Exploring Ned’s Iowa Roots: Cherokee, Iowa 10/15/09

The state park we stayed at last night was absolutely beautiful, unfortunately it was too wet and cold to do much exploring. Unlike the other states when we meander the back roads, Iowa’s roads are straight. We drove due west most of the day. Our first stop was in Ames, Iowa. We drove around the university, where Ned’s parents both went to college, took advantage of their free internet and stopped to have lunch. The afternoon is when things really got interesting. We drove to Bagley, a VERY small town, about 50 houses and not much else. Ned’s dad was raised here and it was fun to drive by the abandoned high school and take a tour of the town. Ned really wanted to send his sisters a post card from here, but you can imagine the likelihood of that with no stores. We stopped by the one room/one employee post office and chatted with the very sweet postmaster, Linda. When she heard about Ned’s connections to the town, she sold us two of her own Iowa postcards and proudly put the Bagley, Iowa cancellation mark on them so that Ned’s sisters could have a memento from their father’s home town. Very touching! From there we drove down a dirt road, up a small ridge to visit the Dodge Center Cemetery where Ned’s great grandparents and other relatives are buried. It was something to see the headstones with dates from the 1800s, hear their stories, and know they were related to Ned. Quite moving. The next stop was due North for about 2 hours to Cherokee where Ned’s mother was born and raised. We visited the house where she lived from age 4 til she left for college. We think we also found the Methodist Church where his parents were married. It was so much fun to experience and share in Ned’s family’s history. Tonight we are staying at the home of his second cousin Craig and his wife Julie (the same ones we stayed with in Minnesota). We had an absolute blast going out to dinner with Craig, Julie, Steve and Laurie (more cousins). These Iowa guys sure can drink! We enjoyed a German Oktoberfest meal at the Gashaust, complete with lots of German beer and stories. Too much fun. I’m looking forward to tomorrow where we take a tour of the family owned Pilot Rock plant.

Oh Deere!: Palisades-Kepler SP Mt. Vernon, Iowa 10/14/09

(Ned again) We enjoyed our morning with Marc, Sheila, Owen, and Brian, until everyone had to leave for work, school, and daycare, respectively. Debi was particularly pleased when Brian emerged this morning wearing his Obama t-shirt, which matched the PJ top that Debi was wearing. The two of them rejoiced in this fact with the traditional fist bump. We left soon afterward headed toward the Iowa border. We reached Lowden State Park, on Marc’s recommendation, where we admired a beautiful view of the Rock River, along with the very impressive 50 foot tall statue of an Indian warrior overlooking the river below. Soon after we came upon the John Deere Historical Site. We decided to pay the $5 entry fee and check the place out. Much to our surprise, not only does this place contain the archeological digging site of the ruins of John Deere’s 1837 blacksmith shop, and a reconstructed version of his original home, but there is also a very entertaining onsite blacksmith, named Rick, who does a showman-like job of demonstrating the art of blacksmithing. (See today’s pic) I’ve always associated the name John Deere with farm tractors, but John Deere himself was dead and gone long before tractors were invented. His landmark accomplishment was to develop a very specially shaped and highly polished plow, which cut cleanly through the sticky black earth beneath the tall grasses of the Great Plains, allowing farmers to utilize the fertile soil of the prairies. Soon his ploys were so popular, that he moved his operation to Moline, Illinois, to exploit the shipping advantages of the Mississippi River, where the John Deere Corporation is still headquartered and which now employs about 56,000 people worldwide. Not a bad accomplishment for a young blacksmith from Vermont. Our next stop was for lunch at a good Mexican restaurant in the town Dixon (which also happens to be Ronald Regan’s boyhood hometown). From there we took Highway 30 (the old Lincoln Highway) across the Mississippi River into Iowa, where we are now camped at the very beautiful Palisades-Kepler State Park. The weather remains cloudy, and a very chilly 47 degrees. However, we are pleased that the Winniemobile has such an efficient little furnace, and we’re hopeful that our propane supply will last until morning. Debi is cuddled up with her “Born Fighting” book, by James Webb, which she has been quoting to me with great enthusiasm as I’ve been righting this. Yes, her fascination (obsession?) with the Appalachian people continues…

