Delightful Heartland Barns

When my husband and I drove 3,700 miles West to Colorado and then back East to Brooklyn, New York on Interstate 80 a couple of weeks ago (see more about the trip on this post), we passed quite a bit of scenic beauty along the way. We went on this trip to bring my daughter's bridal shower gifts out to her, many of which were special order items or one of a kind handcrafted items that we knew would be expensive to mail. Except for two stops along the way to sleep, we did the trip in two and a half days each way.  One of my favorite things I tried to take a photo of, as we passed many farms in the beautiful heartland of America, were barns.  Luckily, my Nikon D 60 camera has a fast shutter, as we were often whizzing by these roadside farms anywhere from 65 to 85 miles per hour!  Some photos were "winners," like this wonderful white Ohio bicentennial design barn above.

Other photos were "losers," like this interesting decaying barn that is partially blocked by a car in the lane next to us.  However, all in all, I captured quite a few amazing barn shots from my passenger side car window that I'd love to share today.

First is this selection of classic red painted barns.   I thought this would be the predominate barn color until.....

.....I saw how they were greatly outnumbered by barns that were painted white!

The most interesting barns were those that were faded or unpainted, bare weathered wood.  I wish I knew how old each one was, and the history behind them.

I even saw a new barn being constructed which made me happy. It was good to see rebirth instead of old abandonment.

Taking photos of as many barns as I could help to make our cross country trip more enjoyable......

.....and certainly broke up the monotony of blank, flat prairie lands and acres and acres and acres of corn fields that we saw in many states.

When driving across country I think everyone would marvel, as we did,  over how the pioneers made this same journey in covered wagons over dirt trails!  The Great Platte River Road Archway Monument that crosses Interstate 80 near the town of Kearney, Nebraska, is a beautiful tribute to these pioneers. Kearney is exactly located 1733 miles from San Francisco and 1733 miles from Boston and during the years of 1843 to 1869, nearly half a million men, women, and children rode and walked the trails to the West Coast. Pioneers going on the Oregon, Mormon or California Trails all converged in Fort Kearny (different spelling) before they headed out into the harsh wilderness ahead of them. The city of Kearney was also proclaimed as the Sandhill Crane Capital of the World. For 6 weeks, in late February to early April, more than 80% of the world's population of Sandhill Cranes converges on Nebraska's Platte River in order to rest and eat before resuming their northward migration.  This event attracts many birdwatchers to the area.

Of course, my husband and I were thrilled to finally arrive in Colorado and see our daughter and son-in law's new home!  We also visited with our son and daughter-in-law and our two grandsons. The week flew by before it was time to make the return car ride home. We wondered if the ride home would seem shorter, but we found 1,850 miles is a long ride both directions!  In my next post I'll show you more of what we did in Colorado and tell you my happy and exciting news...please stay tuned!