I woke up early so I left on the trip early – at 0545! The full moon, orange as it neared setting, set the mood for the day. I also saw sunrise, something I seldom see even if up on time, as my east barn hides the view. The road that I travel so often seemed completely unfamiliar until false dawn was well-along.
The blooming redbuds showed up south of Collins. I passed Springfield at 0800 and picked up US-60.
Topped off the tank at Bill's Quik Mart in Rogersville (and checked out his stock of loading supplies). Saw a curious sign on a barn; “Homeschool Football.” Near Seymour, an Amish area, a rather unique wear pattern showed on shoulder pavement – two ruts for wheels, and a third halfway between them; the Amish shoe their horses. Dogwood blooms now join those of the redbuds.
US-60 is a beautiful 4-lane divided hiway, with relatively light traffic, well-maintained for most of its passage across southern Missouri.
Just west of Birch Tree, a hillside is festooned with yellow – a graveyard for construction equipment. This is very hilly country, all the way from Mansfield to Poplar Bluff. East of that city is delta country, dead flat. The row crop irrigation systems remind me of those in south Louisiana, not surprising since the Bootheel is also rice country.
Dexter is on higher ground, a long ridge running from Cape Girardeau to near Helena, AR, known as Crowley's Ridge. Dexter has a real lighthouse with a rotating light – it's associated with a church.
The US-60 bridge over the Mississippi at Cairo is closed, so I had to detour north on I-57 and back south on US-51 to reach the Ohio River bridge to Kentucky. Cairo has a flood gate under a railroad overpass, just a hint of how low and swampy this area is. The road exited the lowlands to climb into loess hills and bluffs.
It's 1230 now, and I'm hungry. Bardwell has a good little cafe. I neglected to get the name, and I can't check a credit card receipt for a cash-only establishment. Another 10 miles and I'm at Columbus, home of Columbus-Belmont state park. It commemorates a strong Confederate fortification with a chain across the Mississippi river, a railroad connection, a Trail of Tears river crossing, and USCT enlistments. The Belmont part was a battle on the Missouri side, known to those who reenacted it in 1992&3 as “Belmud.”
Pictures:
The park is a good place to watch river traffic. These tows are fighting a strong current:
I arrived at my Best Western in Murray, KY, at 1525 hrs. Routes taken were Y, MO-13, Greene Cty WW & H, US-60, I-57, US-51, KY-123 and KY-80. 456 miles in 9 hours, 40 minutes (including 45 minute lunch break & 1 hour sightseeing.
Tomorrow, with serious weather expected, I'll visit Fort Donelson and follow Hood's Tennessee campaign though Columbia, Spring Hill and on to Franklin.
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