We started the last day just outside Mesa Verde with a long way to go. Kansas City was the goal, the whole southwest corner of Colorado and everything after it standing between us and there. Alex still had Iowa waiting once he dropped me off. One more day.
There is not much to say about the driving itself. We stopped for fuel, for food, for the bathroom, and that was it. No overlooks, no detours, nothing to stretch the day out. The canyon country fell away behind us and the land slowly turned back into what I grew up with, flat and open and familiar. After a week of red rock and high desert it was strange to watch the middle of the country come back.
The one thing that broke up the day came late at night. The state patrol had the highway shut down in both directions and were funneling everyone off into a rest stop to check vehicles. We pulled in like everyone else and waited our turn.
When they got to us they looked the car over and asked what we had in it. The honest answer was everything. It was packed full, Alex’s whole college life fit in around our camping gear, every gap filled. They told us they wanted it all pulled out. We said that was fine, but if they took it all out they could put it all back exactly the way they found it. They thought about that, decided against it, and waved us through.
We did not think much of it at the time, just an odd end to a long day. A couple of days later we found out the checkpoint was part of a nationwide manhunt. They had shut the highway down looking for one man.
We rolled into Kansas City exhausted, from the day and from the whole week that led to it. It was good to be home. And it was sad, because the trip was over.
The time-lapse video below covers day six of the trip.
