DAY #18 – JUNE 27, 2021- MT. VERNON, IOWA – CRAWFORDSVILLE, IN

 

For whatever reason I was really tired when I got to the Hotel last night. It wasn’t a particularly long or eventful day so it may be the totality of this adventure is catching up with me. Anyway, after getting finished with my nightly routine and loosely planning today journey I turned in a little earlier than normal.

While I was writing my end of the day blog last night, I discovered that I had pass the 5,000-mile mark on this journey. It looks like by the time this adventure ends in the next few days; I will be well over 6,000 miles.

I checked out of the Hotel at 8:30 a.m. and as usual, I skipped the hotel coffee and stopped at Casey’s Country Store on the way out of town. I had though about stopping in Iowa City and walking around the University of Iowa Campus. But I did that back in 2013 and decided just to return to Interstate 80 and Head east to my first stop of the day.

It was about 35-miles from Mount Vernon to the small town of West Branch, Iowa. West Branch is the Birthplace of President Herbert Hoover who was the first President born west of the Mississippi River.  His birthplace has been preserved as part of the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site which includes his Presidential Library and Museum along with the final resting place of President Hoover and first lady Lou Henry Hoover.

Today, the Birthplace site and related buildings are hope but unfortunately the Presidential Library and Museum is still closed due to COVID.  I had visited the Museum when I stopped here back in 2013 so I spent my time on this visit enjoying the National Park Service Visitors Center and Birthplace. 

I ended up spending about an hour walking around the Birthplace site and the very small town of West Branch which really hasn’t changed all that much over the years. This being a Sunday Morning none of the shops and stores were open and the few people that I did see were on their way to church.

Before leaving West Branch, I drove out past the Presidential Museum to the final resting place of President and Mrs. Hoover.  The are resting in a very quiet and peaceful spot on a hill just about a quarter mile from the Museum.

Once I finished my visit to West Branch, I was back to Interstate 80, and I continued eastbound toward the Mississippi River. Along the way I passed by the Iowa 80 Truckstop which bills itself as the World’s Largest Truckstop. I stopped there in 2013 and it is more like a small city than a truck stop. It has a movie theater, barber and beauty shops, a dentist and doctors office, a museum, and several restaurants.

Since I had stopped at the Iowa 80 before I continued this time and a few minutes later I arrived in the river town of LeClaire, Iowa. I hopped off the interstate and made my way along the banks of the Mississippi River for a quick stop at Antique Archology.

Antique Archology is the home base for the Popular TV Show American Pickers. I stopped here in 2013 when they were still in the old Blue Building. Since that time, they have built another larger building that basically houses a gift shop.

I arrived at Antique Archology right at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday Morning and it was crowded with tourists hoping to see Mike, Frank, Danielle, and some of the other stars of the show.  However, I found out that they are seldom here and when they are it is mostly for filming, and they close the site when they record footage for the show.

I snapped a few photos and bough a couple of souvenirs and spent only about 20-minutes here. I had wanted to visit the Buffalo Bill Museum just up the road from Antique Archology, but it didn’t open until later in the afternoon, so I just headed back to the Interstate.

A few minutes later I crossed the Mighty Mississippi River and was back in the State of Illinois. Soon after entering Illinois, I stopped at a Rest Area. After spending the last two weeks or so in states that had little or very limited COVID Restriction, I once again found out that Illinois was still basically on lock down and were imposing very strict COVID Restrictions.

Masks were required for entry into buildings and most of the restaurants were still operation either as a drive through or only taking online to go orders.

While here at this rest area I started looking are where I was going to spend the Night. Being that Illinois was still basically shut down, I decided to get out of Illinois as soon as possible make a bee line for Indiana. Before Leaving the rest area I had a reservation at the Comfort Inn in Crawfordsville, Indiana, some 250 miles away.

Since I had last fueled up in Winterset, Iowa, I considered topping of my tank but the gas prices here in Illinois was quiet a bit higher and Iowa, so I decided to move on and hope that the gas prices were less in Indiana.

After leaving the rest area it took me the better part of three hours to make the drive across the state of Illinois. I only stopped once for coffee at the Love’s in Knoxville, Illinois.

It was about 4:45 p.m. when I cross over into Indiana and crossed back into the Eastern Time Zone. About 40-minues later I arrived in Crawfordsville and decided to stop for Supper at my old standby Cracker Barrel before checking into the Hotel.

After supper it was just a short drive to the Comfort Inn here in Crawfordsville. I arrived at 6 p.m. and was quickly in my room.  Having already ate supper, I am in for tonight. Not many stops today as I made a quick trek across Illinois and into Indiana. It was a 336-mile driving day and with that I clicked over 5,500 miles. It is now a certainty that this adventure will be well over 6,000 miles by the time I get back home in a few days.

The reality that this trip is coming to an end set in when I crossed into the Eastern Time Zone. Here In Crawfordsville, I am now within a day’s drive to home should I drive straight through and take the most direct route.

But I still have some things that I want to see on this trip so stick around, the adventure continues.