Last Timmy's before the border!FRIDAY, MARCH 23, 2007
After travelling to the London area the night before to impose upon the hospitality of Jane's brother and sister-in-law, we headed for the border in early morning. Crossing without incident, we braved the rutted highways of Michigan and northern Ohio, miraculously escaping without any serious damage to the car. Light rain and an abundance of Ohio state patrol hampered our efforts along the way, but was nothing compared to the chaos of navigating through Indianapolis, Indiana amid heavy rains, road construction, and afternoon rush hour. At least we got close enough to the airport to see the impressive Fedex Regional Hub from the interstate!
The rains abated and southern Indiana became more scenic, as we crossed into Illinois on Interstate 57. This tree-lined route was reminscent of much of Ontario, and carried us late in the day across the Mississippi River and into Missouri, where we began to look for a campsite or rest stop in the gathering dark. Without much luck, we carried on into Missouri, enjoying the beautiful earthy smells of the surrounding wetlands.
Our first day of travel ended in the medium-sized city of Poplar Bluff, MO, where we spent the night sleeping in the car in a Walmart parking lot. The temperatures were just right and the winds were light, and we had gained an hour of time in the Central Time zone. Other than the apparent Friday night ritual in Poplar Bluff, which involved every teenager with a car or truck circling the parking lot and main strip for hours, the evening passed uneventfully.
SATURDAY, MARCH 24
We awoke in the car at dawn, and after quick stops for coffee, gas and a washroom break, we headed west into the Ozark Mountains of southern Missouri, including the beautiful Mark Twain National Forest area. Our spirits were buoyed by the perfect travelling weather, 75F and sunny, and we carried on to Branson, MO, a well known mecca for country music fans. From there we looped south through scenic rolling hills into northern Arkansas, and then turned again west across the "scenic 412" towards Oklahoma.
After a stop in Locust Grove, AR, where traffic and temperatures in the 80's made things a little uncomfortable (in hindsight....Walmart on a Saturday afternoon....what were we thinking?), we switched to t-shirts and sandals and carried onwards into NE Oklahoma. Angling over to Interstate 75, we made a grocery stop and then turned north for Kansas. It was then that we encountered the most bizarre speed trap ever.....as we ventured through a tiny town along the interstate, not one but two trailers sat in fields along the roadside, with huge banners affixed pronouncing "Warning - Speed Trap". Noting that the speed limit changed from 50mph to 40mph, then back to 50mph, then back to 40mph again in rapid succession, we crested a bridge overpass....and lo and behold there sat a state patrol car with radar set up. Thanks to the ample warning, we passed through unmolested!
Crossing into Kansas (two days ahead of the tornadoes as it would later turn out), we found with some difficulty the Elk Lake State Park, just outside Independence, KS. We enjoyed a sunset over the lake amid perfect camping weather, our day completed with hot dogs over the single burner and some cold cans of Busch.
Elk Lake State Park, KS
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