Day 13: 7/1/24: Emporia to Manhattan, KS

I left this morning after Lisa and I had breakfast together.  I rode in the rain for about 2 hours, and then it was primarily overcast.

The weight I'm hauling today is considerably less than it has been the rest of this trip.  In Lisa's car, I loaded all my camping gear and other non-essential items needed for a day ride.

First town I went through was Hamilton (pic below).

When I made it to Bushong I decided to get on the Flint Hills Trail State Park, which is a rails to trails path (pic below ).  I stayed on it for several miles to Council Grove.  I saw a bobcat on the trail about 15 feet in front of me.  It came walking down a hill and walked out on the trail.  It saw me as I was trying to get my phone out to take a picture and ran off.

Scenery from the trail below.

Below are pics regarding some of Council Grove's history.

The old train depot at Council Grove pictured below.

I made it to Manhattan, my final destination this trip.  Now it is time to welcome that new grandbaby into this world.

Total miles today:  82.2

Total miles this trip: 1,001.7

PS:  2 days later we now have a grandson, Jacob Andrew, 9 lbs. 9 ozs.   He was not eager to come out so Alyssa had to have a C-section.  Both Jacob and mom are doing well.