Day 9:The Midwest Weather is a Fickle Thing…

We spent the night visiting family in Nebraska and awoke to rain. Not again! It was not in the forecast, so I of course have to run outside AGAIN, to get stuff out of the sidecar and cover things up.  I had even left our swimsuits out on their back patio to dry off, and those were now in the rain…oh the irony.  This whole “weather” thing is kicking my butt.

Since there is a bit of thunder and lightning I decide to wait out the rain, and we will boycott our mission to the family farm and head to McCook, Nebraska to rejoin the group.  A little before 10am it clears up nicely (or so it seemed) and we get packed up and hustle to get going. Right as we are saying our last good byes it starts to sprinkle and the wind picks up.  Time to get out of Dodge.

While waiting for the rain to stop earlier, I had planned a route to take. When I got to the edge of town and turned to head West, the sky was black. I thought for about three seconds if this was a good idea, when a lighting bolt flashed in the sky many miles ahead of us.  OK, then, lets go south instead. I needed to try to go in the direction of blue sky and try to stay ahead of that storm cell.

As I drove south again, I noticed that I had dark sky and rain almost 270 degrees around us. I went as fast as I could, but about 20 miles later it caught us. We were driving in rain for about 20 minutes, then just like that, it was over and the rest of the way through Nebraska was sunny and hot. By the time we got to Kearney, Nebraska, it was uncomfortable hot, at about 93 degrees.

The highlight of the day was going to the Great Platt River Road Archway museum in Kearney.  It is a very well done museum that highlights the many ways people moved west across america. You get a headset that tells you stories and info as you walk through the museum.

There are nice giant wall sized photos and lifelike displays, that chronicle Indians, settlers moving west via covered wagons, then the train, then the Lincoln Highway. I was impressed by the whole presentation. Plus the whole things spans the I-80, and you can look down on the cars as they go by.  Outside there are also some nice sculptures and a giant maze that the kids ran through.

We spent the night in McCook Nebraska, were we had dinner at Taco Johns for the first time ever.  All I have to say is those Potato Ole’s are one of the tastiest things I have ever eaten (I am sure they are fat free and super healthy too). And the kids meal came with giant Goldfish graham crackers. Where have these been? Yum.

My goal for the next day was to actually leave on time (which means early) with the group in hopes of staying with some people and not being alone for most of the day. I also needed to decide if I was going to pick up some Dorothy Lynch salad dressing. Made in Nebraska, it is similar to French dressing, and a favorite if you are from Nebraska.  Should I really carry salad dressing all the way home in the sidecar?

You can purchase it on Amazon if you want to try it out!

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