The Snow in Snowflake

Howdy Neighbors.

Having completed my summer Walk and spent seven weeks in Kansas, I decided to get to the southern zone any which I could. With help from my friend Charlotte, I found a spot to walk, read, write and meditate for the winter and beyond in Snowflake, Arizona. And, I have renewed an old connection in Show Low. I already have an invitation to speak at Unity of the White Mountains late this month.

I have been in Snowflake for seven weeks now. It has "snowed" twice since. A dusting once and an inch or so the other time. Little snow, but it does get quite chilly at night.

The name Snowflake is a bit deceptive. The town of 5500 which sits at elevation of around 5600 feet north of the White Mountains in Navajo County, got its moniker entirely unrelated to the weather.

Snowflake was founded in 1878 by Erastus Snow and William Jordan Flake. Flake and family had been sent by Brigham Young to help Mormon colonies settle in Arizona. They sold all their land in Beaver, Utah, and headed for Silver Creek where they took possession of Stinson Valley using cattle to pay for the purchase.

Erastus Snow was the Mormon apostle charged with Arizona colonization. He soon visited the new settlement and decided that it should be called Snow Flake. He made the proposal for the name to Mr. Flake who quickly agreed. And, so it is.

There is a lot of history in Snowflake. Several museums and many LDS churches and even a Mormon temple which looms in the western skyline. Jeff Flake is presently one of Arizona's US Senators along with John McCain. Flake is one of the original founder's descendants.

Other than that, Snowflake has lots of trailer parks (I now live in one), plenty of sagebrush and a little grass, many storage units (a growing business in many places). Main Street is Highway 77 which passes often noisily within yards of my abode.The proximate town is Taylor - a couple miles south, with a section called Wagon Wheel in between.

Until recently, there was a paper mill a few miles west in Heber which employed many Snowflakers. The story is that the Canadians bought the operation and closed it down. The Snowflake Mills Credit Union is about to be re-named Rim Country Credit. 

The Town of Snowflake website says - "From light industry to retail, the opportunities are endless for businesses wishing to expand or relocate to Snowflake. Plentiful land, affordable development costs, and a community that’s vested in the success of its local businesses are just a few reasons why Snowflake is becoming a major economic force in Northeastern Arizona."

So, come on down and take a gander at Snowflake. Don't worry about snow.

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Photoblog

I only walked a mile from Cody WY when I got my first ride offer.

I turned that one down, but accepted one from Joe Cruz

who drove me many miles through the Wind River Canyon

en route to a date at a casino in Riverton.

Railroaders from Burlington Northern

kept an eye on me during my walk through eastern Wyoming.

Three of them stopped to visit for a moment

and offer me bottles of water. I accepted thankfully.

I ran into Anthony Grubbs (above) twice. 

The second time he pulled my leg 

telling me he was Anthony's twin brother.

It worked only for a few moments, 

but it gave me one of the best laughs of the Walk.

I met two young, hip police officers in Douglas.

They gave me suggestions on navigating the town.

Don't you love Officer Coates's sunglasses?

Gypsy appeared as I passed through Douglas.

He said he had been on the road for five (5) years,

but was getting ready to return to Los Angeles

and go back to school.

Law School. Good luck, Gypsy.

I ran into Jack in a convenience mart in Glenrock.

We visited for a few moments.

Later we passed by each other,

he in his car on the way to work and

I walking the other direction with my flag.

He said something like,

"I look for something positive every day.

Yesterday when I saw you on the highway,

that did it for me.

You made my day.

Thanks."

Thank you, Jack.

Randy Lund is a contractor who drives a big mail truck 

between Denver and Billings.

He saw me walking the highway south of Glenrock

and stopped to visit and share a sandwich with me.

We chatted for a while intending to meet again on his return trip.

My route avoiding the Interstate prevented that from occurring.

I sent him a postcard miles later as a thankyou.

I made a great find in the El Rancho Restaurant, south of Glendo.

Early in the day, I got a ride through road construction and

rested for a few hours under trees in front of the restaurant.

Rain began to pour just before opening time.

I settled under the awning until 5:00.

Then, I treated myself to dinner and

visited with bartender Tiffany, waitress Kim (above),

and beer man Geno who avoided pictures.

Geno had been the area's milk man for many years.

But, beer was obviously he drink of choice.

I emailed this photo to Tiffany the other day.

After a day's rest at Guernsey,

I spent some time at the library and then at the visitor center.

I had a long conversation with Kathy Troupe (right).

We covered quite a bit of territory in our talk.

When the Andersons came in, 

I decided it was time to head out.

But not before taking a photo of the three.

Matt and Brandon run the Saloon at Fort Laramie.

It was a Sunday morning when I walked into their establishment.

They couldn't sell me anything because of the day and hour,

but sent me down the road with a couple sodas

and some bottles of water.

Thanks, gentlemen.

Toni Genua works at a grocery store in Gering, Nebraska.

She saw me buying chocolate milk for the next leg of the trip.

Later, she noticed me drinking my purchase on outside the store

even before I started back walking.

Before long I had an invitation to camp

on the living room floor of her apartment for the night.

Next day, we drove out to Scottsbluff National Monument.

