Photos: from Elsah, Illinois, to Decatur City, Iowa

 From Green Tree Inn in Elsah, Illinois, to The Barnyard Restaurant in Decatur City, Iowa

Screened balcony, Green Tree Inn Bed & Breakfast, Elsah, Illinois

In the historic village of Elsah, Illinois

Larry putting our bikes back on the rack after a pretty ride through the village.

Tiny house

Tinier house?

Mississippi River

See the Great Egret?

Tornado damage

The Joe Page Bridge in Hardin, Illinois, carries Rtes. 16 and 100 across the Illinois River linking Calhoun and Green Counties.  The bridge is the southernmost on the river.  Its lift span is 308 feet and 9 inches long, the largest span of this type in the world.  The bridge was built in 1930, dedicated July 23, 1931, and rehabilitated in 2003-04.  It serves as the vital connection for nearby farming communities and river town locals, especially considering that the closest alternate crossing is by ferry boat nearly 10 miles upstream or 17 miles downstream.

Illinois River

This house was checked for survivors after the 2019 flooding.

In La Grange, Missouri, we crossed the railroad tracks and drove right down onto the rocky shores of the Mississippi River, where I walked out onto that point there that sticks out into the river and took pictures and a few videos.

I put my hand into the water, and found it to be cold, cold.  Hmmm... I

wonder what the temperature of the Mississippi is this time of year?  >>looking it up<< ...  Here we go:  It’s 49°. 

Brrrrr!  That’s colder than our well water, which is a steady 55°, both in the dead of winter and in the heat of summer.  It’s a perfectly good temperature to drink.

Yesirree, I thought that river water was extra cold.

We ate at the Barnyard Restaurant in Decatur City, Iowa, population 175.

I had a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich, orange juice, and coffee.  Larry had roast beef and mashed potatoes and gravy on bread, and coffee.