Gateway to the West

Today's adventures started off at precisely 8am, but due to our time traveling, dachshund carrying, travel trailer, we quickly went back to 7am.  Okay, so in reality, we crossed into Illinois and moved into the Central Time Zone.

So, has anyone ever had the desire to stop at a "roadside attraction" or "oddity" as you travel?  Today was that day for us.  Soon after entering Illinois, there were signs advertising "The Worlds Largest Wind Chimes" in a small town called Casey.  Why not stop?  We didn't know where the "World's Biggest Ball of Twine" was housed, so we might as well see this wind chime.

I was not expecting much.  Upon exiting the truck, we were greeted by a three story tall structure that looked, and sounded like, well, a three story tall wind chime.  And not only does Casey claim the record breaking wind chime, but there are three other rather large objects in town, each holding the record for being the worlds largest.  There is a giant golf tee located at the Casey Golf Course.  This thing is so big that there are plans to set it up so a person can stand on top of it to drive golf balls.  Inside the town yarn shop, there is a set of giant knitting needles, as well as a crochet hook, that would make Paul Bunyan look petite.  

If you are ever traveling through Illinois on I-70, stopping in Casey to see the roadside attractions is worthwhile. 

The "Bucket List" item of the day was driving into St. Louis to see the "Gateway Arch".  The best viewing area for taking pictures of the arch is actually in East St Louis, IL, at the Malcom Martin Memorial Park.  The park was empty when we arrived so we proceeded to take as many pictures as humanly possible of us and our fur babies.

Our final destination for the day, and our rest stop for the night, was Eisenhower State Park in Osage City, KS.  What a wonderful park!  We chose to stay here because of the natural beauty of the park, tucked away in natural, undisturbed, prairie land.   Scout, Deutsch, and India didn't care what the place looked like; they simply were ready to go for a long walk, followed by something delicious dinner.
Kansas, and much of the midwest, has endured massive amounts of rain over the last few days, and it has been devastating.  Many people have been displaced from their homes due to flooding, and the threat is not over.  The ground is so saturated here that the dachshunds have no choice but to go outside to relieve themselves in the mud.  Poor little guys.

Tomorrow brings family and visions of Wyatt Earp to mind.