Instead of staying overnight in German Hills, Drove to the town of METAMORA, where McDonalds invited me to stay. At daybreak, grabbed a Sausage and Coffee from McD...Then walked Highway 89 toward the town of WASHBURN.
Please say HELLO to HANNAH, with whom I had a lengthy conversation about "travel", "walking" and the LYMPHATIC SYSTEM.
HANNAH commanded the "Dessert" station at MICHAEL's Italian Restaurant.
CASEY's Convenience Stores are found in nearly every mid-western town. Have often parked at CASEY's while out walking. Feels better when I know SPIA-1 is watched over while I'm out walking for hours on end.
Illinois is flat in much of the State. Near the ILLINOIS River, however, the usual hills return.
The ILLINOIS River flows through downtown CHICAGO, across the State of ILLINOIS and eventually joins the MISSISSIPPI River.
This allows us to cruise our water craft (boat) from down town CHICAGO, traveling West and South on the Illinois River to the MISSISSIPPI RIVER; thence to NEW ORLEANS.
From NEW ORLEANS, our boat can travel the Inland Waterway - which actually starts in West Texas - (The Inland Waterway stays well INLAND from open Ocean waters except for short distances across Ocean facing Bays and Inlets) East across Florida; thence up the East Coast of the United States all the way to the ST. LAWRENCE RIVER (in CANADA) entrance from the Atlantic Ocean;
Our boat can then swim the length of the St Lawrence River into and across the Great Lakes back to CHICAGO, circumnavigating the Eastern United States.
Interesting enough, there is a second route for our boat.
Arriving at the entrance to New York Harbor, she can enter the HUDSON RIVER, travel up the river to the
ERIE CANAL. The ERIE CANAL can be navigated from the HUDSON RIVER to LAKE ERIE. A short cruise takes our water craft back to CHICAGO.
Passing through the ERIE CANAL requires our boat crew to open and close a number of "locks" which when filled with water, lifts our boat from lock to lock finally reaching LAKE ERIE, having climbed from the HUDSON RIVER to the elevation of LAKE ERIE.
A complex Spray Machine farmers use on their field crops.
A HOPPER FEEDER.
SEED is placed in the HOPPER, towed to the field to be planted. A couple days ago, we chatted with PAUL, who was transferring SOY BEAN Seed from his HOPPER to his "PLANTER."
MEMORIES...
* * * * * * * * * *
As our day progressed, we traveled through small villages with NO Internet Signal. To keep the blog updates coming, I kept driving, stopping to check Internet signal...eventually arriving at the City of OTTAWA, Illinois, a couple miles short of I-80 on Illinois Highway 23. Here, we found PIZZA HUT, where we are again being treated as Royalty, creating our update and perhaps staying over night.
Our driving passed some 20 miles through a major Illinois State Park: STARVING ROCK STATE PARK...which is mountainess, beautiful, taking advantage of the ILLINOIS RIVER snaking toward the MISSISSIPPI River.
Tomorrow morning will drive SPIA-1 back into STARVING ROCK STATE PARK, walk our 20 miles and share that which we find.
Our second walk of the day was East from the town of WASHBURN, Illinois.
Most difficult part of walking...saying GOOD BYE...
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