We left Erie August 26th. We had trouble closing one of the basement doors, so we went first to find an RV place to see if they could help. On the way, we went over some railroad tracks and the step started coming in and out as if it had a short, so now there were two reasons to stop. We did find a place and someone looked at both problems but couldn't fix either. On the road again, with the step disconnected (we used a stool to get in and out) and the door gerry-rigged.
Our first stop was at Pokagon State Park in Angola, Indiana. It was one of the nicest, though older, parks we have camped in. It is on the shore of Lake James and Snow Lake in Indiana's lake district. The Potawatomi (love pronouncing that!) indians lived in this area and the park is named for their last two most notable leaders, the Pokagons (father and son). The staff here was remarkably friendly and helpful and the sites were private and quite beautiful.
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| We found a very private spot on the edge of the forest. |
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There is a gorgeous inn here with first class
facilities: The Potawatomi Inn. I used their
bathroom on the way out :-) (I do appreciate
a really nice bathroom!)
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Our next stop was to the Black Hawk Historical Site in Illinois. We had a little trouble finding the museum because someone had run into the sign and no one had replaced it yet. It is a beautiful setting, heavily forested with wonderfully landscaped grounds. It used to be an amusement park at the turn of the century. People would come from miles around on the trains to attend concerts, operas, vaudeville, theater, outdoor movies and amusement rides. When its popularity waned in the 20's, it was turned into the Black Hawk State Park. It was made an historic site in 1987.
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This is the remains of the popular, Shoot the Chutes
toboggan slide. Flat boats with side runners that
slid on the greased track carried riders down the bluff at
speeds up to 80 mph. After shooting down the chute,
the boat bounced across the waters of the Rock River.
I can only imagine how fun this was!
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The Hauberg Indian Museum is part of the site, located in the lodge constructed by the CCC in 1934. It had life-size replicas of Sauk Indian culture and a display of artifacts, including a beautiful bronze bust of Black Hawk that was actually sculptured from a cast of his face in 1832. We would guess he was in his late twenties or early thirties. He was a very attractive man. Other likenesses don't seem to do him justice. I couldn't take pictures inside, so you can only surmise from this likeness I found online:
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Black Hawk was the leader of a faction within the Sauk nation
who believed in the old ways before Europeans came to America.
He fought hard to preserve his ancestral home but in the end
was unable to stem the tide of cultural change. During the War
of 1812, he fought with the British. He is best known for the
war that bears his name: The Black Hawk Massacre. He had
been tricked into signing a treaty selling trial lands to the U.S.
government with a provision that they could remain on a portion
of the land. When white settlers moved into the area, the natives
were pushed out. When they fought back, they were
butchered. When Black Hawk and his men came across the river,
they sported a white flag of surrender but were fired upon anyway.
The warriors were killed, as were the women and children who had
tried to escaped by swimming the river. It is said that 90% of his
people were killed. Black Hawk himself was captured, imprisoned
and paraded around the U.S. in chains. When he died, his skeleton
was displayed in the governor's mansion like a trophy. What a
sad, disgusting and embarrassing part of our history this was!
We were glad we had a chance to come here and pay our respects
to this brave man and his people.
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| The tugboat, Marquette, which operates barges up and down the Mississippi |
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| Moving 11 barges through the locks |
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| Moving coal downriver |
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One of the displays at the visitor center which showed the
"stairway of water" from Minneapolis to St. Louis. Locks
and dams are needed when the river is too shallow for a
barge or boat. The barges here need 9 ft. of water so the
Corps of Engineers must maintain that depth. The dams
form pools that make the river navigable and the locks
allow the boats to travel from one pool to the next.
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This bridge at the Visitor Center links Illinois to Iowa. It
has had numerous replacements, re-designs and additions
over the years. It was first constructed in 1856 and was the
first bridge to span the Mississippi.
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This is a little house at the top of the bridge where an operator
controls the swing span and control of the bridge. Both trains
and cars use the bridge.
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1 barge = 16 rail cars or 70 semi trailers
The barges we saw were what they call "eleven or fifteen barge tows"
1 15 barge tow = 240 rail cars or 1050 semi trailers
You can see why this is so important to our transportation system!
That afternoon, we crossed the bridge and drove up the Mississippi on the Iowa side where there are many industrial concerns, as well as recreational areas. We chose to cross another bridge back into Illinois where we camped along the river and could watch the barge traffic.
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This was our wonderful campsite right on the river at
Fisherman's Corner which is an Army Corps of Engineers
site. It was well situated to watch the barges go through
Locks and Dam 14. Supposedly, the fishing is good here
for a variety of species, including bass, perch and catfish.
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We were also treated to the sight of a pair of Mute Swans who were preening themselves amidst the water lilies right beside the river.
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| No. I didn't take this picture. Once again, I was so mesmerized by them that I forgot to take a picture. |
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| Our viewing area |
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| It usually took about an hour for the fleet to move through the locks. Because there are so many barges, it needs to be done in two parts. Half the barges go through the locks to the other side and, when they are through, the others go through the same process. |
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| This one was moving up river. Usually, fuel, coal, and petroleum products are moved up river from the Gulf and corn, wheat, soybeans and other "heartland" products are moved down river. |
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| Murky but beautiful |
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| The swans apparently love this stuff. See the locks and dam with the barges, from our perspective. |
We stayed watching the barges for awhile and then headed west and toward home.
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It was pouring rain and we were tired, so got off the Interstate
at the next exit for a state park which turned out to be
Anita Lake State Park. We were thrilled to get an electric
hook up right at the lake.
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| The sunset was beautiful. |
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| A few people started arriving..... |
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And suddenly, our little oasis became filled to the brim with
local folk out for the weekend. Weekends are always a
problem on the road but this was one of our worst experiences.
Check out the guy next to us!
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This couple came with a truck and trailer, bikes, another
truck with a cabover and a boat-all in the tiny space next
to us. We had smokers on the other side! Needless to
say, we didn't venture out much!
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| We did, however have a full super sturgeon moon! |
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| And a level site beside the river. |
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