2022 Aug 20 – Dodge City, KS to Pueblo, CO – Kelly

State Count – 10

I feel like I was too hard on Dodge City yesterday. Not taking anything back, but the people here seem very happy, and there are some cool old buildings and interesting cowboy history (ie. the original Boot Hill Cemetery was here and Wyatt Earp was the deputy town Marshall for a while.) We met a local at the park and while we sipped coffee and let the dogs run, he told us that the town business still revolved around cattle, only it’s meat packing now. He said they pack about 10,000 cattle in a 48 hour period, and that the summer was their busy season because everyone wants to barbecue.

We made a game-day decision and adjusted our course away from Santa Fe and charted a more direct route that will eventually lead us to Arches National Park in Utah. Happily, that landed us in Pueblo, Colorado for the afternoon and evening. The drive across Kansas was mostly flat with some rolling hills. We kept wondering when we’d finally see the mountains! Finally we saw them, and – again, hearkening back to the pioneers – we imagined how excited they must have been. We really enjoyed the Pueblo River Walk on the Arkansas River. Along a pretty nature, and art-strewn walk path it showcased the long history of the area, everyone was nice, and the beer on the outside dog-friendly pub patio was cold. The Arkansas River in Pueblo marked the border between Mexico and the U.S. up to 1848.