Sunday, November 30, 2008

Runner finds undiscovered Oregon Trail remnant

When I started Marathon Pundit, I had envisioned that twenty percent of my posts would be dedicated to running.

It didn't turn out that way. But wait, I have a rare running post for you.

Doug Mauck of Topeka, Kansas, who probably runs in the same three or four locations every week, has come across a previously undiscovered remnant of the Oregon Trail. He saw something on the ground in the town of Willard that reminded him of something in Kansas' capital city.

Runners are good at finding stuff like this...Although my greatest find was a lowly $20 bill.

From the Topeka Capital-Journal:

"I immediately saw that the Willard (trace of the Oregon) trail was exactly like what I was seeing at MacLennan Park," Mauck said, referring to the park around much of Cedar Crest, the governor's mansion.

Mauck said he first spotted traces of the Oregon Trail when he was jogging at MacLennan Park and noticed a trail.

He linked the Oregon Trail to MacLennan Park when he saw the traces of the trail at the Green Memorial Wildlife Area on N.W. Douglas Road near N.W. 17th near Willard in northwest Shawnee County.

In Topeka, the ruts were about 100 yards south of Cedar Crest and in the adjoining MacLennan Park, which has 224 acres, according to the Kansas Trails Council.

Trail ruts, even when they are marked by signs, are very subtle. They don't just jump out at you. Which makes Mauck's discovery quite amazing.

Related post:

My Kansas Kronikles: Wagon ruts

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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

That's not bad. In Chicago You'd
usually find car parts.