Searching for Proper Barbecue - Colorado to Georgia

Quite literally in the middle of Kansas, 600 feet below the surface of Hutchinson, a Strataca Salt Mine tour guide asked me if I enjoyed Roy's BBQ for lunch. Bemused, I learned that Roys has such a distinct smell and the salt mine is devoid of smells, so tour guides quickly learn this approach with tourists. Strataca and Roys, or odd sites and barbecue were the treats on this road trip but the underlying purpose was for a move.

Michael at the Strataca Salt Mine.

My father-in-law (Michael) and I were in Kansas because our calling was to relocate one of our cars from Monument, Colorado to Atlanta, Georgia. The four-day journey was punctuated with a handful of museums and a superb selection of barbecue joints.

We set out from the Denver airport in the late afternoon and drove four hours to our first waypoint in Colby, Kansas. En route, we enjoyed a picnic dinner at the surprisingly well appointed Limon Railroad Park (by donation).

Day two's first stop was the Fort Hays State Historic Park. The buildings and exhibits are very well done. For young visitors, there is a 'bison herd' across the street (with bison numbering just a few). Plan 1-2 hours at this attraction. From Fort Hays, we drove to Hutchinson, Kansas for the Strataca Salt Mine. This was a major waypoint during the trip planning: where else can you descend 600 feet into the crust of the Earth to view an active salt mine? It turns out that the salt vein stretches into New Mexico, but this is the best way to get up-close to the operation.

An industrial elevator carries both workers and tourists down under. The tourist portion of the mine is sectioned off for safety. Tourists get to see dioramas containing mining equipment and the blasting techniques used to excavate salt from the mine - the salt is used mainly for ice removal. The underground gift shop has free wifi and there are a couple of add-ons for your visit. Tourists can ride the mine train in a loop that shows more of the mine or you can book a seat on the tram tour, which also shows more of the mine.

BBQ is an American treasure.

The Strataca Salt Mine was such a great stop that Michael and I decided to check out the other local Hutchinson attraction: the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center. We expected a couple of planes and some cheap displays but we were instead treated to a plethora of rare air and space artifacts. The museum's motto, "Out of this World. Right in the Heart of Kansas" is an appropriate saying. Aside from the Smithsonian collection, the Kansas Cosmosphere impressed me more than any air and space museum I have seen (including the National Museum of the USAF, Seattle's Museum of Flight and many others). To quantify my claim, know that the museum collection contains a spacecraft from Mercury, Gemini and Apollo (Liberty Bell 7, Gemini 10 and Apollo 13).

Ending a big second day of the trip in Wichita gave us the opportunity to ride the free downtown tram to Old Town where we enjoyed excellent pizza and local brews at Public.

Day three was a 450 mile push from Wichita to Little Rock but we found time for a few diversions. The first was Fort Smith National Historic Site where Michael was able to purchase his National Park System Senior Pass. Ten bucks gets you free access to all National Park properties for the rest of your life (seniors include those 62 and over). The Fort Smith prison, gallows and courtroom are all available for viewing. Kids love romping around the grounds to see the out-buildings and the neighboring Arkansas River. Tip: Pick up lunch at the Garrison Pointe Market, which is walking distance from Fort Smith (it is in a gas station, but those who know of the Whoa Nellie Deli know the deal). In Little Rock, we tried Sims BBQ but were thoroughly disappointed. 

Elvis's Birthplace in Tupelo, Mississippi.

Day four's drive was from Little Rock to Atlanta. The main diversion was Elvis's Birthplace in Tupelo, Mississippi. Most fans visit Graceland but I found ticket prices there to be obscenely expensive. The Tupelo museum and home were small enough to visit in 1-2 hours and were right on our route to Atlanta. In Tupelo, we tried and liked BBQ by Jim. This joint was a meat and two sides type of place with excellent sauce and a family-focused orientation.

TripTips:

1. Stock the car with cold beverages and healthy snacks.

2. Plan activities in cities between your lodging locations. Most attractions do not open until 9am or 10am, so you will lose lots of drive time if you stick around in a city to do something there.

3. Picnic when you can to save costs.

4. A newspaper or magazines in the car give you something to chat about with your trip partner(s).

Magic Kingdom Day Two with Toddlers

We split the Magic Kingdom up into two days so that we would have enough time to enjoy the park and never feel rushed.

Just like last time we parked at the Contemporary and walked over for the rope drop. I was able to get us a bit more centered this time. H was just as amazed the second time around when the train pulled in with all his favorite friends.

The plan was to head straight to Tomorrowland and get on the AstroOrbiters, but when we got there the AstroOrbiters were not operational. Jeff took H to go drive cars at the Tomorrowland Speedway. My mom and I took O to ride the Peoplemover. The rides took about the same amount of time, we were able to see the boys in line while we were on the Peoplemover.

We met at AstroOrbiters and only had to wait for one group to go before it was our turn to ride the elevator up for the rocket ride. The boys loved riding the rockets. The higher you go the more the rocket tilts toward the center. In hindsight I am not sure that I should have taken O on it. He laughed the whole time, but I was a little nervous I wasn't going to be able to hold him as we banked to the right!

