We 'got outta Dodge' early and rode the 400 East. Only about half an hour into our journey we were stuck at road works for about 20 minutes. We stopped for lunch and fuel at Goddard and then navigated our way through the outskirts of Wichita (I kept humming that old Glen Campbell tune "I am a lineman for the County" - Wichita Lineman). We found ourselves on 50 East and made our way to Emporia where we checked in to a motel. Another 500km day (mainly on cruise control!).
After we had settled in, we jumped back on the bike and headed down 50 West. Emporia is in Flint Hill Country and is home to the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve at Spring Hill Ranch. The ranch was built in 1881 and the original limestone mansion is still there along with barn and other outbuildings.
Most of North America was covered in Prairie grass before European setlement, now less than 4% is covered (most of it in Kansas).
One of the sad facts I learnt at the Boothill Museum in Dodge City, was that the Buffalo relied on the prairie grass, and the various Indian tribes (Comanche, Kiowa, Cherokee, Pawnee etc) relied (and used every part of the Bison) to sustain themselves (hide for clothing, meat for food, bones for tools and weapons).
Due to conflict between the Plains Indian tribes and settlers, the US Army authorised and encouraged the slaughter of Buffallo as a method of drving the Indians from the Plains and not giving them a reason to fight. About 5000 hunters poured in to the Plains to join in the kill. In the year 1800 about 60 million Bison roamed the Plains. By about 1890 only 750 remained. Tragic. Fortunately, now that they are a protected species numbers have grown to about 80,000. We hope to see them when we ride through Yellowstone National Park later in the trip.
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