Wednesday, August 12
On our drive to El Dorado State Park, we only encountered a light mist before the sky cleared to reveal beautiful blue skies. Our route took us through Salina, where we stopped at the Blue Beacon Truck Wash an hour into our trip to get the truck and trailer washed.
El Dorado State Park is divided into several sections, and our campsite was located in the Blue Stem Point area. As we arrived at the park, we were pleasantly surprised to find someone staffing the entrance booth, which is usually only the case on weekends. We informed the attendant that we were heading to Sunflower Meadow, site 391, and she directed us to take the second left into the campground for easier access to our site.
Our site was a back-in gravel/dirt spot, only slightly uneven, bordered by railroad ties on all sides. It was equipped with a newer picnic table—much better than the rotted ones we’d encountered at other parks—and offered a great view of the lake about 100 yards away. The wind, however, was strong while we set up, and when I walked down to the lake and returned, I was covered in mayflies.
After settling in, we took a drive around the park. We found most areas were empty, and very few campsites had utilities. One campground that was supposed to have water and electricity was marked with a sign stating that those services were unavailable. The primitive campground loops had few campers, with the occasional camp host. The park had a small convenience and bait store, but it was only open on weekends.
We continued exploring the park, noting that, unlike other Corps of Engineers-managed parks, the state park manages all the campgrounds here. The park claims to have over 1,100 sites, but most don’t have utilities. The overflow campground behind the dam stood out, featuring plenty of trees, paved trails, and a large pond with a swimming beach. Near the main office, we also found a large shooting range with concrete walls. Since there was no state park sign at Blue Stem Point, we took our usual state park sign photo at the main office. While exploring, we were treated to a sighting of a buck, doe, and fawn grazing in a field.
Once back at the campsite, I flushed our black tank until the full indicator was functioning properly, and I also flushed the grey tank from the shower. It was nice to have full hookups here, making the task much easier.
Thursday, August 13
After breakfast, we decided to take a trip to Newton, about an hour away, to explore Lisa’s family history. Her great-grandfather, Anton Kuhl, had migrated from Germany to Newton, and we hoped to uncover some information about him.
Our first stop was the Harvey County Historical Society Museum. After browsing the exhibits on the area’s history, we were given access to the research library. We found several references to Anton in city directories and a 150th-anniversary newspaper there. However, we had trouble finding much information about his son, Frank.
Next, we set out to find the house listed in the directories. Unfortunately, when we arrived, we discovered it was now just an empty lot.
Our next stop was the cemetery where Anton Kuhl was buried. We found his headstone next to that of his first wife, and nearby was the headstone of his second wife, alongside her first husband. While there, I explored the cemetery further, taking photos of medallion stakes next to the graves of veterans from various wars. I also discovered a medallion for the Modern Woodworkers Association, which piqued my curiosity. After some research, I learned it was associated with an insurance benefit group.
Looking for a place to eat, we tried to find a park, and while we located a large one on Google Maps, we could not find any parking. It seemed to be an open green space with playground equipment for the locals. We then found another green space behind Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, which had a shade tree and a parking lot, making it the perfect spot for lunch.
After eating, we visited the Blue Sky Sculpture, where we left one of our #ShryockRocks. We grabbed some ice cream at Braum’s to cap off the trip before returning to our trailer.
Friday, August 14
After breakfast, we spent a couple of hours kayaking. The calm wind made it easy to paddle around the old Blue Stem Dam remnants, which became obsolete when its reservoir was incorporated into a larger one. We also explored a nearby marina, admiring the boats and having fun with some of their quirky names.
Once back at camp, we had lunch and relaxed for the rest of the day. Later in the afternoon, we headed into town to spray out the back of the pickup truck, which had accumulated dust. I conveniently chose a car wash next to Braum’s Ice Cream, so we treated ourselves to some ice cream before heading home.
Saturday, August 15
After breakfast, we went kayaking again, paddling closer to the coastline. We spotted plenty of turtles swimming, their heads popping in and out of the water. One curious turtle swam within five feet of our kayak and watched us for several minutes.
Once we returned, I cleaned some of our camping gear, which had gotten quite dirty during the trip. Otherwise, we mostly relaxed, except for a quick trip into town to fill the truck with gas.
Sunday, August 16, Home
We took our time packing and flushing our black and grey tanks since we had full hookups and were not worried about getting to the dump station.
We did stop at Blue Beacon Truck Wash in Emporia on the way home to get the trailer one more wash.