Where are Cheryl and Dennis?: 2019 Road Trip with Ma and Pa

Monday – 09/16/2019 – Very hot and windy drive today. Headed east with the thought of stopping in Omaha to visit with Art and Cathy. After doing a search of someplace we could visit in Nebraska on our way east I discovered the Golden Spike Tower and Visitor Center. This is an old observation tower located at the Bailey rail yard in North Platte. The tower has been refurbished with an elevator that you can ride to the top along with a nice visitor center. This rail yard is the largest in the world. It has four miles of track, 985 switches, handles about 10,000 rail cars a day all on 2,850 acres.

A unique feature of this rail yard is it two humps. Two 35' hills used to sort the rail cars. The cars are pushed up one side of the hill then disconnected so they can roll independently down the other side of the hill toward a series of tracks. The switches on these tracks are controlled by a computer and it directs the car onto its proper track to build a new train. From the tower you can watch this happening. There are approximately 3000 cars “humped” every day.

Today's Mileage: Tonight's stay: Best Western Plus – Lincoln NE

Tuesday – 09/17/2019 – Another hot and windy day today. It is just a few miles to Omaha and since Art and Cathy would not be available until later today we decided to go south to Beatrice to visit Homestead National Monument. This heritage center focuses on the Homestead Act of 1862. The Homestead Act granted any claimant 160 acres of land if they could live on and farm it for 5 years. This museum chronicles the trials and tribulations, the successes and failures of thousands who risked everything for the American dream. It is located outside Beatrice NE because this is thought to be the location of the first Homestead claim. Oklahoma comes to mind when most people think about the Homestead Act and free land but 29 of the the 50 states had land available. Montana had the most available at 32,050,480 acres, Alaska the least at 363,775. Even Wisconsin had 3,110,990 acres.

On the way to Omaha we visited the Holy Family Shrine, just off of I-80. A beautiful chapel located on a 23 acre site over looking the Platte River Valley. Built almost totally of red cedar timbers and glass it has a 270 degree view of the surrounding countryside. It is a spiritual place and a must stop if in the area.

Cathy and Art where both available for the evening and Cathy invited us to there house for dinner. So nice to have a home cooked meal after so many days on the road. We had a real nice visit Art and Cathy and their daughter Allison stopped in for a bit as well.

Today's Mileage: 140 Tonight's stay: Best Western Plus – Omaha NE

Wednesday – 09/18/2019 – Drove directly to Cedar Falls today without any tourists stops. Hooked up with Mark in the afternoon to visit the cemetery where Uncle Bill, Aunt Jean and Mary's husband Terry are buried. Also saw a bench in a nearby park dedicated to them. In the evening we met with Mark, Mary and Mary's son Andy for dinner. It has been years since I have seen Mary and the first time I have met Andy. So wonderful to connect with family!

Today's Mileage: 140 Tonight's stay: Holiday Inn Express – Cedar Falls IA

Thursday – 09/19/2019 – Final day of the mega road trip. On the way home we made a stop at Lark Toys in Kellogg MN. Mom said they had driven past it many times but never stopped. This is a mega toy store which includes a toy museum and the coolest carousel you ever want to see. Stopped at the cemetery where my sister is buried on the way through Eau Claire. We arrived in back in Chippewa Falls around 3:30.

This was a great road trip and I hope my parents enjoyed it as much as I did. Put on lots of miles, saw lots of cool stuff, stayed in lots of nice hotels and ate too much!

Today's Mileage: 221 Tonight's stay: Parent's home in Chippewa Falls

Total Trip Mileage: 4890

Golden Spike Tower