We had a minor meltdown on our way to use our fastpass at Peter Pan about enchanted boats and flying elephants that really is not worth getting in to here, but once that was resolved we hopped onto Peter Pan's flight and took off over London. When we reached the end of the flight H exclaimed that he wanted to ride the boat with the music and little people, so we walked across the street and right onto Small World. We did get stuck in the final room in a boat pileup, but my mom found a lady's missing shoe in the water and was able to return it to her as we disembarked.

We used a fastpass for Enchanted Tales with Belle. All the children who wanted to participate got a chance. H, with some help from Jeff, played the wardrobe and got to lead the parade of the staff for Belle. H and O got their pictures with Belle at the end of the show!

Haunted Mansion is my absolute favorite ride. H and I have been talking about it since we started planning the trip, so he was game when I suggested we try to ride that next. I may have told him the mansion was holding a ghost party. With that in mind he wasn't scared of anything and was excited he got to go to the party. He did say that one time on the ride was enough. Ha!

As we were crossing The Hub on our way to lunch at The Plazza, the Move it! Sake it! Dance & Play it! Street Party came rolling through. I couldn't get H to join me dancing in the street, but he also didn't want to leave.

Lunch at The Plaza was good. It is one of your only options for sit down dining in the Magic Kingdom. Getting some AC and a nice lunch is a huge recharge for us and the kids. The food is nothing special, but it was good, filling and service was excellent. 

The Plaza: Kids PB&J 

The Plaza: Club Sandwich 

Happily Entertained at The Plaza

We had a fastpass to the Jungle Cruise, which helped the line not be 80 min, but we still waited more then 20 min for the ride. I think I had high expectations from my memory. The way we boarded the boat put the kids and I in the direct sun, so we were hot. The kids were not very amused by the animals and the jokes were over their head. I am glad we included it, but it was a bit of a dud.

Jungle Cruise was our third fastpass and the fastpass kiosk is right next to where Jungle Cruise lets out, so I popped over while everyone else was grabbing the stroller and got another one for later in the day. 

Across the road is the Tiki Room, so we ducked in there for a nice cool spot to feed Oliver and watch the show. The kids loved the singing birds! The DoleWhip after didn't hurt either. I actually tried the float and it was delicious and slightly more refreshing. 

Tom Sawyers Island was a huge hit! We probably should have let H play here both days, he enjoyed it so much. Taking the boat over is fun, but again hot in the open sun. Once you get over to the Island it shady and much cooler. There are tons of bridges, caves and buildings to explore. 

When we finally left the Island we were all ready for some Air Conditioning. We headed over to the Hall of Presidents. I think this is such a wonderful presentation. H instantly fell asleep. I may not have even noticed, except his head hit the arm rest the first time he nodded off.  He is nothing if not persistent, so he rearranged himself and went back to sleep in his chair. O was also a nightmare. He pooped two minuets into the show and was very very unhappy. 

With a changed diaper and an awake toddler we headed outside to find the Parade just coming through. Our stroller was parked outside saving us the perfect shaded spot to watch the Parade. 

We headed back over to the Tomorrowland Speedway with our fourth fast-pass to give driving another try.

After a broken car, it was finally time to take off. With H at the wheel we hit that guard rail as many times as we could! H laughed and laughed. He loved driving so much. Jeff rode in front of us and got a few pictures of the craziness, although you can barely see H in the driver seat.

We finished up our rides with Mickey's PhilharMagic. There was a small wait, but it was so worth it. I forgot how cute this show is. Add that on top of a kid who is experiencing their first 3D show. H dodged everything that came out of the screen. Once we talked him through that he started reaching out for everything. So so so many giggles. It was awesome. 

Everyone was ready to head back so we worked our way down Main Street. H asked if we could do some pin trading and we still needed to buy stamps and mail our postcards on the way out. 

Pin trading is one of the best things we have done on this trip. H loved it. I love that it got him to engage with adults. It provided a good change to practice manners and speaking loudly. He loves trading pins just to trade, but he searched the whole trip for an Ariel pin and finally found one in Animal Kingdom. He was elated.

It was a perfect day in the Magic Kingdom and it wasn't even over! We took the kids back to the hotel and fed them at the Pepper Market, the hotel cafeteria. The food was fine, not great but fine. We got the kids settled with Grandma and Jeff and I headed back out for the night.

Magic Kingdom from the California Grill 

We had dinner reservations at the California Grill, on the top floor of the Contemporary. From there you are able to see the firework show from all of the other parks. They pump the music in for the show as well. (As a tip, we found out you can also watch the fireworks from any of the external stairwells at the Contemporary.)

We actually arrived a little early to the Contemporary so we went out back to the boat launch and took a boat on its full cycle (about 30 min). It was very romantic and totally free!

The food was delicious. Jeff had the pork two ways and I had sushi. We both started with delicious salads. The menu rotates weekly with a major overhaul seasonally. The wine list is extensive. We both ended up having a glass with dinner and another while we enjoyed the fireworks.

