Plains Indians and the Keeper of the Plains – Wichita, KS

Plains Indians - HorsesEarly March of 2022 when took a 4-day weekend trip to check out the small town of Wichita, Kansas. One of the things high on my list I wanted to see was the Keeper of the Plains. It stands at the confluence of the Arkansas and Little Arkansas rivers and is located adjacent to the Mid-America All-Indian Center. This 44-foot Cor-Ten steel sculpture by Kiowa-Comanche artist Blackbear Bosin was erected on May 18, 1974, to celebrate the United States Bi-centennial and has kept a watchful eye on the city ever since.  Around the statue are multiple displays which describe the life, belief, and practices of the local Plains Indians tribe(s) that used to inhabit the area, as well as several fire pits which are sometimes lit to illuminate the statue at night.  Below are some of the writing on the displays sharing their stories. Here is also a link to their website with more information if you want to visit yourself while in the area. Continue reading “Plains Indians and the Keeper of the Plains – Wichita, KS”

Letchworth State Park – The Grand Canyon of the East

Letchworth State Park - BenchGene and I were in Buffalo exploring the area and Niagara Falls in October 2021. While in the area, we were happy to be able to do a short beautiful drive about 35 miles southeast of Buffalo and visit Letchworth State Park.  Neither of us had heard about this place, but our Airbnb host Joanne told us about it and I can’t thank her enough. It is something we are so glad we were able to visit. The road followed the Genesee River and went through several little towns like Leicester, Mount Morris, Portage, Castile, and Genesee Falls. We did stop in one of these little towns to grab a soda to go along with the lunch we had packed for the day.

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Niagara Falls New York – Experience the Rush of the Falls

Niagara Falls New York - 1Niagara Falls New York was the highlight of my birthday trip to Buffalo in October of 2021.  To say they were breathtaking would be an understatement. They were phenomenal and we were lucky enough to see them from both the US side and the Canadian side. I absolutely love waterfalls and with all our traveling, I still can’t believe we hadn’t been to see these iconic falls before. So glad we finally made it to Niagara Falls New York for the first time!!

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