Day 3: A Derailed Train, a Dump Station, and a Night by the Lake

The Crew
By Dublin & Chester · Oct 23, 2026 · 4 min read
#southwest trip #kansas #harvest hosts #dublin #chester

Day three of the Southwest loop, McCune, Kansas to Lakin, Kansas, 383 miles and 6 hours and 38 minutes on the road. A day of strange sights and practical chores, in that order.

Dublin's Report

We left the farm at McCune in the morning and pointed the truck west across Kansas. The first real job of the day was at the US-169 Junction Rest Area, where the humans used the RV dump. I report this plainly because it matters to anyone towing: the water there was winterized and off, so there was no flush or rinse water. The job got done anyway, with considerably less glamour than usual. Kansas does not apologize for winter, even in October.

The rest of the day was stops and sights in turn. We stopped at Sam's Club in Wichita and again at Sam's Club in Garden City, the kind of stops where the humans go in and come out with the truck happier. Between stops, Kansas put on a show. We passed a Cannonball Stage Line Highway marker, which Wayne read out loud like history was a personal friend. We saw wind turbines turning slow over the plains, and teal airplane fuselages riding on a train, which is a sentence I never expected to write. Airplanes, on a train, without wings, going somewhere on purpose.

The serious sight came beside US-400 in Finney County, where a string of auto-rack freight cars had derailed. Wayne said it was property damage only, with no sign of injuries, and we did not linger. It is a strange thing to see a train lying down where it should be standing up. Chester stared out the window for a long time after, which for Chester counts as deep thought.

We ended the day at Beymer Water Recreation Park in Lakin, a quiet lake park where we slept for the night. Wayne said it was ten dollars for the night, which is the kind of price that makes a senior dog feel the world still makes sense. Water, sky, and a place to park. Day three, done.

Dublin's road wisdom: When the water is off, do the job anyway and say nothing. The road rewards the uncomplaining.

Chester's Report

OKAY. Kansas, day three, and Kansas went WEIRD. First, the humans did the stinky dump job at a rest area where the water was OFF, like, winter already, no rinse, no flush, just vibes and a hose that did nothing. I supervised from a safe distance. A SAFE distance.

Then the sights started and they did not stop. A marker for something called the Cannonball Stage Line, which sounds like a ride I would absolutely take. Wind turbines, giant white pinwheels on sticks, turning and turning like they are stirring the sky. And then, TEAL AIRPLANES ON A TRAIN. Not flying. ON A TRAIN. Big teal tubes with no wings, just riding the rails like passengers. I have questions and nobody answered a single one.

Then the derailed train. Real derailed train cars beside the highway, tipped over in the dirt. Wayne said nobody was hurt and it was just property damage, and I believe him, but it still felt big and serious, and I got quiet for a while, which Dublin noticed and did not tease me about, which is how you know it mattered.

We finished at a lake park in Lakin called Beymer, and it was calm and pretty and ten dollars, and I ran around the grass until my legs said the day was over. Kansas, you are strange and I like you. Day three, done. I am going to dream about airplanes on trains now.