Cryslers Are Tripping: November 21 ~ 22, 2014 ~ Tripping Westward toward Denver

Leaving Versailles, KY headed to Denver, CO we drove through Western Kentucky, Indiana, Missouri, Kansas and Eastern Colorado (with an overnight in Topeka). I was told that this drive would be very boring but it was actually quite intesting to me as my photograqphers eye captued the flatness and beauty of the Midwest. I loved watching the fields pass by, the small towns, the Silos, and of course the farms with their barns. Then, appearing out of nowhere were over 100 windmills. We passed the Smoky Hills Wind Farm along I-70 about 140 miles west of Topeka. This view is such a vast difference from seeing the three windmills on Vinalhaven Island in Maine.

Also unique to Kansas, are the Snow Gates that close I-70 because of bad weather. We counted 6 of them but I could not confirm the actual count. The first gate was installed in 1990 and when closed, the gates physically prevented drivers from entering the highway, and allowed snowplows to work uninhibited. Here's a little background: "...In 1987, two consecutive storms dumped 36 inches of snow on western Kansas, making highways impassible. Stubborn drivers and determined truckers ignored radio warnings and found themselves stranded. Their rescues diverted resources from clearing roads."

( http://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/cool-things-snow-gate/10383 )

(Just an

FYI, many of my photos are taken through the car windshield, so please forgive the reflections.)

Loved this farm-old with new

Just a very small glimse of the Smoky Hills Wind Farm

Birds in Kansas. There were hundreds of theml

Snow Gate in Western Kansas

Windmill Blade - we saw about 6 or more traveling eastward.

After 2 days of driving 8-10 hours, we crossed into Colorado only to see another Windmill Farm: we passed the Cedar Point Wind Energy Project. It was fun to see so many windmills right next to the highway.