Day 116 - ending near Mineral, IL - The Great Plains Trail - Sort Of

September 7, 2023

Day 116 - ending near Mineral, IL

Day 116 - Morrison, IL to Mineral, IL

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Up at 5:55am this morning. It was overcast and the wind, out of the north now, was almost cold. I wrote and sent last night's evening report. At 8:10am the campground host stopped by. She and her husband live in Clinton, Iowa. This is their first year being campground hosts, and it's working out well. My grandmother lived in Clinton, so I somewhat knew the town. The host and I discussed changes in Clinton that have occurred over the years, including the closing of Paul's Discount Store - the place to shop before Walmart came to town. Ate my pre-breakfast snack at 8:30am. I'm calling it a snack because I plan to eat a better meal in nearby Morrison once I get a going.

One more night of camping for this trip and that would be tonight, at Lock 22 along the Hennepin Canal near Mineral, Illinois. My planned route to get there is to go east to Sterling, then south on the trail that follows the Hennepin Feeder Canal.

I left my campsite at 9:37am, riding back to the park entrance. This Illinois state park, and several others I've visited, now have only one way in and out. I went west a short ways then south to get to the west side of Morrison, where the restaurant I plan to eat at is located. I was at Family Chef Restaurant at 10:21am. I had 'The French Connection' (French toast) along with coffee.

I didn't exactly follow my routing through Morrison, but did reach the county road (Hazel Road) east of town that I intended to be on. There were a few ups and downs, but it was pleasant riding. I stopped at noon to record the mileage (7.1 miles) and to take a hayfever pill. The sun came out briefly. When I got close to Sterling I stopped at Casey's to buy items for supper tonight and breakfast tomorrow.

Getting through Sterling was a challenge. I hoped to stay close to the Rock River, since I planned to cross it on a pedestrian bridge on the east side of town. My first attempt at avoiding riding on the main east-west highway through town didn't work. I'd turned south into an industrial trucking area and I came upon a sign that said "Trucks Only" so I had to turn around. I finally took to riding/walking on sidewalks, and that worked out OK. When I was near the pedestrian bridge over the river, I got on the wrong bike path, but it didn't take me long to figure that out and turn around. The bridge goes over the Sinnissippi Dam on the Rock River. I started walking across at 2:46pm, making it to the other side at 2:51pm. Now I was in Rock Falls and right at the start of the Hennepin Feeder Canal Trail. Flat riding ahead for the rest of the day! I took a break at a picnic table before I got started, drinking the chocolate milk which I'd also bought at Casey's.

I turned off my rearview radar to conserve accessories battery voltage, then started down the trail at 3:15pm. I had 30 miles to go to get to Lock 22 on the main canal. The trail started out paved, but turned to gravel after I crossed Buell Road at 3:46pm. I was still making pretty good time until I came to a section where there was a lot of stick debris on the trail. At one point a fairly large stick got caught in the front wheel spokes. Surprisingly, it bent the fender stay and didn't hurt any spokes. I took a break at 5:30pm to eat a bag of peanuts. I had 15 miles left now. Doing math in my head, my ETA would be 7:45pm - about 15 minutes after sunset. I decided I needed to increase my speed a little. That was helped when I crossed IL-92, since the trail went back to being paved.

At 6:45pm I stopped at the aqueduct over the Green River to take some pictures. There was a sliver of open sky to the west, but I missed getting a picture of the sun shining through it. The feeder canal gets really wide where it joins the main canal. Seeing that was an indication I was close to my stop for the night. After I was on the main trail, I crossed over the bridge just past Lock 22 to arrive at 7:35pm where I planned to camp. There was just enough daylight left to get set up without using a flashlight. I was pleased.

What I couldn't do without a flashlight was eat my supper. Tonight I tried a plastic tub of chili meant to be microwave heated. It was surprisingly good cold. Tonight I was able to stay awake long enough to get my evening report done and sent. I started my last night sleeping in a tent for this trip at 10:55pm with a smile on my face. If everything works out, I'll be home tomorrow night.

Jeff

Spent: $12.45 plus $4 (breakfast) + $19.66 (chocolate milk, supper items, next morning breakfast items) = $36.11

Where the feeder canal and main canal meet.

The canned coffee, one package of donuts, and the Payday are for breakfast tomorrow.

Today's ride: 50 miles (80 km)
Total: 4,382 miles (7,052 km)

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Bill ShaneyfeltPaul's

Loved the place... still have stuff I bought there. Left Savanna in 1985.
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7 months ago

Jeff TeelTo Bill ShaneyfeltBill,
I have fond memories of strolling through to aisles of Paul's with my grandmother, often leaving with a toy she'd bought for me.
Jeff
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6 months ago