Devils Tower (Day 2, 3 and 4)

I have not updated the blog in the last couple of days, mainly for the fact I was at my mothers house and we were mostly doing family things.  I am going to combine Days 2,3 and 4 into this one blog, there is really not a lot to write, but I'll put something in print.

Thursday - April 29, 2010 (Day 2)

Today I was able to visit the Little Red School House.  I have passed this site before but did not stop.  I have wondered what was significant about this old School House, well today I found out.

It turns out that this building some some minor significances during the Civil War, but its main claim to fame is this is where the Order of the Easter Star was started.  If your not a Mason you may not know what that means, but the Easter Star is the woman's side of the Masons.  I am not a Mason, but my deceased father-in-law was a Mason and Shriner.

We arrived in Clarksville, TN around 3 PM.  After having some good BBQ we just visited with family.

Friday - April 30, 2010 (Day 3)

Today was just a lazy day where all we did was just hang around the house and visited with mom.  This evening Liz and I did have dinner with an old high school classmate of mine that I haven't seen in 25 years.

Saturday - May 1, 2010 (Day 4)

We headed out this morning with the intent to go to Devils Tower in Wyoming.  We have no specific route planned, but we do plan on visiting some places along the way.  Our first destination is the Mall Of America in Minnesota. 

Our day started around 6:30 AM with thunder, lightening and rain.  It stayed wet most of the morning, but since we were in a vehicle it was no big deal.  We decided to head north by driving through the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area.  The drive normally would have been scenic, except the rain made it difficult to enjoy the scenery.  Our first stop was for breakfast in Grand River, KY.

We ate at at restaurant called the Lite Side Cafe.  I guess I should have paid attention to the sign, because it seems like all they serve is health food.  Your only choice of eggs were Eggsbeaters cooked how you wanted them.  Bad for me but the others really enjoyed it.

After breakfast we continued heading northwest.  I didn't keep up with all the roads we took but we eventually made it to Highway 3 in Illinois which is the Great River Road.  It took us a while to get there, but made it we did, even though Jane was giving me directions in Illinois using an Indiana map.  Her directions did get a lot more clearer after I told her to flip the map to the Illinois side.

The rest of the day we continued on Highway 3, which followed along the Mississippi River.  It was a nice drive, but you could only occasionally see the river.  A lot of the time the view of the river was blocked by the levees.  We stopped a couple of times and eventually made it to Saint Louis, MO.  We jumped on the interstate and headed west on 70 where we planned on taking Highway 79 north which is a continuation of of the River Road which follows the Missouri River.  We plan on stopping in Saint Louis on the way back to visit the Arch and maybe some other sites.

Highway 79 is a very scenic road.  The weather had cleared, and with rolling hills and occasional sights of the river it was very enjoyable.  We stopped for a late lunch in Winfeild, MO.  Lunch was good, I had pizza, Liz had a burger, mom had hamburger steak, and Jane had catfish.  We all ate ours, but mom decided to wear hers.

After lunch we continued north for a short distance and decided to call it a day in Louisiana, MO.  We found a small old motel that is right next to the river.  Yes to all my friends it is a "Fred" motel, but it is clean, and it is cheap.  We really didn't have much of a choice.  I didn't take any pictures of it this evening, but I plan on getting some in the morning.

Tomorrow we continue north with no specific route planned.  I think we may make it to the Saint Paul area where the Mall of America is located.  I don't know we will see.