Sunday’s segment of 440 miles was full of adventure offering us two completely new experiences on the trip and ultimately served as a celebration of our journey.

Trains, Trains, Everywhere Trains

Sunday’s first leg would take us 300 miles over the course of four and a half hours. I cannot discuss a trip out west without also discussing the number of trains you will encounter along the way. Whether I’m heading to Yellowstone or Park City, I always know I will see a ton of trains. I love seeing trains. Sometimes if you are in an isolated area they will sound the horn for you. Always a treat.

Got Salt?

When we arrived at our first special stop on the way home for Ben, I don’t think any of us understood the magnitude of the tour we were about to take. Our destination was Hutchinson, Kansas, at the STRATACA Underground Salt Mine.

Their website says it all for us:

“A subterranean learning adventure 650 feet below the earth’s surface in salt deposits.”

This trip was fantastic. Ben has been fascinated with mines ever since he saw the movie “October Sky” with Jake Gyllenhaal and Chris Cooper (a great movie if you haven’t seen it). Of course it was a coal mine in the movie and this was a salt mine. Still, he got to ride down the hoist that the workers rode in every day to get to work. Everyone was also required to wear a helmet.

There were interactive exhibits for everyone along a self-guided tour path. Ben made us stop and watch every video, read every sign and touch everything salt.

This mine mainly produces road salt nowadays in a different section of the mine. The touring area stopped mining long ago.

Not only was there a self guided tour, but Ben also got to ride a train. The Salt Mine Express. But that’s not all! “Tell the readers what else Ben won Bob”! There was a also “The Dark Ride”. A 30 minute tram ride through the mine in complete darkness, darkness, darkness. Is there an echo? Very cool. I would have pictures but did not want to ruin everyone’s moment with a gigantic flash from my camera. I’ll throw in a picture of Tom and Ben antics for some laughs instead.

We each got to get out of the tram to pick up a souvenir piece of salt to take home. They even provided a little baggy with the name of the mine on it to store your treasure. Could there possibly be more?

Once the rides were complete, our walk guided us through some sample exhibits of items stored in the vaults. The salt mines are perfect for storing historically significant artifacts like movie costumes and films. The temperature is always 68 degrees and the environment is perfect for preservation. Below is a costume from the movie “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby” with Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly.

It was so much fun Ben didn’t want to leave. But, we made sure to get a souvenir hat on our way out to lessen the blow of having to get back in the car to drive some more.

An Evening to Remember

Even with all that adventure underground, we still had to venture on for another 200 miles to our destination for the night. Kansas City, Missouri. Kansas City is what I like to think of as a Hidden Gem. It has so much to offer: Kansas City BBQ (burnt ends anyone?), Presidential Library of Harry Truman, Kansas City Royals baseball. Should I go on? We opted to go a little higher end on the hotel this night. We’d been on the road for 18 nights already and thought, “we deserve a little break”. Let’s splurge for the valet parking and a hotel where the restaurant is one of the best rated places in the Country Club Plaza area. Country Club Plaza is a unique spot where Shopping and Restaurants abound.

Our meal at Chaz was fantastic. We were initially worried to stay somewhere a little on the high end side. People sometimes react negatively to folks who bring their young children to fancy places. It was the exact opposite of negative. The people at the hotel were fantastic. They loved Ben. There was even live classical music entertainment for the evening which Ben loved; and, they gave us prime seating to enjoy it. Ben was treated to a medley of Composer John Williams’ music (such films as JAWS and an apropos clip from Star Wars).

It was one of our favorite nights on the trip. Ben continued to enjoy his luxurious stay after a nice warm shower. Yes, on this trip, Ben has upgraded from bath to shower.

As our trip was winding down to the last two days on the road, we are amazed that we are still enjoying the final days as much as we enjoyed the first days. Of course we weren’t sure how we would fare once we rejoined society. We would have to worry about that later and just savor what’s left of the best vacation ever.

Carving routes