Midwest ramblings

By CONNIE MERTZ

Traveling out West was a dream come true for my husband and I the last two weeks. For over 30 years we have wanted to see the Rockies. We chose to drive out so we could get a glimpse of the Midwest as well. In all, we visited 15 states and each has its own uniqueness.

I was thrilled to see prairie potholes in South Dakota; places I often write about regarding waterfowl. They were pristine and everything I imagined they would be. The Cornbelt through Iowa and Nebraska astounded us. As far the eye could see, we only saw corn and soybeans. In Kansas, it was sunflowers. We camped out in South Dakota and awakened to an azure sky complete with robin’s song. Even a cottontail scampered about the campground. In Wyoming, we saw antelope and ranches that were huge by Pennsylvania standards. In Laramie, a man told us his family had owned a 35,000-acre ranch. Few homes were ever seen from the roadway; Dirt lanes, some 12 miles or more long, led to the homesteads. The cattle grazed on a thousand hills, so there was no need to have large barns either.

Traveling through the Rocky Mountain State Park, we saw breathtaking views. We watched a golden eagle soar gracefully above us. We enjoyed our lunch one day in the Rockies with monarch butterflies floating in the mountain air. We watched a gorgeous Rocky Mountain sunset, and in the morning, fog rising off Pike’s Peak from our motel balcony. So many natural wonders and incredible sights. How blessed and enriched our lives have become in just two short weeks!