Road Trip Day 7

According to my house sitter, it’s been raining in Portland the entire time I’ve been gone. I still think I’d take the endless Northwest drizzle over a Midwestern storm. This morning, I woke up to a Missouri thunderstorm, complete with colossal rain and 40 mile per hour wind. We have been towing a travel trailer for this entire trip. When climbing the Rockies, the extra length and weight was inconvenient. But I’m really glad I wasn’t sleeping in a tent last night.

Once the storm died down enough for us to make a mad dash to the car, we managed to put in 600 miles of driving. We traveled along I-70 from Concordia, Missouri to Indianapolis, Indiana. Then we jogged north on I-69, stopping for the night at Pokagon State Park just south of the Indiana/Michigan border.

Yesterday, I said some less than complimentary things about Kansas. I’m not taking them back, because I truly don’t understand why Dorothy wanted to go back after making it to the wonderful land of OZ. But my feelings for the Midwest in general are not as negative as you might think. Today driving through Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana was almost pleasant once the weather started cooperating.

Rolling hills and picturesque stands of trees broke up the endless corn fields. And I spotted a few idyllic farmhouses on the side of the road that almost made me want to call my realtor. Good thing that drasted thunderstorm came along right in time to keep me sane.

Another positive aspect of the Midwest – Pokagon State Park. We pulled into the park about 15 minutes before dark and weren’t looking for anything other than a place to crash for the night. Boy howdy did we get more than we asked for. This park is AMAZING. It has the standard campground, hiking/biking trails, playgrounds, etc. It also has a lake and boat dock with boats to rent, and a horse stable with horses to rent. For people who don’t want to rough it in a tent, there is a hotel too. A hotel at a state park, who would have thunk it?

But here is the craziest thing of all. There is a refrigerated toboggan slide. A REFRIGERATED TOBOGGAN SLIDE! Have you ever heard of such a thing? Me neither. I’m half tempted to simply blow off the rest of my vacation and hang out here for the next two weeks. The Midwest doesn’t have too much to offer. So if you live anywhere near a corn field, I have no choice but to recommend a trip to Pokagon State Park. I would totally drive through two or three states to visit this place.

For today’s listening enjoyment, I listened to Twain’s classic “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer”. It’s a fun story that may have helped raise my opinion of America’s Bread Basket. Still I’ve got to say, boyhood mischief doesn’t have the same potency as honest criticism on slavery. So “Huck Fin” will always be my favorite Twain novel.

Joke of the Day

The cemetery is a very popular place.

People are dieing to get in.

This joke is brought to you by my brother-in-law.
If you know a better joke, enter to win my contest and you might win a free book.