Day 126

So yesterday I stayed in Dodge City because a bad storm was projected to hit in the afternoon and I didn’t want to risk getting hit by it. It’s a good thing I stayed because it ended being 70+ mph winds with hail and even a couple of tornados. 
So today I was all rested up and as I was packing up to leave, the TV was on AMC and a show was on about Dodge City and Wyatt Earp. So here I am in dodge city, watching a show about dodge city. Kind of funny. 
I started walking around 7:30 am. Today was only scheduled to be an 18 mile day. Easy. No stress, plenty of time, easy day. That’s just what it ended up being. I enjoyed the views of the prairies. I feel like I’m definitely in “the west” now. Snakes are becoming to be an issue. I saw a few of them on the side of the road. They were too fast for me to see if they were venomous or not but I know that I need to keep a lookout either way. They usually run off before I even see them though. Well, they don’t run but you know what I mean. 
I saw a sign that said “Sante Fe Trail Tracks.” Supposedly you can see the remains of the original Sante Fe Trail that was used by wagons and horses before the railroads came along in the 1880s. I didn’t see any tracks but I could see how it probably looked. Beautiful rolling hills of grass and wildflowers were all I could see for miles. I took a moment to imagine what it must’ve been like back then. The loud hum of semis passing by on hwy 50 made that difficult…
Back on the road and in the zone. Still feeling great and not worried about much at all. A man pulls over in a pickup truck and asked if I needed a ride. I said, “no thank you, I’m walking.”
I then went on to tell him why because he looked at me like I was nuts. When he heard that I was doing it to raise awareness in honor of my sister he commended me and complimented my courage. 
Shortly after, another pickup truck with two Hispanic women pull over and ask if I’m ok and if I needed a ride. I told them quickly that I was walking across America. They both looked at me like they understood but I knew they didn’t. I spoke in Spanish and then they got it. Our conversation was cut short because of traffic whizzing by. They needed to get out of the way. I let them know that I was ok and that I appreciated them stopping. 
Early in the afternoon, I get to the town of Cimarron. This is where I planned on stopping for the night. I could’ve gone farther but I have the next 2 days planned out for a big surprise coming tomorrow. 
One block before I get to Main Street, a truck pulls up and a gorgeous woman around my age says that she got me some water. A gallon of cold water. That is the BEST thing that anyone could give me at this point in my walk. Of course, I was basically done for the day but I took it anyways. Water is life. Anyways, I spoke quickly with her about why I was walking and she was glad to see that i was someone doing something positive. She got a picture and helped me raise awareness by posting it on her social media. Nice people were on my side all day today. It was refreshing. 
A couple of blocks later, I get to an old hotel that was referred to me by Cynthia, a woman who hiked across America last year. I walk in and yelled, “Kathy are you up there?” as  instructed. 

I heard Kathy getting up and I met her at the stairs and told her about the walk and asked to stay for the night. She said that there would be no charge as long as I took care of making the bed up. She instructed me on everything I needed to know and then we talked for a long time about the drug epidemic in our country. 
The hotel was beautiful! It’s old and worn in. There must be so many stories on these walls. There is dust older than me on the windows. Solid wood floors and furniture in each room. Toilets that you flush by pulling on a chain. Clawfoot tubs converted into showers. Really awesome. Kathy made it so much cooler. 
I went across the street to grab a milkshake from the Pharmacy/ soda fountain where Oprah had drank a milkshake at the bar there. Exciting stuff! They were closed 🙁  bummer. I’ll have to come back another time for that one..
I grabbed dinner and headed back. I’m very very excited about tomorrow. Stay tuned, you’ll see why!!!