Then, she dropped me off when she returned to work.

I proceeded east on the Old Oregon Trail.

When I took two days off in Oshkosh, Nebraska,

I found Jenny Bean's Bakery and Emporium.

I felt like I had arrived in Oz

because Dorothy and her friends were everywhere.

Tom Nelson's mother was a great fan of the Wizard.

Tom's huge cinnamon rolls were yummy and inexpensive.

Making Gothenburg, I stepped into the first convenience mart.

I went over to the soda dispenser.

Sidney, the cashier, followed behind me and said,

"A customer gave me a dollar

to pay for a soda or water for you if you should come in."

When I went back to the counter,

Sidney had small change to make up the shortfall on

 the $1.07 purchase. 

When I eventually made it to Kansas,

I stayed with the real Dorothy at apartment in Atchison.

Dorothy Barnett is getting close to 90,

but still walks 10 blocks twice a day and

does reflexology - on a donation basis -

for anybody who is interested.

After a week in Atchison,

Dorothy drove me to Lawrence,

the occasional home

of JFK - Jim Kinerk.

I stayed in his travel trailer for six weeks,

waiting for him to exit the hospital - nursing home.

No luck. 

While waiting for Jim,

I got to know Jack Corrigan 

who takes care of the 40 acre-property

which surrounds Kinerk's trailer.

Jack comes four days a week to manage the property,

take care of the livestock - Yellow (above) and Blackie,

and keep an eye on JFK when in residence.

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Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Walking highways from Wyoming to Kansas this summer, I got to experience other forms of transportation. Not like Steve Martin and John Candy, but still in some unusual ways.

* Planes - I didn’t get any airplane rides, even though I passed by a number of airports. I found a few extraordinary airstrips in Nebraska. The one outside North Platte seemed to go on for miles and miles. 

I walked past its air terminal after dark and thought to “camp” by an outlying trailer, but decided against the idea. Security might not have liked that.

Instead, I walked on and rested a mile up the road on an abandoned strip of highway which led to nowhere. One of my rest-on-concrete nights. If mosquitoes might be in the area, I prefer concrete under my pad to grass.

By morning, executive jets were coming and going. But, I continued to wonder how North Platte managed to develop an airport which looked like it could accommodate a B52 bomber.
  
There was another big airstrip outside of Kearney, NE, but I was more interested in nearby Cabelas and Morris Publishing Company on that day.

The final airport I encountered was the Vinland Aerodrome, just a few miles north of the town of Baldwin, Kansas, where I am residing for the time being.

The Aerodrome - sounds impressive and nostalgic - is now just a small airstrip used mostly be McFarlane Aviation Products. http://www.mcfarlaneaviation.com/vinland/

But, it may have been a Big Deal years past for Vinland which is just a small residential area with some historic buildings now. Nonetheless, Vinland is picturesque spot. Drive or walk by some day.

* Trains - Well, there seemed to be trains most everywhere on this trip. Cargo trains. Wyoming was the host for the Burlington Northern Santa Fe - BNSF. Warren Buffett's Railroad was busy day and night carrying cargo east and west. Much of it coal wagons.

I owe Buffett a thankyou card for the interest and bottled water offered me by three different employees along the route.

BNSF eventually veered to the north of my route in Nebraska and I then had the company of the Union Pacific Railroad. The UP was generally just as busy as the BNSF. 

Eventually, I decided that I was having enough of Railroad company especially at night. Trains passed by as often as every 20 minutes and tended to make sleeping difficult in the vicinity - even in well-maintained Union Pacific Parks in several towns. 

So, I turned south at Kearney Nebraska. But, even at Minden NE - the next town to the south - there was train traffic - quite modest in comparison, however.

https://www.midlandrailway.org/

And now in Baldwin KS, the Midland Railway has a bit of traffic. It even has passenger service - of sorts. Two or three times a week, a locomotive with a few cars, owned by the Santa Fe Trail Association, takes a short journey north or south to give passenger a sight-seeing adventure. On the weekend, the Kansas Belle offers dinner service.

http://www.kansasbelle.com/

* Automobiles - There are always automobiles and trucks and pickups. Most roads, generally Blue Highways, I traveled had plenty of traffic.  

I had to walk some Interstate miles in Wyoming for lack of alternate routes. Not my favorite choice, but Interstates always have wide shoulders suitable for a walker like me. Fortunately, there were good shoulders on most roads except the last miles into Baldwin, Kansas.  

I also ran into some ATVs along the way. Mrs Nichols in Nebraska who sent out a hamburger dinner for me miles down the road. And, the Lundys (father and son) who bent my ear for a few minutes on the highway shoulder, again in Nebraska.

I should throw in especial thanks to the auto and pickup drivers (whom I can recall - I have forgotten a few) for offering me rides down the road: Joe Cruz, Travis Marshall, the Fitzgeralds, John at BNSF, police officers in southern Nebraska, the Krauses, Dorothy Barnett, and Charlotte McDevitt.

Charlotte got me started on the road from Gardiner MT to Cody WY and almost finished my journey from Minden NE to Atchison KS.

Note: This blog is not quite complete, but I will post it just the same and touch it up as time permits.

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