In one very long day, I hit the asphalt and made the rounds of central Kansas by car.

What is often viewed as classic "fly-over" country to the uninformed cross-country airline passenger, is, in certain locales on the ground, a powerful mix of political commentary, independence, libertarianism, prosperity, creativity, good humor and stark beauty.

I had expected a day of blue skies, brutal heat and humidity, but a strong cold front pushed through, leaving relatively cool temperatures and an odd layer of greenish cloud cover throughout the day. At dawn I ventured out into the brick streets of Pratt, before continuing through Greensburg (site of a devastating tornado which destroyed 95% of the town on May 4, 2007) on US400 and on to the small town of Mullinville, where I met the noted social and political commentator/sculptor/iconoclast Myron T. Liggett.

From Mullinville, I headed northeast to the attractive town of Great Bend before continuing on to Wilson, "the Czech Capital of Kansas," with its fine post rock limestone structures and a recently abandoned group of grain elevators that could only have been designed by Rube Goldberg or a set designer from a Harry Potter film. Toward the end of the day, I moved on to Lucas, home of Civil War veteran S. P. Dinsmoor's "Garden of Eden" cabin and remarkable folk art sculptures, one of the world's great folk art environments.