On the Road Again

Through the mountains

Ruthie and I are off to explore the western states in search of vistas first viewed by Lewis and Clark. This is the longest trip I've attempted to date. I'm grateful for Ruthie's help and companionship, especially help driving. She's also gotten very quick with the set up and take down. And she claims to actually enjoy washing dishes. I can't say I love to cook, but it's more than a fair trade in my book.

Ruthie at the wheel

We've had two hard days of driving to arrive in Lisbon, Iowa. We spent the first day driving across the Blue Ridge instead of along it as we did to Canada. In several places we actually went through the Blue Ridge through long, tile-lined tunnels. My new RV GPS thoughtfully tells me to turn off my propane (not that it is ever on) as I'm barreling down on the tunnel entrance at 60 mph surrounded by trucks, but I appreciate the reminder. We arrived outside Dayton, OH near dark and headed out early the next day to pass through Indiana and Illinois on our way to Iowa. Our goal was the home of Barb Dunn Swanson. Barb was in charge of Randolph County 4H when my kids were young. She made a huge positive impact on all our lives. She's moved back to Iowa to be closer to family. As happy as we are for her new life, and happy for the Cooperative Extension Office that has her now, we miss her mightily and have really looked forward to this visit.

To the horizon

They don't call it The Great Plains for nothing. After two weeks following the Appalachian Ridge, the Corn Belt is another world all together. I was raised in Indiana and spent much time in my grandparents' old farm house and driving the back roads, so much of this was familiar. I'd just forgotten how big the sky is and how far apart places are. That big sky put on a real show for us. I can remember as a child driving home from an evening out with my head in my grandmother's lap looking up out the car windows and making up stories about what I saw in the clouds. She never seemed to tire of the game and still, I never seem to tire of the sky.

Cloud show

The fields of corn and soybeans are immense. Barb told us the spring rains were so heavy and late, farmers came within days of missing the last dates for planting. The corn was tall and tasseling and she hoped it all matured in time for a good harvest.

My grandfather owned several small town grain elevators. I saw one or two of them as a child before dust explosions leveled them. They were large, square frame towers. Prone to dust and highly flammable, none survive. On the way, we passed what has to be the largest grain elevator I have ever seen. In addition, farms had large silos on them holding their grain as they waited for trucks to haul it to the elevators to sell. While they probably have sophisticated anti-spark

DeKalb Seed storage

technology now, as tall as they are on this open landscape, I suspect lightening and tornadoes are the new threats.

The entire drive from Indianapolis westward, on every horizon we could see wind turbines. You will not appreciate the enormity of them until you see the picture (next post) of barges hauling the blades of the rotors up the Mississippi. The enormity of the construction project to erect so many of them is staggering to me. Barb says the farmers can plant what they please under them. Where I have seen them elsewhere I've seen pasture beneath them. Despite the huge farms and what appear to be an impending good harvest, falling grain prices are badly

Local elevator

hurting family farms and she says the suicide rate among farmers is rising. I hope the lease agreements farmers make to host these giants can help them through these tough times.

Wind turbine

We arrived safely at Palisades Kepler State Park, just minutes from Barb's house, and just in time for dinner. Barb and Kenny took us to a local "supper club" where we enjoyed prime rib, walleye, shrimp and broasted chicken under the watchful eye of an enormous stuffed elk. I'd asked for local color and we got it. And a great supper to boot.

At 5:00 am we were roused by heavy wind and intense lightening. We were parked next to the bath house and took refuge there while the storm blew through. I can't say I've been in a storm that intense in a while. We waited nearly an hour for the thunder and lightening to pass. The rain remained until mid morning but we were enjoying a visit with Barb by then and it didn't matter. Barb grew up in Dubuque, the first town settled in Iowa, on the banks of the Mississippi, but that's tomorrow's story. Just know that we successfully completed two very hard days on the road, traveled from mountains, through mountains, and entered the great plains to land at the home of a much loved friend. I'd call that off to a good start.

Supper Club

Me, Barb and Kenny