Legalectric

Alan’s a train nut, and we’ve not been able to get out much, so I heard about this and scheduled a quick run down to Kansas. The hat from the Union Pacific Museum in Cheyenne, where we visited Big Boy in 2022 when Curt Gowdy State Park there, I-80 too, shut down due to blizzard:

Anyway, Union Pacific, Canadian Pacific, it’s all Pacific, nobody cared that it was a different one:

Stopped first in Wichita for some touristy stuff, like the Kansas Aviation Museum:

Something I did not understand… this one, and others, are on the second floor. HOW did they get those planes in there? I can’t imaging disassembling them and sliding in through the windows. ???

In the kid’s room, there’s a pretty sophisticated row of flight simulators, and multiple frustrating tries, I couldn’t even get off the ground:

And we have one of these under the couch, but I think it’s aluminium… ???

And the Baymont in Wichita, huge open rooms and CHEAP, my kind of place (no, I don’t get $$$ for referrals!!!). Huge windows, which makes it delightful, well, as delightful as a cheap hotel can get:

We’re missing Little Sadie, traveling without her just isn’t the same. Here’s our Sadie, same room, last spring (those trees blooming, oh, the smell):

And the afternoon before, up to Salina to catch Big Boy:

There was an afternoon “meet & greet” at the Salina depot, where folks gathered to check it out as it sat there all morning (there was a private CP event in the afternoon):

HUGE crowd, at least 1,000, in the middle of Kansas. Big Boy just sat there, engine running, and they tooted the horn at regular intervals. In the meantime, workers were adding oil, fiddling around underneath, and walking around inspecting:

So after getting our fill of Big Boy, there was plenty of time to hit the best restaurant around, Martinelli’s in Salina. It’s right up there with La Villa in Russellville, AR — well worth the drive for the salmon picatta:

And still more time in the afternoon, so off to “The Garage” to check out some classics:

And these, I swear they’re old “Domino’s” cars, two of the most awful specimens in U.S. automotive history, and both were the company delivery cars circa 1975! And red…

The next morning was the big moment, when Big Boy took off from Salina, heading west. Because it was so crowded at the depot, we headed down the road and got a good spot at a crossing along the route:

Note the long, long parade of cars following down old 40 on left of screen.

And there ya have it! Big Boy through Nebraska!