April 21, 2022.
We left Bass Pro at 8am…Yes, Ann Marie was rousing the troops early today! (Oh, btw, the title of this post is meant as an endearing statement)
Since Bigfoot was in the Army, and Elkhorn was in the Navy, both are leaders, both have great ideas, but there can be only ONE leader in a pack. SO, we got together in Survivor TV show style (without the tiki lamps) and decided Bigfoot would lead one day, and Elkhorn would lead the next (please remember this is my story, don’t try to verify this with the pack).
Yesterday was Bigfoot’s day to lead the convoy, we took a mix of interstate and state hwys and followed the Mississippi river north from LeClaire, IA up to Hanover and Galena. We stopped at the American Pickers store in LeClaire, went to the Buffalo Bill museum and toured the USS Lone Star, a wooden, paddlewheel steam-powered towboat that is housed in a special pier.
As we traveled north, we crossed the river back into Illinois and stopped at Lock and Dam#13 in Fulton, Il. The Mississippi was high and there were no barges going through at the time. But we did see a bald eagle and about a million ducks and geese. I thought there must be a Chinese restaurant nearby with all the water fowl around.
In Galena, we stopped at the United States 18th President of house. An awesome brick house on top of hill that was given to him by the town as a tribute for his accomplishments. Ya know who it is ? Yep, General Ulysses S. Grant.
We had a beautiful drive on a nice 2 laner thru rural America. It is absolutely amazing that all this land can still be cultivated after generations and generations of farming. We stopped for the night in the parking lot of Isle of Capri Casino in Waterloo.
Tomorrow, 22 April, we are heading to Isanti, MN to visit Troy and Karen for a few days. But enroute, we are making a special stop at an American institution. A place so distinctive that ALL Americans know it and are gravitated to it. What you say? What, and where is such a place? Well stay turned.
Pictures to follow…..