Featuring a really large Kraslice egg.
The town of Wilson is known as the Czech Capital of Kansas. Wikipedia cites the population at 781. My guess is that comparatively few among them have Czech ancestry. But I digress. The important thing is that this town has a big, fiberglass egg.
The 20-foot high, 8000-pound egg is decorated in the Kraslice style, making it the world’s largest Czech egg. This is a fact I proudly proclaim without having done much fact-checking. It feels like no one else would have done this. Bringing a child enhances the experience. The theater of the absurd nature of the thing is lost on children. For them, it fits into every weird, imaginative story they’ve ever told. The egg undoubtedly brings a certain fantastical spirit to the After Harvest Czech Festival, celebrating Czech-American culture in Wilson every July.
Located along the Union Pacific Railroad, Wilson was once a happening place. Evidence of this can be seen in the crumbling opera house, the rather more intact main street buildings, and the Midland Railroad Hotel.
My mother-in-law recently sent me a news article about a missed opportunity! Near Wilson is an abandoned Atlas F missile silo that is being converted into an adventure camping destination. Conversion of aging cold war missile sites into homes (of sorts) is a raging trend that I had completely missed. Airbnb yourself a campsite and you can head down into the old launch control center, and hike around on top. This silo is in the Smokey Hills region of Kansas, which is, generally speaking, interesting to look at. It’s also near Wilson State Park. I’ll report back once we have had a chance to visit.
Get out and feel some Dr. Strangelove.
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