I’m going to Kansas City over Labor Day weekend. Probably going to Dodge City one day. The thing that I am fascinated with is western Kansas. There is a vast amount of nothingness out there. Where do these people go for groceries? Is a shopping trip an whole day affair? Two or three hours to the nearest Kroger? How do they get their television stations?
This is an area where you have to plan on where you want to eat, get gas, or sleep. There is no restaurant or gas stations at every exit. Most of the large towns in western Kansas are no more larger than my hometown of 25,000 people. And most are much smaller. Take Goodland, Kansas – population of around 5000. And yet it is the one of the larger cities between Topeka and Denver.
This vast nothingness is fascinating. Why hasn’t it been settled? Is irrigation a concern? Most cities in eastern Kansas are situated along major rivers. And so the population stays in eastern Kansas. Western Kansas, according to the population pyramids is full of old people. The age group of the 18-22 year olds are small, most going to college or technical schools.
A friend of mine told me of another friend of his who would strap his stering wheel down with a belt and read a newspaper with cruise control while driving in western Kansas. And I would tend to believe him. No cars for miles. Roads without curves. Driving endlessly toward the horizon.
And yet I get the feeling that once I’ve seen western Kansas, I, like many of the others will think that it’s not a place to visit twice. We’ll see…