Highpoint: Kansas. Mt. Sunflower (4039 ft). July 6, 2010

[TrishandAlex]

Copied from http://www.trishalexsage.com
Accompanying pictures can be found there.
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Kansas has a 4000 Footer! Of course, the entire state lies at about 4000 feet or so, therefore this "peak" doesn't have much of an elevation gain....about 20 feet, perhaps?

Our journey to Mt. Sunflower was simple and straightforward...almost. I took a wrong turn and ended up in a cattle field (would-be highpointers, this is NOT the right road!)...

...but I turned around and got back on track without too much trouble.

The scenery surrounding the highpoint...

...and the road that leads to the "summit"....

...and the sign pointing toward our day's goal...

...and the highpoint itself!

The register was the biggest one we've seen. I could've put a small calf in there.

Views from the top of Kansas...

We hung about for a bit, then we said farewell and headed into Colorado. The girls and I are NOT highpointing Colorado this summer, as that would be far too much, too soon for Sage (and possibly Alex). Instead, we used Colorado as another place to meet Hugh and relax for a couple of weeks.

While in Colorado, the girls and I panned for gold, went dog-sledding, visited an amusement park, and spent a few days in Rocky Mountain National Park. When Hugh arrived, he took the girls climbing, bouldering, and swimming.

Then it was time to embark on Phase Three of our highpointing extravaganza...

Next stop: Nebraska

 

[pudgy_groundhog]

Enjoying your trip reports. What an amazing experience for your girls!

How many highpoints are you doing and how long is your trip? Sounds like so much fun.

And highly anticipating your next trail report - I grew up in Gordon, NE.

 

[TrishandAlex]

Thanks, pudgy_groundhog! We are having a good time, thanks. At the end of the summer, we should have 34 highpoints under our belts. Next year, we'll do Maine and NY, which will bring us to 36. Eventually, we'll get Hawaii. What we do beyond that will depend on the girls' interests and abilities as they grow older.

This particular trip is taking about 10 weeks, but that's because we take five-seven days off every now and then to spend time with Hugh (the girls' father), who flies out to meet us at various locations around the country.

PS -- Nebraska's TR is coming soon.

 

[pudgy_groundhog]

I'll keep an eye out for the Nebraska one.

I'm also quite interested in your trip reports because my daughter is 2.5. At what age did your daughters really start hiking on their own (I know each child is different - just curious what your experience has been)?

 

[hikes-with-him]

I love your trip reports...so simple yet so full of the important things (Alex...and Sage!)...

Wow! Can't wait to see the trip report from Denali

 

[Christa]

Okay, yes, this is the Kansas High Point TR and you're probably long past Nebraska at this point, but if you're not...

Near the Nebraska High Point is the Colorado-Nebraska-Wyoming Tri-State Marker. It's literally in the middle of a cow field and is probably only a mile or so away from the Nebraska High Point as the crow flies. It's so flat out there that on a clear day, you can probably seen from one to the other. Unfortunately, you can't just cut across the farmland from one to the other, so driving between the two is probably about 5-10 minutes to negotiate the roads.

 

[Mike P.]

great adventure, I've always loved Mt. Sunflower pictures. It looks like a slice of Americana. I'm surprised the Griswold family didn't stop there on the way to Wallyworld.

Must climb to the top of Mt. Sunflower. It's way higher than Mountain in Chicago.

 

[TrishandAlex]

I'll keep an eye out for the Nebraska one.

I'm also quite interested in your trip reports because my daughter is 2.5. At what age did your daughters really start hiking on their own (I know each child is different - just curious what your experience has been)?

Hi Pudgy Groundhog, I'll post the Nebraska TR tonight.

Alex began hiking on her own at age 4. She was a very strong and enthusiastic hiker from the get-go. She completed the NH48 when she was 6, and is now about halfway through the winter NH48 (she's currently 7).

Sage (age 5) also began hiking on her own when she was 4. I believe she's just as strong as Alex was at her age, but as of right now she doesn't want to do anything over 5 miles unless it's fairly flat. Though she did very much enjoy the longer hikes of this trip -- so far, Virginia, Oklahoma and South Dakota, each 6-8 miles with 1000-1500 elevation gain. However, in general, she usually likes to keep it below 5 miles, and I've no desire to push her beyond what she's comfortable with.

