"Can you come to Kissimmee in Kankakee?" Maybe there's a song there somewhere?
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| West Virginia state Capitol in Charleston on the banks of the Kanawha River (source) |
Kankakee River
The Holston and the French Broad Rivers converge in Knoxville to form the Tennessee River. I suppose those who named the rivers back in the early days of the American conquest of itself (or was it self discovery?) could have very well named the river the Knox or the Knoxville River but they didn't. This naming would have worked out for me in context of my A to Z Challenge K post, but that foresight wasn't there. Thankfully so I might add.
Still, there are plenty of "K" rivers from which to choose using the criteria of rivers that I've crossed, seen, or had some affect on me in a personal way. There is the delightful sounding Kissimmee River in Florida, a river that I've crossed over a few times. Or I might add the equally musical sounding Kalamazoo River in Michigan. I don't have a girl in Kalamazoo, but I've crossed the river a few times and who doesn't like saying "Kalamazoo"? Makes one want to sing a song.
The Kansas River--also known as the Kaw River (that's two "K" names for one river!)--is one that I've crossed over a number of times but barely noticed if at all. Personally I'm glad that the name Kansas River has been the preferred title over Kaw River. The latter makes me think of a crow's call which is harsh and not particular romantic sounding. Maybe Kansas doesn't sound all that exotic either, but at least it's a more than one syllable name.
A good choice for me might have been the Kanawha River in West Virginia. I've crisscrossed over that river many times while traveling through West Virginia and it is a very scenic river. One particularly memorable view of the river is the one I've seen in Charleston, WV, the state capital and the birthplace of my father. I don't exactly recall why he was born in Charleston and since his parents apparently returned to their hometown of Clarksburg fairly quickly, my father didn't have any great attachment to the city. But it's in Kanawha County on the banks of the Kanawha River.
However my choice for "K" is the Kankakee River in Indiana and Illinois. For one thing the name has 3 K's--what a tribute to the letter K! This river begins in Indiana and passes through the area of Indiana where I lived back in the 1960s. After entering Illinois the river passes through Kankakee County passing the city of Kankakee until it eventually joins the Des Plaines River to become the Illinois River.
I hope that wasn't too much of an overdose of Ks for you. I was O K with it.
Are you familiar with any of these K rivers? Can you think of any songs that mention some of these K names? Is there any state in the U.S. that you think of as being particularly boring?
A good portion of Illinois is dead boring. We used to drive up along I-57 to Chicago, and there ain't a whole lot there.
ReplyDeleteI'm familiar with the Kankakee River, though I haven't spent any time there. Mostly just driving over it on I-57. Or maybe that was another river...
John H, I like Illinois. I used to think it was boring until we started playing so many of the towns. I've got a thing about farms too. I'm pretty sure I-57 crosses the KKK River.
DeleteLee
I don't know the river Kankakee, or the song with the river, just the song with the city Kankakee. City of New Orleans.
ReplyDeleteI'm on the west coast, we have the Klamath River we share with California. Boring states? To drive through? Any of the ones in the middle with nothing but flat! Parts of Nevada are boring too. Boring as to nothing to do there, that's a different list.
Lisa, good catch on the "City of New Orleans" song mention. I like road travel so much that all of the land has something to interest me. But sometimes I do have to nap if I'm not driving.
DeleteLee
Another river I haven't heard of, This is an education.
ReplyDeleteYvonne.
Yvonne, there are a lot of rivers that neither of us have heard of. The world has a lot of rivers.
DeleteLee
I had never heard of this river. In fact as I have gone through your posts, I have realised I know very little about rivers. Thank you for sharing with us luv lu x
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Lu, I've learned a lot more about rivers than I knew before. That's something I like about A to Z.
DeleteLee
I've heard of Kankakee but have never seen it. I've heard the name Kalamazoo and Kissimmee but I think the context was possibly a town name not a river.
ReplyDeleteLisa, a lot of rivers share their names with other locales and landmarks.
DeleteLee
I didn't know there was a river, but I knew someone from Kalamazoo. Doesn't the train they call The City of New Orleans pull out a Kankakee? Love that song! The Kanawha river looks so peaceful, flowing past the Charleston state Capitol...
ReplyDeleteDiedre, I always have enjoyed the drive through Charleston. It's a scenic city from the highway. I think I went there with my parents at least once.
DeleteLee
Didn't know your father was from West Virgina, spent a few years there and met some great people there.
ReplyDeleteMike, both my parents are from WV. It almost feels like my home state in many ways because I spent a lot of time there in my earliest years.
DeleteLee
When I started reading about rivers starting with K, I immediately thought of the Kancamagus in New Hampshire but sadly that's the name of the "scenic byway" and not the river that runs along it. Too bad - it's a beautiful river with lots of wonderful swimming spots. I've had some fun there. Weekends In Maine
ReplyDeleteMaine, it is an earcatching name.
DeleteLee
Thanks for sharing a great article.
ReplyDeleteYou are providing wonderful information, it is very useful to us.
Keep posting like this informative articles.
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Vishnu, thanks for stopping by.
DeleteLee
I haven't traveled enough to know if a state is boring or not. Kankakee is a fun word to say.
ReplyDeleteJanet’s Smiles
Janet, to be boredom is a perception that is a personal thing. I can usually find something of interest anywhere. Discomfort is what annoys me most.
DeleteLee
I enjoyed this
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting.
DeleteLee
Lee,
ReplyDeleteI do know some of these "K" rivers. I'm sure when my 9th grade class took the trip to the WV state capital in 1977, we crossed or drove along the Kanawha River. I remember seeing the Kissimmee River when we traveled to Florida in 2013. The other rivers mentioned I've heard of but I'm not sure if I've seen any of them. I haven't done a lot of travel so I can't think of a boring state from personal experience but I'd say passing through parts of any state can be, especially those long stretch of dessert highways out west that seem to go on forever. That I might find boring. Happy A2Zing, my friend!
Kiss Me Cat Looney Tunes A-Z Art Sketch
I think of states like the Dakotes, Iowa, Nebraska, and Wyoming as being boring, though their big cities might be much different. Probably all states have boring stretches.
ReplyDeleteI like the K rivers you came up with and the photo looks quite idyllic for a city. My dad would sing a song but just the first line.."I've Got a Girl in Kalamazoo." I would raise my eyes up into the air and he would chuckle. Maybe Wisconsin would be a bit boring....like Saskatchewan.
ReplyDeleteLike Weekends in Maine we enjoyed the rivers and creeks near the Kancamagus Highway...well my husband not so much as I kept wanting him to stop so I could photograph the frozen water formations.
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