Month: August 2026

Atlas Ad Astra:- decommissioned missile silo

We hopped from Big Brutus to an overnight stay with power available at a dairy farm just outside Hutchinson, Kansas, a lovely place with lots of dairy and meat products for sale.

We just had to include the picture of us stopped here……it’s just so…..Kansas…!!! Don’t you think….!!!

It was a lovely quiet spot…..well….farm quiet…..just animal noise…no traffic noise….

A peaceful overnight stop….with 50 amp power (keeps the A/C running) and farm fresh products (meat, dairy and honey)available for purchase.

We also met the neighbours….LOL…lovely couple came and knocked on our door….fellow Airstreamers dropped in to say hello and brought us cookies….😋

I was very pleased with myself for not planning too far ahead on this part of the trip……and having started with no great expectations of Kansas….Boondockers Welcome threw up another intriguing spot just outside Wilson, Kansas. The Atlas Ad Astra missile silo. Camping available on site and tours of the decommissioned missile silo……well…..that sounds like a spot….!!!

The weather was still a bit too warm to leave the fuzzball without A/C…so I booked a campsite at an RV campground in the nearby town of Wilson (and that’s a whole ‘nother story..stay tuned..!!!) and we drove out to the missile silo.

The last part of the road was like something from and apocalyptic movie set…..

We were glad to not have the trailer behind us…(it was rough…!!!)

So….first thing next morning…bright and early we met up with Matt….Under the metal hat is the emergency exit, the underside of which you’ll see later. On the right is the main entrance and the lower left is the main missile doors, once again photos of the underside later.

This exceptional human has spent the last ten years restoring and repurposing this incredible piece of American history purchased from the U.S Government. His story is as fascinating as the history of the silo itself, a real project of passion.

There were 12 Atlas missile silos built in Kansas in the late 1950’s, opened in the 1960’s during the cold war in response to fear of nuclear attacks. There is a comprehensive explanation of the history on Matts website …click here. Incoming missiles arrived with around 40 minutes warning, it took 30 mins to raise the missile and launch.

The construction of these things was of such high quality that, other than having been stripped out when they were decommissioned, the structures themselves show very little deterioration considering how old they are.

Below left is the top of the escape hatch, and on the right the back up radio mast. Radio communication to the silos was essential to maintain, especially after an attack, so should the main antenna be destroyed the back up would rise out of the ground once it was safe to re-establish contact.

As you descend into the chambers it’s striking how fresh the air is…..and how roomy it feels……tho maybe that’s only cos we knew we were not going to have to stay there for an indefinite time…..

Below left, doors were shaped to dissipate the force of the blast, should it ever arrive.

It’s surprisingly light and bright…….and the blast resistant doors are huge and heavy…….

This level has been converted into a complete living space…and beautifully done, actually available as an Air BnB….you can book this and stay here….and you would not be slumming….!!!

The middle picture and the one on the right show the bottom of the escape hatch as built in the original silo.

The original control panel is still in situ…..but with all the electronics stripped out by the government….Matts future plans include revamping this panel with modern screens and controls.

In order to weather the anticipated blast….all the floors in the silo are suspended on springs inside the main’tube’of the construction and not connected to the walls…..

The connecting tunnels lead you through to the other half of the silo….this one has been completely stripped…allowing you to see the vastness of the structure….and a view of the underside of the launch doors. You can see the springs on the walls where the structure for raising the missile was attached.

The bottom of this shaft has flooded over the years as water has seeped in through the concrete, he estimated the water at 70′-90′ deep…..you can see the humidity in this section….Matt demonstrated the point by emptying the humidifier tray and tossing the water down into the dark….

As we made our way back out…Matt suggested that I try closing the door ….just to see how powerfully heavy….and expertly engineered it is….Still working perfectly 65 years later.

We don’t usually do the selfies….but he offered to do a pic for us….it’s not everyday you find yourself deep underground in a cold war missile silo.

Back outside again….the ventilation shaft air intake bottom left, it could be closed in the event of an attack……the outside of the launch doors…..and the old base of the transmission tower top right ….

Matts grand plans are to turn this place into an educational centre and include constructing proper full service RV sites…. an incredibly beautiful spot with terrific views of the surrounding landscape.

We also got the explanation for the condition of the road in. It’s the original road built by the military way back when the installation was being constructed……The municipalities response to being asked to tend the road (to support this historical landmark and local tourist attraction) was to erect the sign stating that the road was not maintained…..!!!

Even if you are not in the area….this is a visit that is well worth the price of admission….and if you are looking for a cause to support…..consider making a donation.

Extra Pix

When ‘Big’ just seems inadequate ….Big Brutus

Thoroughly satisfied with the trip to Crystal Bridges….now we had completed any ‘plans’ that had been made for 2026. Next up…the plan was a ‘where the wind blows’ travelling vaguely in the direction of home.

It was hot enough now (in July after all) that I needed to find spots with power to run the AC for the comfort of the now elderly small fluffy ginger guy who travels with us. I was searching for either a Boondockers Welcome or a campground. I have to say I did not have high hopes for Kansas…….boy was I in for some surprises.

