, and rented a car to take us into town. We ate lunch at the Boot Hill Casino. The buffet food was pretty good, though the selection was fairly limited.
Although we spent some time at the casino (whoops, there goes my spending money for the month!) we didn't stay long, and then we were headed for what I considered was the most interesting part of the trip... history, of course!
We spent most of the afternoon at the Boot Hill museum. There, we watched a short film on the American cowboy and how Dodge grew up out of the cattle trade, explored the Boot Hill cemetery, then strolled through the reproduction of the town's main street. There weren't any reenactments going on, as it was Sunday in the off-season, but the displays were still pretty cool! (Have I mentioned how much I love history, museums, and reproductions of old-west towns?!)
A few more highlights of the day:
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| Dodge City from the air, looks so small! |
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| A true icon of the Old West. |
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| Inside the old Dodge City church. |
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| Dodge City Jail. |
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| Boot Hill Cemetery. |
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| The old stagecoach... complete with orange traffic sign! |
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| The window speaks for itself. |
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| Guns and gambling- classic Dodge! |
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| And finally- a beautiful sunset in the Kansas skies. |
The Kansas landscape is commonly referred to as part of "flyover country"- that part of America that is not worth the time it would take to drive through it. Yet in it, I see the heartland, small-town America, the values and culture and history of how this country was built. As we flew over the western part of the state, I noticed the beautiful churches and towns built back when the west was only a dream for most people. Yes, I know I'm getting close to waxing poetic, but what can I say... I love my country! 
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