Buhler’s Half-Day Off – Day 31

Date: Wednesday 8th September   

Route: Hutchinson, Kansas – Newton, Kansas 

Distance:   49 miles 

Total climb: 739 ft

Net climb: -95 ft

Our day began as all testosterone fuelled, macho days should begin; with breakfast at a chain-diner called “Spangles”.  Despite the questionable name, the good people of Spangles knocked out a pretty decent meal and we headed out on the road to get back to the route.  We rode north along a busy duel-carriageway with a ropey hard-shoulder, but were soon at the turn-off for the route.  Sadly, the first four miles of the road had been dug up in an extensive bit of “road engineering”.  We were politely informed that there was no way that we could take the road as a bridge into the town of Buhler had also been demolished.  We would have to find another route into Buhler.

Fortunately for us the roads of this part of Kansas are laid out in a grid system and so all we had to do was head a few miles north and then ride parallel with the route until we got past the road works.  Unfortunately for us, the roads that we had to take were once again little more than gravel.  Our all terrain training from the previous evening proved to be just the trick and we successfully navigated our way into Buhler for a quick snack in the least American cafe that we have been in to date.  They had salads; and fruit.  Everything was “freshly made”.  It was quite a shock to the system.  Our waiter looked a little surprised when I basically ordered a three course meal while Fred had just a piece of chocolate cake, but the Mustard Seed cafe was undoubtedly quite a find.  We were joined in the cafe by the ROMEOS a group of retired motor-bikers, who, if nothing else, had come up with a snappy, if not that memorable acronym by which to call themselves.

The remainder of the ride into Newton was both short in terms of distance and of memorable events.  Once we had arrived in the town and downed a couple of cans of Coke we agreed that it would be sensible to end the day in Newton given the surplus of accommodation and restaurants; the fact that there was nothing on the route for the next forty miles and what appeared to be an impending thunderstorm (the humidity was almost unbearable).  The decision was followed by an extensive survey of all of the motels in Newton before opting for the Best Western – where else. 

Our evening was taken up with washing kit, swimming/jacuzzi, some good teamwork on Lethal Enforcers (an arcade game) and two epic games of table-tennis – both won by Parkes.  Dinner in the Montana Steakhouse – where of course we both chose to have pasta – rounded off our half-day in style.

JBS