What I found in the South east corner of Kansas was Big Brutus. What the heck is that ? you ask……well….!!!!

Big Brutus was the largest electric shovel ever made and was used in the strip mining industry in Kentucky between 1963 and 1972. This gargantuan piece of machinery has been partly restored and now serves as the major player in a museum site of mining equipment. It’s all volunteer run…and it also has a little beauty of a full service campground on the grounds.

We were there all by ourselves….!!!

With a front row view of Big Brutus himself and difficult to demonstrate the scale of this monster…..but I will try…!!!

The museum itself has a collection of historical documents and photographs of the mining operations, the equipment and people involved in the strip mining operations that were once the industry of this area, as well as the whole story of Big Brutus himself.

Outside in the grounds …..you can actually climb up into the belly of the beast…..I had my matching bright orange t-shirt on to make me easier to spot….!!!Yes I am in this picture.

Its a winding path of catwalks to get up under the main body…….

…then up some steel ladders to look around the inside….

It’s also incredibly hot inside…even with none of the actual machinery working….and the noise must have been off the charts

The shee scale of this thing is almost unimaginable….even as you are standing inside it. Here is my arm with the ginormous cables.

You can climb inside the cab and sit in the drivers seat……(the cab actually had an a/c unit running in it…!!!)

The shovel itself could move 80 cubic yards of material in one scoop. They had pictures in the museum of a bulldozer parked inside the shovel…!!!

An impressive thing no doubt…..and you can see all the places this thick thick steel warped and buckled doing its job…..with lots of additional reinforcing strips welded on………and a little bit of mother nature to illustrate the point…..

There are many other large pieces of earth moving equipment that have found a resting place on this site……this one……which originally was used to dredge the Mississippi.

The noise, vibration and heat sitting so close to these engines must have been almost unbearable, and all for 10c/hour.

Sometimes, there are people who just cant resist playing with the big toys…..LOL

Who would have though that all this old mining equipment could be so fascinating….but it was

The other big plus….when the museum closed…and they locked the gate….we were the only trailer in there……..it was sooooo quiet……just us and a fully illuminated Big Brutus.

When we pulled out to head for th next stop…..we just had to pose the trailer with good old Brutus……!!!

Big Brutus was a great find….we highly recommend a visit to this little gem of a spot.

Extra Pix

Crystal Bridges day 2, The Bachman-Wilson House

Returning for a second day at Crystal Bridges was not any kind of chore. The mission on this day was to visit the Bachman-Wilson house, a Frank Lloyd Wright designed house which had been dismantled, transported and re-assembled on the site.

When we visited in 2024, this had not been available because in the few days before we visited a series of tornadoes had devasted the grounds leaving them closed to public access.

This time we were able to take the time to visit both the house…and walk some of the art trails around the grounds which cover 134 acres of native Ozark forest.

The house was essentially rescued from its original site where it had suffered repeated damage from flooding.

As with most of the Frank Lloyd Wright houses we have visited, there is no photography allowed inside….so if you want to see the interior…..it’s worth the visit…..

From the house, we followed the Art Trail….partly to get around to the other side of the house…but also to wander along the collection of outdoor art/sculptures in the gardens.

This next picture is of a ‘wall’ of small round mirrors….if you look closely at the picture you can see it. It’s a fascinating thing in person.

The plaque by this one invites you to sit with the people on the benches….so of course I had to…..

….and the path brings you around to the front of the Bachman-Wilson House…..

As we wandered further around……this piece is a collection of stainless steel balls floating free in this part of the creek…..they move around…and they sound a bit like wind chimes as they bump each other in the breeze.

It was also very reminiscent of the shimmer balls at the Chicago Botanics…..

This beast is called ‘Maman’…the ginormous spider has a basket holding eggs under her abdomen….it’s eerily beautiful…..and extremely creepy at the same time…..

There are scatterings of bronze animal sculptures by various artists…..

This ‘turret’ is James Turrels ‘The way of color’ A sculptural piece with a skylight to view the heavens …and a bench to sit and observe. While we were there a family came in, sat around on the bench and started singing hymns….!!!

Mother nature added a little beauty of her own as we wandered down to some huge crystal slabs embedded in a rock wall.

As we made our way back to the building we found this Keith Haring piece, which is part of the Crystal Bridges permanent collection

…and to Scotts delight, we also found the car, which is featured in the advertising for the 3D exhibit of Keith Harings work….but the car itself is in a completely different location in the building….!!

On our way back out of the building we noticed this rather confusing sign…LOL

Rather than taking the shuttle bus back to the parking garage…we opted to wander back through the sculptural gardens. These giant flowers were produced by the same artist that made the coloured light balls inside the gallery. Yayoi Kusama.

…and just before you get all the way back to the parking….is this Fly’s Eye Dome by R Buckminster Fuller…..he’s the guy who designed the geodesic biodome in Montreal and inspired the Spaceship Earth Dome at EPCOT in Disneyworld Florida.

Extra Pix