July 17

Holy cow, it gets hot here! Got going a little late, but all day traveling once underway through 100+ degree heat. Everyone seemed pretty happy to be in the controlled climate of the car, so we made tracks. Appreciated the visitors' centers in OK and KS as we crossed over both borders, and now we're avoiding that heat out there with a night in a motel in Pratt, KS. Folks are very nice here. Kids very appreciative of the pool and grownups grateful to have a chance to reorganize the car. Well, the pool's not such a bad thing for the grownups either. We've really liked the plains, but looking forward to mountains at the end of tomorrow. Shooting for camping in Colorado Springs, so it'll be a momentous kind of day.