Monet, Renoir, Owen & Brian: Chicago, IL 10/13/09

We usually wake up to the sounds of the campground this morning it was to the sound of a little one saying, “mama, mama.” It’s been quite a few years since I’ve heard that! I couldn’t resist and had to go visit Luke. What a sociable fellow he is! We had a wonderful time eating breakfast with Lucy and Luke. Then we were off to the Art Institute of Chicago on a beautiful sunny morning in downtown Chicago. We had a great time looking at all the amazing impressionist paintings in the museum, along with all the wonderful buildings downtown. We enjoyed eating lunch downtown, topped off with a large bag of warm caramel popcorn from Garrett’s. Yum! We decided to take a long round about way to my nephew Marc and Sheila’s house. We drove along Lake Shore Drive for miles and miles, past Northwestern University, Grosse Point Lighthouse and through huge mansions in wealthy neighborhoods. Eventually we worked our way inland and visited one of my alma maters, Wheeling High School. Ned has now visited 3 of my 4 high schools reliving all my tortured high school years. What a guy. We showed up at Marc and Sheila’s in the early evening. I forgot how much fun little boy energy was! These cute little tykes, Owen (3) and Brian (2), were a riot – sharing their toys, showing us their room playing with their dog, Cubbie, and being little bundles of energy. (Today’s pic is me reading to Owen). I last saw them about a year ago when Brian wasn’t even walking. Owen is very curious, talkative and quite expressive. Brian was still checking us out, but he does give great hugs and fist bumps! I also really enjoyed spending some quality time and chatting it up with Sheila and Marc when the boys went to bed. We will definitely have to plan a trip each year to Chicago. It’ll be so much fun to watch all 3 of our grand nephews grow up. Later on today, heading into Iowa.

Reconnecting with Old Friends and Family: Chicago, IL 10/12/09

We left the countryside of Indiana and blew into the Windy City. It was quite eye- opening to go from the quiet two lane roads onto the confusing freeways and toll lanes of Chicago. Ned and I illegally sailed through 3 (we think) toll booths, not really getting that you have to veer several lanes over to the right and pay .30, .60 and then .80. huh?! (Being country hicks is really a pain in the ass sometimes.) We picked up an hour with the time change and were deciding between spending sometime downtown Chicago or looking up a childhood friend of mine before seeing Ned’s niece Lucy. Ned was thoroughly encouraging me to look up my old friend. She opened up a restaurant about 3 years ago so we just popped in. How absolutely wonderful to see my friend Teri Kramer again! We were buddies in 8th grade and really hadn’t connected since then. She has the same great spirit that I remembered and we reconnected immediately. (Mom, Teri especially said to say hello to you. She has some very sweet memories of you, too). Ned and I had a great meal at her very cute restaurant and really enjoyed sitting with her, catching up on our lives and telling stories. After that we spent a little time hanging around downtown Chicago and then drove to Lincoln Park to see Lucy, her husband Ian and their 15 month old baby, Luke - who is adorable!! See today’s pic of Great Uncle Ned playing with Luke. It was such a fun evening hanging out with Luke. He is a very good tempered and engaging little guy. We enjoyed a nice meal with Lucy and Ian and I’m now feeling very cozy in a nice warm bed. It’s been about quite a few weeks since we’ve slept in a real bed, I almost forgot what sheets feel like!

Nothing to do but Tippecanoe: Tippecanoe SP, Winamac, IN 10/11/09

We didn’t have a lot going on today, mainly a driving day between Eastern Ohio and Western Indiana. We covered a lot of ground and left the beautiful rolling hills and fall colors of Ohio for the flat plains. Our big adventure of the day was stopping by DeBrand Chocolates in Fort Wayne, Indiana. We were hoping for a tour of the factory, but unfortunately they only give them on Tues. and Thursdays. We did sample their 52% cocoa bar and found it pretty good, but very similar to Lake Champlain Chocolates. Ned is convinced that all the US chocolatiers are buying their chocolate from the same manufacturer, Callabaut, and just molding their own bars. With the money they charge I really think we should get into this business. (The 3 lb. box was $114!). After traveling for several hours on the flat lands we were expecting to be camping in a grassy field tonight. We were pleasantly surprised to enter the nicely wooded state park of Tippecanoe, which is situated on its namesake river. (See today’s pic). It encompasses 2800 acres with many hiking and horse trails throughout the thick woods. We wished it wasn’t so cold so that we could take advantage of the biking, but at a brisk 48 deg. I wasn’t feeling convinced. We decided to go eat instead. The small town close by has a few fast food restaurants and one nice restaurant that was recommended by the teenage girl working at the park entry gate. We weren’t expecting much, and felt quite surprised by the upscale menu and presentation. The chef even came out to check on our meals. Back at the camper, it looks like it’s gonna be another night battling it out with the skippo cards. We are really looking forward to seeing Ned’s great nephew, Luke, tomorrow in the Windy City.

