Prepping
Lisa: Marianne and I are both thinking we’re nuts to try the Prairie Spirit Trail during peak tornado season, but that’s just how we roll. This time around we’re rigging umbrellas to our strollers and are hoping for the best. I’ve also purchased new tires and tubes–the puncture-proof kind, supposedly–so we’ll see how that goes!
Weather forecast
The plan
The Prairie Spirit Trail + the Southwind Trail for a total of 60 trail miles. After 100+ on Flint Hills Trail, this will be a snap! 😂
| Date | Day | Route | Mileage | Accommodations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 22 | Thursday | Ottawa–Richmond | 13.33 | Richmond City Lake 785-835-6425 |
| May 23 | Friday | Richmond–Garnett | 8 | North Lake Park Campground |
| May 24 | Saturday | Garnett–Colony | 16.38 | Colony Methodist Church, 333 Maple St |
| May 25 | Sunday | Colony–Iola | 10.72 | Iola RV and Campground 1327 US 54, Iola, KS 66749 |
| May 26 | Monday | Iola–Humboldt | 8 | Airbnb 810 Bridge Street, Apt. A, Humboldt, KS 66748 |
| 56.43 |
Day Six: Happy Trails
Day Six Tuesday, May 27, 2025 Lisa: Mistakes were made. Mostly that we stayed up listening to music and drinking Jack Daniel's until about 5 a.m., something we hadn't done since college (or at least since our 20s). Then we headed over to the Bijou Confectionary where...
Day Five: Iola to Humboldt
Day Five Monday, May 26, 2025 Lisa: We were going to get wet, so we rigged up our strollers so they were covered by tarps, put on our rain gear, and set out from America's Best Value Inn.HumboldtThe mythical town loomed large in our imaginations after reading about it...
Day Four: Colony to Iola
Day Four Sunday, May 25, 2025 Lisa: We woke to pouring rain after spending a pleasant night on the carpeted floor of Colony Methodist and decided to attend services after speaking to Pastor Welch. So glad we did!IolaThe only mileage we got in was in Iola, heading down...
Day Three: Garnett to Colony
Day Three Saturday, May 24, 2025 Lisa: We met two Rail Trail boosters at the Country Market in Garnett before we hit the trail. They were handing out paper flowers to shopper to commemorate Memorial Day. We were looking down our longest mileage day not only on this...
Day Two: Richmond to Garnett
Day Two Friday, May 23, 2025 Lisa: We looked forward to less mileage as we started out toward the rocky road from Richmond City Lake. Marianne: We didn't eat before we left, trying to stay ahead of the rain.Garnett[dsm_block_reveal_text block_reveal_text="Click on...
Day One: Ottawa to Richmond
Day One Thursday, May 22, 2025 Lisa: It took us longer to pack the strollers—we had somehow brought more stuff for fewer days (including spare tires and tubes that weighed a lot!) The sun intermittently shone, the only day that it did. We started out listening to...
The Night Before: Ottawa
The Night Before Wednesday, May 21, 2025 Lisa: I got smart(er) this time and split the drive in two. I left Denver on Tuesday around noon and drove to WaKeeney so that I could stop every hour and walk for a ten-minute half mile. So Wednesday I wasn't deliriously...