They also brought me a Creme Brule desert for my birthday!

Leaving the hotel for the evening we saw these guys heading upstairs - Only at Disney! 

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Animal Kingdom with Toddlers

Another busy day at Disney. We had a blast, but the whole family is exhausted.

8am Tusker House Reservation means having the park to yourself. 

We had an 8am reservation at Tusker House for their character breakfast so we drove directly to the park before it opened. It takes a few min to walk from the gates to the Tusker House, but we took our time and enjoyed having the park to ourselves. 

The breakfast was delicious and such a huge hit with the kids. After a week at Disney H has finally, really, truly, warmed up to the characters. He was delighted to see them all as they came to the table. H loved their safari outfits. O was indifferent to most of them, which was a huge improvement over the previous days. Daisy though was a charmer and O instantly took to her.  Even with the delicious buffet, I got a birthday cupcake and a candle.. which I unwillingly shared with little O.

After breakfast we headed over to meet Mickey and Minnie in their character spot in Asia. We were first in line and had no wait at all. Although we met Mickey several times on this trip it was our first interaction with Minnie. 

It was a short walk over to Africa to use our fastpass for Kilimanjaro Safari's.  Even with the fast pass it was a bit of a wait, but totally worth it. Minutes after getting into the safari vehicle the rain started to pour down. While our stroller was collecting water, the animals were all out enjoying themselves. The highlight though was the baby rhino that chased our safari vehicle!

When we got off the safari the rain had stopped and the sun was back out. We took a little stroll through the Lowland Gorilla walk. Again, all the animals were out playing. The highlight for the kids were the two small gorillas that were playing right against the glass. We probably could have spent all morning watching them. 

We didn't want to miss the Festival of the Lion King show, which we had fastpasses for. We chose to sit all the way in the back row of our section, even though we were let in first, so that we could sit with a backrest and the kids could stand to see the show. H sat stone-faced the whole ride only to exclaim after the show that it was "amazing." O, on the other hand, danced and clapped and signed "more" during all the songs. The family favorite was the jumping "monkeys" that do the ariel tricks. 

We hopped on the train to Rafiki's Planet Watch, a short, narrated, ride that shows you some of the behind the scenes stuff. A pair of bronze elephants greets you when you get off the train. H was enamored and pretended to be their trainer for quite a while. "Do you have any questions about elephants?" he would ask everyone. There is a short walk to the main building where there are lots of displays and activities. The "Affection Station" is also here, where H go to pet and brush goats. 

H would be upset if I didn't also mention that there is an entire display on animal poop. 

Somewhere between the poop display and listening to the sounds to the rainforest, we decided we were not going to rush to make our next fastpass. I logged onto the Disney App and changed the time of our fastpass to a later showing of the Nemo Show. We continued exploring and then headed back on the train. 

A quick stop at the Yack and Yeti quick service restaurant to pick up lunch. My mom ordered the chicken fried rice and an egg roll while Jeff got the daily special which was some sort of yellow curried chicken and vegetables. I ordered the honey chicken and rice and both kids had a bite as well. On the trail between Asia and Africa there is a small path that parallels the main road and has a lovely little hut with four tables. The hut has some fans in it and it was the perfect place to enjoy our lunch. There was even a large rock for H to crawl on while we ate. 

We bypassed the bird show, in the name of time and much to our dismay, to head to the Jungle treck. The tigers and kimono dragon were napping in the shade, but the bats were sleeping with their wings in full view. I've never seen anything quite like it. 

The monkeys were also putting on quite the show. O in particular loved watching them. 

In DINOLand, USA. H and Jeff rode the TriceraTopSpin. We once again got lucky with the rain. The rain started just as we ducked under the cover of the ride and was done by the time H and Jeff got on board. 

We made what I thought would be a quick stop at the Dig Site... 45 min later we emerged. H spent most of his time across the bridge digging up a Mammoth Fossil. We also explored the caves and slides in the dig area. He would have stayed later but heard someone talking about the pool and decided he wanted to go home. 

We made a few more stops to see some birds, baby ducks and even a squirrel on our way back to our car. We returned to the hotel in time to hit the pool for an hour or so before dinner. The hotel pool here is great. H even went down the small water slide with a life jacket on and dad at the bottom to catch him. O likes to stand and play in the water coming down from the "temple" or just cruise along the beach chairs all in a line. 

We drove to the Art of Animation resort for dinner. Their cafeteria, Landscape of Flavors, has so many good options. My mom ordered the Roasted Vegetables, which actually was just pick four sides, but it looked delicious. Jeff and H split the pulled pork which is served between two waffles. O and I shared the Caprese Sandwhich and chips. Everyone cleaned their plates! 

The best part though was walking H through the different resort areas. Honestly, the cars section was the absolute best as the cars are car sized, not super huge like in the Little Mermaid and Lion King sections. H literally thought he was in Radiator Springs. 

This was the perfect ending to a wonderful Disney trip.