Cheesy Polka: Mohican SP, Loudonville, Ohio 10/10/09

We left the campground traveling through the gaps and hollows of Appalachia. The colors continued to be fantastic, but we felt a bit claustrophobic in the sunless deep valleys of the mountains. When we finally crossed over the Ohio River and entered the rolling valleys of Ohio, it felt like an entirely different world. Eastern Ohio is stunningly beautiful, made up of colorful hardwood forests, picture perfect dairy farms set in green rolling hills and quaint towns. It was a perfect fall day (crisp weather & fluffy white clouds) to drive through the Amish country of Ohio. Perhaps because it was the holiday weekend, it seemed that every small town was having some sort of celebration. After stopping at one of the numerous cheese factories and sampling every variety of swiss cheese known to man, we arrived at Sugarland, the Little Swiss Village of Ohio. Polka music was broadcast, LOUDLY, over several blocks. When we decided we couldn’t take it anymore (in about 10 minutes), we headed to the next event, which was an Oktoberfest Wine and Cheese festival. Sure enough, as soon as we entered the building a LIVE octogenarian Polka band was entertaining the crowd - no they weren’t very good. (See today’s pic). We finally succumbed to the polka vibe and decided to stay for the event. We tasted more swiss cheese and every wacky cheese concoction imaginable (pumpkin swiss cheese balls, apple strudel cheese topping & burgundy wine cream cheese spread to just name a few), but finally decided upon a bratwurst sauerkraut sandwich for me and Mr. Ned decided to go whole hog with the bratwurst, sauerkraut AND accompanying brussel sprouts and mashed potatoes. Gotta love the mid-west. Now in the heart of Amish Country, passing numerous horse and buggies, laundry on the line, and Amish crafts everywhere, we decided to visit the Amish & Mennonite Heritage Center, aka the Behalt Museum. We were initially very interested in learning about the Amish way of life and thought this would be an educational and informative introduction. The Center also had a cyclorama, and after our incredible experience visiting the Gettysburg cyclorama, we couldn’t pass this up. Mmm, it felt more like an indoctrination of the Mennonite faith. The circular painting, 10 feet high and 265 feet long depicted every ghoulish and grotesque persecution and milestone of the Anabaptists. We were “treated” to a laser pointer description of each scene, the entire presentation lasting 30 or so minutes. This was after the 15 minute video on how cool the Mennonite and Amish way of life is. Shell shocked, we drove to the next town and lo and behold, they were having the Holmes County Antique Festival, complete with a parade! We decided to hit a local Laundromat (our clothes were still sopping wet from our previous day bike ride and the van was taking on a cheesy aroma) and watch the parade. We stayed for the vintage cars, but left before the decorated fire engines. When we finally arrived in Loudonville, our camping spot for the night, guess what – the town main street was closed off for their “Annual free street faire!” We immediately headed to the campground, secured our spot for the night, and took a tour of the State Park highlights. This included the gorge overlook and covered bridge. Call us crazy, but we decided to check out the street faire. It was really awful; about 6 blocks of fried carnival food – including fried cheese on a stick, bright new Kubota and John Deere tractors and kiddie rides. Feeling that the night was still young, we took a half hour ride into Wooster to check out the happenings. For a college town it was pretty much dead. We ended up eating a late dinner at a Greek Restaurant and had a delightful conversation with the owner. Fun Day.

Soggy Bottoms: North Bend SP, Cairo, WV 10/9/09

(Ned again) Once again we heard torrential rain throughout the night, but woke up to beautiful blue skies. Instead of the Interstate, we took Highway 40A (the Old National Highway, which started as an ancient Indian footpath, and was then used by trappers, explorers, militiamen, and pioneer settlers.) As we climbed over several passes of the Appalachian Mountains, and although we got rained upon at times, we were pleased to see that the fall colors of the Maryland Panhandle were just coming into their peak. We stopped and took photos of the beautiful Casselman Bridge, built in 1813, the largest stone arch in America at the time, and used continuously until 1933. (See today’s pic) Right up the road from there we stopped at the little town of Grantsville, an Amish & Mennonite mountain village, and ate lunch at Casselman Hotel, a historic roadside inn. The lunch of honey-dipped fried chicken, baked beans, applesauce, and warm bread served with fresh apple butter was comfort food for us on this stormy day. We even bought some freshly baked ginger cookies for the road. We entered West Virginia, continuing to marvel at the bright fall colors, interspersed with beautiful farmland. At Clarksburg we stopped to buy some supplies and the weather had suddenly become warm and muggy, which reminded us of our trip through the south a year ago. After listening to several of the locals talking, we realized it even sounded like we were in the south again. Soon we found our way to North Bend State Park, which features a Rails to Trails bike path (a former train track bed, now converted to a hiking/biking trail) which we were eager to try out. The weather remained a warm 75, but the sky seemed foreboding. Nevertheless, we decided to try out the Rail Trail, and see if we could make it to the town of Cairo, several miles away. We had fun biking through an old railroad tunnel, and across several bridges, but then started to feel a few raindrops. We decided to keep riding, and see if we could make it to Cairo. Within a few minutes the skies completely opened up on us, and we started to question the wisdom of our plan. Finally, having never found Cairo, we turned around and, squinting through the deluge of rain, frantically splashed our way back down the now flooding bike trail. We started cracking up at how wet we were getting, and somehow could not suppress the thought of how mad mom was going to be at us when we got home! By the time we returned, we looked like wet rats, although the air temperature had remained warm enough, so that we never really got cold. However, it felt very good to get on some dry clothes, and relax in the van sipping warm mochas as the rain poured down outside.