Day 16: Highland, KS to Mark Twain State Park, Jefferson, MO

'We packed up in the morning and continued our journey home bright and early on Day 16 of this years adventure.  The weather was warm and sunny, and we enjoyed riding in the truck and listening to music.

One of the things we love about road trips are the unexpected detours that come along the way, and the next two days of our trip would provide a few fun ones!  The first came with a roadside sign that informed us that we were at the geographical center of the United States!  We accidentally stumbled upon the geographical center of North America a few years ago, so we weren't about to let this stop pass us by.  Kevin reacted quickly and pulled over to the side of the road so that we could take selfies with the sign!  In case you are wondering, the center of the US is located in Oak, Kansas along highway 36.

After taking pics we got back into the truck to continue our journey towards our campsite for the evening--Mark Twain State Park.  We made good time on the road on this day, so we pulled into our wooded spot right along a large lake before dinner time.  The park is located close to where author Mark Twain was born (hence the name of the park).

In order to be near water we had to stay at a spot with electricity...which was fine by us since it was hot and humid and that meant we could run our air conditioning!  After setting up camp and starting the air conditioner so that the scamp could cool down before bed, we walked with Scout down to the lake.  (Reno opted to stay in the cool trailer...big surprise).  Scout loves water, so he loved retrieving his toy from the lake for what seemed like hundreds of times!
I enjoyed sitting on a large piece of driftwood and watching the fun until the clouds seemed to disappear and the sun grew relentless.  By that time Scout was tired too, so we decided to head back up to our shaded site to make dinner.

We had burgers for dinner, and we looked out at the lake as we ate.  It was delicious and peaceful.  Afterwards, we settled into out predictable routine were I read in the hammock and Kevin sits by the campfire
This site had free showers nearby, so as the sun set I headed up to the shower-house to scrub myself clean.  It was so refreshing after a few long days in the car! Now that I have super short hair, it's not so time consuming and difficult to take care of...so that is at least one perk of this cancer business thus far!

By the time I returned, our site was dark and the campfire was crackling away.  I decided to just climb under the covers after letting my hair dry outside for a bit, and Kevin decided to enjoy the campfire for awhile longer.
When he did decide to come to bed, we slept like rocks in the coll air conditioning!'