Big Springs

Big Springs is a small town with a rich history going back to the mid-nineteenth century. When we visited, we saw a water tower with worn lettering, a quarry, a Methodist church, and a few small businesses.

Like many small towns in Kansas, Big Springs has seen better days. A few charming older homes remain, along with some that aren't in quite such good shape. We enjoyed visiting the peaceful, well-kept cemetery a few miles out of town.

Worden

Worden is a small town in Douglas County. The main things we saw here were a crossroads, the Worden Ag Center (an old, wooden building with peeling paint), the Worden United Methodist Church, and Marion Springs Elementary, which was apparently closed in 2011.

Not much going on here except for the church, which was in really nice condition.

Baldwin City

We decided to go on the Kaw Valley Farm Tour in Douglas County, so we dressed up warmly (though, as it turns out, not quite warmly enough) and headed out!

First stop: Vesecky Family Farms outside of Baldwin City. They had turkeys, goats, rides on a bucket train, 100-year-old oak trees, and breakfast served by a few girls who were raising money to go to the national 4-H Congress (their special project was woodworking). The home was an old stone house, originally built in 1866, then added onto in 1870, 1885, and 1980.

After the Veseckys', we left Baldwin for a while, but came back at the end of the morning so we could visit  Ad Astra Alpacas, where we saw llamas and an older lady spinning their wool.

Finally, we grabbed lunch at El Patron in downtown Baldwin City. The food was pretty good, and the downtown is lovely, with historic buildings, cute shops and restaurants, and the campus of Baker University.

On the way out of town, we stopped at Jitters for coffee to fortify us through the afternoon ahead.