Day 3:  Kearney, NE, to Casper, WY.  Our day began cold (46°), windy, and wet in Kearney, Nebraska (pronounced "carnie"). Eager to track down our first letterbox of the trip, we followed clues to a rest area off I-80 near Brady, NE. As you can see, Ken located the Big Truck letterbox and we enjoyed a half-mile walk in misting rain to track down this treasure.

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Fattening up for slaughter

Along one edge of each pen was a concrete feed trough, which the cattle accessed by reaching their heads through the fence. A feed truck drove up to large piles of feed, where a front end loader filled the truck's hopper with what must be a very rich blend of feed. All the cattle, both male and female, were unnaturally bulked up.

According to the information we found, cattle have to reach an "entry-level weight" (usually 650 pounds) before being taken to a feedlot. In the 3-4 months they spend at the feedlot before being sent to slaughter they may gain an additional 400 pounds. These poor cows were quite a sad sight and had no where to lie down except in the muddy, manure-filled lots. It smelled exactly how you would imagine and worse! Throughout the day, we came across several more of these huge operations.  If I weren't already a vegetarian, this experience would have converted me.

Coal-hearted transport

Driving through the little town of Bridgeport, NE, we were surprised to see a farm equipment graveyard, known locally as Bridgport Tractor Parts. As we were marvelling over how neat the yard was compared to auto cemetaries we've seen, we suddenly noticed a group of llamas in residence. We're not sure if they're carry parts or keep the grass trimmed, but we found the entire scene fascinating.