Start: Carroll, IA
End: Starved Rock State Park, Utica, Illinois
I worked a half day at the client site trying to tie up loose ends and put things in motion until I will fly back out in 11 days, and shortly after lunchtime I busted out and drove route 30 east all the way across Iowa. It was a lot of corn fields – making me really want to see the upcoming movie, “Food Inc.” that supposedly decries the subsidies that have made corn the number one crop in America, and the number one ingredient in things that we don’t associate with corn.
I was feeling pretty good so when I crossed the Mississippi at Davenport I decided to temp the weather luck and pulled out my trusty Rand McNally – dog-eared, soiled, and otherwise abused – road atlas, and spotted a couple of camping logos in central Illinois near LaSalle. Right off the exit ramp I stopped at a gas-mart and got a six pack of miller light and a bag of ice: the key requirements for any camping expedition. I also wanted to make sure the quart carton of chocolate milk in my cooler was going to be valid for breakfast on Thursday.
Nice thing about camping during the week – all the spots in the park are reserved for the weekend, but I had plenty of choices for nice wooded sites away from RV’s and other campers. I built a fire and got to the important task of relaxing. I’m not sure what it is with raccoons this year, but after it got dark, one of the bastards had the nerve to come into my site and chirp at me. I got a flaming stick and chased him off, and was glad I have over-packed on firewood and made a mighty blaze by which I could watch the leopard toads (my guess at taxonomy) try to even the score against the many many many bugs. I left the radio on in the beast and listened to the Chicago White Sox play the Los Angeles Dodgers, or rather the banter between the Chicago hosts as they insulted each other and talked about many things OTHER than the game at hand.
Finally I stoked the fire (safely that I can monitor from my tent window) and made for sleep. Even as I started typing this post, the bastard raccoon was back and he managed to open and spill my cooler! Clad in boxer shorts and armed with a brown business lace-up (of substantial size) and a Maglight, I chased the bastard off and found that he didn’t spill my quart carton of chocolate milk (with substantial relief). I conceded the cooler to the passenger seat of a sealed vehicle and made for sleep. Thursday I plan to cannonball and try to make it back to my own sweet sweet bed and likely an overgrown lawn and overstuffed mailbox.
Pics: a) menacing skies over Carroll; b) the homestead at Starved Rock; c) not starving at Miller Time; d) the old set camera (at a tilt) and timer and run game
End: Starved Rock State Park, Utica, Illinois
I worked a half day at the client site trying to tie up loose ends and put things in motion until I will fly back out in 11 days, and shortly after lunchtime I busted out and drove route 30 east all the way across Iowa. It was a lot of corn fields – making me really want to see the upcoming movie, “Food Inc.” that supposedly decries the subsidies that have made corn the number one crop in America, and the number one ingredient in things that we don’t associate with corn.
I was feeling pretty good so when I crossed the Mississippi at Davenport I decided to temp the weather luck and pulled out my trusty Rand McNally – dog-eared, soiled, and otherwise abused – road atlas, and spotted a couple of camping logos in central Illinois near LaSalle. Right off the exit ramp I stopped at a gas-mart and got a six pack of miller light and a bag of ice: the key requirements for any camping expedition. I also wanted to make sure the quart carton of chocolate milk in my cooler was going to be valid for breakfast on Thursday.
Nice thing about camping during the week – all the spots in the park are reserved for the weekend, but I had plenty of choices for nice wooded sites away from RV’s and other campers. I built a fire and got to the important task of relaxing. I’m not sure what it is with raccoons this year, but after it got dark, one of the bastards had the nerve to come into my site and chirp at me. I got a flaming stick and chased him off, and was glad I have over-packed on firewood and made a mighty blaze by which I could watch the leopard toads (my guess at taxonomy) try to even the score against the many many many bugs. I left the radio on in the beast and listened to the Chicago White Sox play the Los Angeles Dodgers, or rather the banter between the Chicago hosts as they insulted each other and talked about many things OTHER than the game at hand.
Finally I stoked the fire (safely that I can monitor from my tent window) and made for sleep. Even as I started typing this post, the bastard raccoon was back and he managed to open and spill my cooler! Clad in boxer shorts and armed with a brown business lace-up (of substantial size) and a Maglight, I chased the bastard off and found that he didn’t spill my quart carton of chocolate milk (with substantial relief). I conceded the cooler to the passenger seat of a sealed vehicle and made for sleep. Thursday I plan to cannonball and try to make it back to my own sweet sweet bed and likely an overgrown lawn and overstuffed mailbox.
Pics: a) menacing skies over Carroll; b) the homestead at Starved Rock; c) not starving at Miller Time; d) the old set camera (at a tilt) and timer and run game
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Miles in Carroll County: 188
Day Miles: 338
Trip Miles: 2,602
Towns: IA – Glidden, Grand Junction, Ames, Cedar Rapids, Mount Vernon, DeWitt, Davenport; IL – Utica
Cost to camp for 24 hrs with 42’ RV, Electric hookup and satellite dish, family of four, using all the camp amenities: $25.00
Cost to camp in a tent for ten hours: $25.00
Hours in a week the camp store is open: 13 (Fri 3-7, Sat 10-7)
White Sox record home runs in a game: 7
Home runs hit 6/25: 6
Fourth inning guest in the press box: John Grunsfeld
Number of space missions: 5
4 comments:
Why are you too scared to take a picture of this racoon? Makes me think you're just making it up.
I forgot to take a picture of him before i boxed him up and mailed him to you.
Caleb you can roast him in your slow cooker.
I bet the racoon beat him up and took the camera.
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