At this moment the northern route walkers are in the Topeka area and preparing to head towards Lawrence. On Thursday, May 1 they will head northeast out of Lawrence and arrive on the outskirts of the KC metro area around 6:50pm (tentative) at The Legends shopping center near the Kansas Speedway.

On Friday, May 2 they will walk across Kansas City, KS and Kansas City, MO. Early risers may spot them along Minnesota Avenue after 8:00am. By 8:40 they will be at Huron Indian Cemetery in downtown Kansas City, KS for a brief obervance and sendoff from Kansas. They'll be spotted in the West Bottoms along Woodswether Road by about 9:30, and at 10:00 they will at the City Market for a welcome and proclamation by Mayor Funkhouser.

About 10:30 they will start heading south on Walnut, walking directly through downtown Kansas City, MO. They're expected to arrive at Liberty Memorial around 11:15, where they will break for lunch.

In the early afternoon on Friday they can be seen heading east on 31st Street, and by mid-afternoon they will be walking along 40 Hwy. Once they reach 40 Hwy & Blue Ridge Cutoff they will begin heading northeast, including streets such as Westport, 23rd, and Crysler, until they reach ther destination at River & Lexington near downtown Independence around 4:00. They will be welcomed by the mayor of Independence.

On Saturday they will be spotted heading east along Hwy 40. I do not yet know what time they are starting but based upon typical times they should be around 40 & Noland around 8:40, near Little Blue Parkway by 9:40, and reaching Blue Springs around 10:45. They will continue east on 40 to Grain Valley, where they will end the day in the early afternoon by walking south through downtown Grain Valley to their final destination in the Kansas City area. A pow-wow and much-needed rest will follow before they continue on east towards Washington on Sunday.

If you want to go out to see them, check the online route tracker to find out where they were last seen. The online route tracker is at http://livewalking.com/longestwalkkc/.

Want to be part of the walk? Check out http://www.kctourwalk.com/walk6.html for details on how you can walk with the group on Friday and/or Saturday.

Due to mechanical problems with their bus, the group is in need of help with shutting to their campsite Thursday evening and back again early on Friday morning. If you can assist either by driving or by loaning a bus or van, please contact me by leaving a comment on this post. Thanks!