Searching for the Tree in the Middle of the Road

Linda and I stopped at the Redwood Steakhouse in Anita to try their onion rings. I gave the door a little tug to see if they were open yet. A man came out and explained that it would be another hour before they'd be open. With an hour to kill, I figured Linda and I could take in another area sight. I asked about Albert the Bull and he confirmed that he could be found in Audubon and that it would be about twenty to thirty minutes each way. He then said, "If you're interested in seeing Albert, you ought to see the Tree in the Middle of the Road. It's just out north of town."

I asked for directions and got an idea of where this tree would be found. In the course of the description, I thought I heard a route from the west side of town and then another from the east side of town. Hmmm... "There'll be signs to help you along." I thanked him and let him go about his business of getting things ready for us to return for onion rings.

When I got back to the car and explained the idea to Linda, she was on board but seemed a bit less intrigued than me by the idea of going to see Albert much less this tree.

We rolled out of the east side of town and turned north, looking for signs or even opportunities to turn. There was only one and it was only about a quarter mile before the interstate. The man at the Redwood wasn't sure if it would be north or south the the interstate so that still seemed possible.

Gravel roads seem to be part of our weekend outings and this filled the bill. As we rose and fell with the hills, we came to a T-intersection. Fortunately, a local man was out on his four-wheeler driving down into the ditches and shooting into the air on the other side. We came to a stop and he shut down his ride.

"Is this the way to the Tree in the Middle of the Road."

"I think so... turn right and then left at the next turn... or the next one. It's about two miles from there."

We thanked him, feeling confident that we were on the right path. When the first turn came, we took it and drove two or three miles and could see the better part of the next mile from a hilltop. Nothing looking like a tree in the middle of the road.

We turned back to try the second turn. Like the first, it didn't bear fruit either. I was beginning to wonder if this was a town practical joke; when people with out of county plates ask for directions or points of interest, point them out north of town to find some tree in the middle of the road. Good one...

We did go ahead and found Albert and returned to the Redwood for our onion rings. While in the parking lot, the man recognized us and stopped by to ask if we'd found everything alright. We said we'd found Albert but not the tree. He did a nice job of concealing any amusement and said that the signs were small... we must have just missed them.

After enjoying our onion rings, we set out for home. As we were approaching the interstate, we thought we'd give it one more try. This time, we took a turn we hadn't yet. We rolled over the hills and, after cresting one, could see foliage that certainly could be a tree and could be in the middle of our road. When we cleared the next hill, there is was! Quite a sight... possibly even worth the search. It's probably like geocaching; the pleasure is in the successful search, not the value of what you found. Click here to see the tree or go to 41°30'15.63"N latitude, 94°50'5.78"W longitude, or 710th and Akron. That's where we found it.