Day ten was spent trying to get get back home…with a few more adventures along the way! It’s hard to believe our Big West Road Trip is over, but it’s always good to get back home. The kids and I talked about our trip during dinner last night and we all agreed on something. While we have seen some amazing things and had a wonderful time on this trip, there’s no place like home sweet home in Tennessee! BUT just because we are heading home doesn’t mean we can’t have some more fun…
We started our last day in Council Bluffs, Iowa. We checked out of the hotel, printed our boarding passes for the flight home, and went to the closest gas station for fuel and muffins. (Since it was our last day, we treated ourselves to sleeping in, which caused us to miss breakfast at the hotel.) Once we were all fueled up, we headed south to Kansas City. As we made our way down I-29 South, I realized the map was a little deceiving. While it looked like we were going to end up in Kansas, I-29 sticks to the east of the Little Missouri River and doesn’t actually cross into Kansas. While making a quick pitstop at the Missouri welcome center, I plotted a course for Atchinson, KS. This cute little town is not only just close to the KS/MO border, it’s also home to the birthplace of Amelia Earhart.
The Amelia Earhart birthplace is a beautiful old victorian home overlooking the Little Missouri River. There is a small fee for the tour, but the staff is very sweet and knowledgable. They take the time to talk with guests and answer any questions they have. The house is filled with antiques, personal belongings, and newspaper articles about Amelia’s disappearance. We all enjoyed the tour, especially the life-like statue of Amelia in the family room. If you go for a visit, don’t forget to take a selfie with Amelia and tag them on Facebook!
After our tour, we were ready for lunch. Our number one priority for Kansas was eating some Kansas City ribs and BBQ! Atchinson was the perfect place to stop. We found this awesome little BBQ restaurant called Iron Horse BBQ. It was a tiny hole-in-the-wall place with lots of train themed decor. The kids were thrilled with the menu because they could order a 1/3 slab of ribs and corn nuggets (their favorite!!). When our order was brought to the table, we were shocked at how large the ribs were. I’ve never seen ribs that big before! And they were delicious!
As we were paying our check, our server noted that we “weren’t from around here.” In addition to commenting on our cute accents, she told us that we should drive by Leavenworth to see the buffalo. Evidently they raise buffalo each year to sell at the auction. That sounded like a great idea, so off we went. It wasn’t until we arrived that I realized Leavenworth wasn’t just a town…it’s a Federal Penitentiary! I had no idea! Of course, the kids thought it was awesome and wanted to go in for a tour. I felt it best to skip this tour and instead just look at the buffalo from the street. See what I mean about finding unexpected adventures??
By this point, we needed to make our way to the airport. The time had come to say goodbye to the West and head back East. This trip was nothing short of amazing. I am so thankful for this time and the experiences I shared with the kids on this trip. I have no doubt this is one we will all remember for a long, long time. Thank you all for joining on our journey out west! We would love to hear from you guys about any shared experiences or things we should check out next time.
Take care!