I almost never used a stroller with either of the girls when they were toddlers, we just took our time and walked together to the playgrounds, library, etc. However, I've no idea if that has anything to do with their current stamina.

They've never complained or whined about hiking anywhere (if they did, we wouldn't do it). It's just a way of life with us. Neither one is shy about letting me know exactly what they do and do not want to do, and I respect their abilities and opinions.

I love your trip reports...so simple yet so full of the important things (Alex...and Sage!)...

Wow! Can't wait to see the trip report from Denali

Thanks, hikes-with-him. However, you might need to wait a long time for that Denali TR. A LONG time. I mean, a REALLY long time!!

great adventure, I've always loved Mt. Sunflower pictures. It looks like a slice of Americana. I'm surprised the Griswold family didn't stop there on the way to Wallyworld.

Must climb to the top of Mt. Sunflower. It's way higher than Mountain in Chicago.

Loved Mt. Sunflower. Best way to describe it is cute.

Okay, yes, this is the Kansas High Point TR and you're probably long past Nebraska at this point, but if you're not...

Near the Nebraska High Point is the Colorado-Nebraska-Wyoming Tri-State Marker. It's literally in the middle of a cow field and is probably only a mile or so away from the Nebraska High Point as the crow flies. It's so flat out there that on a clear day, you can probably seen from one to the other. Unfortunately, you can't just cut across the farmland from one to the other, so driving between the two is probably about 5-10 minutes to negotiate the roads.

The tri-state marker is described in my guidebook, but some internet sources state that the owners of the NE highpoint do not want anyone trying to cross the cow field. There are herds of bison in the area, and they worry that there might be an unfortunate encounter one day. I can attest to the herds of bison...there were huge droppings all over the highpoint.

 

[Christa]

The tri-state marker is described in my guidebook, but some internet sources state that the owners of the NE highpoint do not want anyone trying to cross the cow field. There are herds of bison in the area, and they worry that there might be an unfortunate encounter one day. I can attest to the herds of bison...there were huge droppings all over the highpoint.

Yeah, I wouldn't have tried going across the cow field, either. We took the roads around from one point to the other Much safer, even encountering the occassional tractor.

 

[TrishandAlex]

Yeah, I wouldn't have tried going across the cow field, either. We took the roads around from one point to the other Much safer, even encountering the occassional tractor.

Christa, I didn't realize there was a road to it -- all that was mentioned in the guide info was that it was in the middle of a pasture, and to be careful trying to access it. Shoot, now that I know we could have driven, I regret missing it. Oh well.

 

[Christa]

Christa, I didn't realize there was a road to it -- all that was mentioned in the guide info was that it was in the middle of a pasture, and to be careful trying to access it. Shoot, now that I know we could have driven, I regret missing it. Oh well.

Yup. I don't remember where we found out about it. I think it was in the highpointers book we had. There's an information center right at the border where you can pick up a little brochure that gives you directions (although, if you can make sense of the "go to the end of the oiled road" direction at first, power to you). The actual marker is in the middle of a farmers field, but they let you drive on a section of it to get there.

Here's what it looks like:
http://nhcab.smugmug.com/Road-Trip-2007/Day-16-08062007-1/4604146_thVyw#271519874_GYbdY

And here's what we had to go through to get to it:
http://nhcab.smugmug.com/Road-Trip-2007/Day-16-08062007-1/4604146_thVyw#271519809_n9oMS

I'll have to tell you the whole story some day.

 

[TrishandAlex]

Christa, great pictures!

At least there are railings around the marker itself. In the event of a bull/bison charge, one could stay right by the marker, safely surrounded by bars.

 

[Tom Rankin]

Alex began hiking on her own at age 4. She was a very strong and enthusiastic hiker from the get-go. She completed the NH48 when she was 6, and is now about halfway through the winter NH48 (she's currently 7).

I consider Trish's children exceptional in this regard.

Laurie has a 5 and a 3 year old grandchild. We encourage them to hike with us on short trips. They never refuse to go hiking with us, and we don't push them.

The longest one they have done is 3 miles RT with about 700' of elevation gain. Both of them complained a little while ascending on this hike, but we were so close to the summit, I carried them briefly, in turns. Going back down was fine.

They will start out with their packs and poles in their possession, but eventually, one of them will say, "I don't want my pack/poles anymore". And of course, the other one will decide this immediately afterwards as well. I will consider them to be 'hiking on their own' when they stop trying to give us back their gear.