The Iron Horse Alaskan Adventure: 06/29/13

The guys left bright and early this morning! By 7:30 a.m. they were on the road.

Wow! Blue skies, smiling at me. Nothing but blue skies, do I see.

When planning their route, the guys selected Route 136 out of Indianapolis.

Route 136 in Indiana is also called Crawfordsville Road.

Staying on Route 136 through Illinois and Iowa, they rode this until it ended in Nebraska.

In Nebraska, Route 136 is called the Heritage Highway.

Mike is not hitch-hiking, that's just a good old fashioned thumbs up.

As they followed this Route 136 from Beatrice towards their day's destination of Ogallala the scenery remained basically the same. There were fields full of corn and soybeans. If you have corn and beans then you're going to need to have some of these,

to store those harvested crops in until they go to market.

The guys also began to see lots more of these,

cows. You can also store that corn in cows. But it doesn't stay in there very long.

Stopping for lunch.

From L to R: Ron, Joe, Fred, Mike, David and Stu.

After lunch they rode on, and on, and on. Until they had to stop

for a seat break. Stu and Joe are checking Ferdinand to make sure he hasn't caught any more arrows.

They finally reached Ogallala, Nebraska.
They are now on Mountain Standard Time instead of Real American Time, which is more commonly known as Eastern Standard Time.

Yes, parts of the mini series Lonesome Dove were filmed, just north of Ogallala, on a privately owned ranch.

Why, is that Stu picnicking? No, it's Augustis "Gus" McCrae and Clara from Lonesome Dove.

Ogallala is full of history! It was founded in 1870. This town is where Wyoming, Montana and Texas Cattle kings met to haggle and bargain cattle prices. The first white men to this area were trappers from St. Louis. Those trappers got along famously with the friendly Pawnee Indians. Not so much with the Sioux who lived just to the north. The Sioux were always looking to pick a fight or be just menacing.

The Ogallala Aquifer is the world's largest underground water supply. Lake McConaughy is the largest irrigation lake in the mid-west. Those ranches and farms in and around Ogallala produce wheat, corn,
sugar beets, Milo, soybeans, hay and cattle.

By 1876 the town consisted of a railroad, businesses and saloons.

The jail, obligatory gift shop and General Store. The business strip was just south of the railroad tracks.

The town continued to grow as did its history.

The town Sheriff even drove a modern looking police car. Also, just because you stayed in a Holiday Inn Express last night does not mean that you are savvy to the local laws, Fred.

The Livery Barn, Crystal Palace Saloon, Cowboy's Rest and the Undertaker (you might need his services in case you got caught up in a gunfight with some disgruntled cowboys).

The Front Street Steakhouse looks like a great place to go if you have a powerful hankering for a steak.
The Crystal Palace Saloon offers a dinner show in the true spirit of the old west. This is where the guys headed for dinner.