Larry's log:
According to The Weather Channel, today was to be a real scorcher. They mentioned a chance of thunderstorms in the morning and then heat indices of 105 to 115 later on. Ouch!
Mercifully, the first 50 miles provided us with a light, spitting drizzle. It felt great and kept us cool. We spent our remaining 80 miles in Missouri on the same type of roads we've been on the last two days. These have primarily been the "lettered" state and county highways, such as A, CC, etc. These roads have been great. They seem to go everywhere, yet they have no traffic. I guess they're a lot like Farm to Market roads in Texas. Despite the fact that some of these are state highways, every time you come to a bridge, it is one lane. That was never a problem though, because there has been so little traffic.
There were a couple of interesting scenes I noticed early on in this morning's ride. One was a couple picking corn by the roadside and loading it into the back of their pickup. I imagine they were going to sell it. But, was it theirs? The other was a Mennonite family getting ready for another day of farming. On their farm were several non-motorized plows.
About 80 miles into the ride, and right before lunch, we passed through Hannibal, MO. This is home to Mark Twain and his storybook characters. We took the business route through town, so saw all of the commercial parts, even Schwartz Manor, which seemed to be a small apartment complex. The historic part of town was right be the river. We should have detoured to see it, but wanted to get across the river. So, we continued on and took the narrow bridge across the Mississippi to Illinois. They're building an interstate just about another mile upriver (I-72?), so hopefully on the next tour this bridge will be a lot less crowded! Lunch was in a riverside park on the Illinois side and was a great setting. We had been treated to cloudy weather up to this point, so the feared heat indices had not yet materialized.
Illinois was a noticeable change. I think part of it was due to the fact we were once again on more traveled roads. The traffic we did come across was not quite as friendly. Missouri's rolling hills had given way to flatland. It was still primarily farmland. After about 30 miles (115 into the ride) we passed through Pittsfield. This had a strip that lasted a couple of miles. At the far end of town were some nice houses on shaded lots. It appeared to be mostly an agricultural center, since there was a business we passed by that was displaying the latest commodity quotes. At Mile 130, we crossed the Illinois River.
During this time, the sun was out and it was definitely heating up. I was covered with sweat as we moved on. I could feel it running out of my shorts and down my legs and could tell that my bike clothes were drenched. However, the sweating seemed to dissipate the last 30 or 40 miles. I'm not quite sure why. I suspect my body was just acclimating to the rapid change in conditions.
Finally, we made it in at about 3:30. The temperature was now in the upper 90s. This town is about 20,000 and has a substantial commercial strip. I haven't been able to tell if there's any key industry here. Since we're still in an agricultural area, I suspect it plays a part.
I felt a lot better today than yesterday. I think yesterday my body was telling me it needed a rest, and it was going to take it. It forced me to ride easy. Today, I once again felt that I could ride any way I wanted.
-- Larry Schwartz
We started off at 545 am, prior to sunrise. A light drizzle was refreshing and we could hear thunder in the distance. We were very pleased with the weather, after the past few days of heat indexes above 100 degrees.
Daniel and I noticed the couple picking corn by the side of the road and we had our doubts that it was on their property! I think I may have startled the Mennonite family by yelling at them to tie up their dog!
Most of the ride to Illinois was gentle rollers that increased as we came closer to the Mississippi River. We were taking it easy today since we were worried about the heat and the distance.
We did have a nice ride thru Hannibal and we crossed the Mississippi River and the state line into Illinois. The state line is on the bridge but we were not going to stop on this bridge to get photos! This is a new state for me.
Lunch was a nice break and we enjoyed the park along the Mississippi River. We were able to get state line photos just a few feet up the road after lunch at another welcome sign. Much safer! The terrain flattened out after lunch but the temperature increased quite a bit. The scenery wasn't very exciting. More corn and some of the roads closer to Jacksonville were quite well traveled by trucks.
We arrived into the motel around 340pm and were very pleased with the ride. Only 3100 feet of climbing in 153 miles. The route card had stated 4000 feet.
We are at the Holiday Inn and are not very pleased with the facilities. The hot tub was cold and they don't have a weather channel!! And not a single ice machine works. But dinner at Ponderosa was great and Larry picked up a new camera at the local Walmart since his camera broke.
Soon to bed since we have 132 miles and 2000 feet of climbing tomorrow.
Judith Jolly (and Daniel Schaaf)