Gone, Way Long Gone: Does Moines to Indianapolis

We allowed ourselves a casual morning over coffee, and left the West Des Moines KOA at 9:00am.

We continued on our way home through the lovely landscape of Iowa, watching the rolling hills gradually flatten out as we headed east. We zipped past more wind farms. We witnessed the change of seasons in the vibrant purple and gold fall wildflowers.

We learned interesting facts at the rest stops. Who knew about the Amana Colonies? Rooted in Germany, the seven communities flourished communally for over 90 years. Alas, we didn't take time to visit and enjoy the food, beer, wine, and quality handcrafts for which they are known. We also discovered that John Wayne and Herbert Hoover were both born in Iowa.

We crossed the mighty Mississippi River.

At 1:00pm we crossed into Illinois, Land of Lincoln, birthplace of me!

Mid-afternoon we took a little detour to visit briefly with my cousin, Beth, and her husband, Mike, on their farm in the heart of Illinois. They have a lovely rural homeplace in the midst of many cornfields, not far from the conveniences of the city of Peoria.

After chatting for about an hour and a half, we continued on past Peoria, then Eureka, birthplace of former president Ronald Reagan. We stopped for supper at a Panda Express in Champaign - Urbana (home of the University of Illinois). We were looking for something freshly prepared, difficult to find in the fast-food, take-out world of the interstate. This fit the bill. I ate grilled chicken and a pile of "super" greens.

Finally, at 10:00pm we found ourselves rounding Indianapolis, Indiana. We pulled into the Indianapolis KOA Holiday campground at 10:15pm, ready for a good night's sleep.