We left Indianapolis on Saturday morning and plowed ahead on I 70 in brutal heat. The temperature coming off of the pavement was, I am certain, 1000 degrees. As we approached St. Louis we hit a massive construction traffic jam. This was, I am sure, the hard part of the ride, but it was worth it. We arrived in St. Louis with the spectacular Arch in view and the, finally we reached and crossed the Mississippi River and saw the first Great River Road Sign. Yeah.
So, we were in Missouri for no longer than 30 minutes and we managed to break 3 laws. 1. we forgot to put on helmets (and were politely reminded of such by a nice driver) 2. We decided to park at an illegal spot near the arch, and were found out almost immediately by very nice park police. I explained that my bike was having mechanical difficulties (which was true, but not the reason we parked there). The nice park police lady asked us to move the bikes, but not before she agreed to pose for a photo. 3. Leaving our illegal parking spot we decided to drive through a red light to beat the traffic. No foul was incurred.
After a quick stop at a local Harley shop to confirm that my bike was going to explode, we headed south on the Great River Road.
Well, we headed south for about two miles and decided to stop at a local tavern to congratulate our having made it this far. At Brandy's Inn on Rt. 3 in Cahokia IL (which we came to learn was the first anglo settlement in IL --goodness how little I know) we met owners Dave and Laurie. As holds true the world over, people are good and nice -- there are just a few bad folks out there who ruin it for the whole world. Dave and Laurie took immediate interest in our trip and guided us to a slight route variation along the limestone bluffs of the Mississippi. What a cool ride. The bluffs are lined with cave openings which blow a constant 66 degree breeze, kind of like a massive airconditioner. To be sure we found the route Dave decided to ride along with us for 20 miles. How cool is that.
At Valmeyer IL we left Dave to continue south and immediately got lost. Well, we didn't really get lost, but the road we were on ended at a spot where the Miss is running high. It just ended. Schultz's gps guided us to an alternate route on a road called, quite naturally, Levee Road. It was gravel and dust and slow and not nice to motorcycles, but great none the less.
At a second watering hole, just to wash the dust you see, we met a very nice bartender named Tina and a patron who was not so nice. She, the patron, wondered out loud why anyone would ever visit the south. She then gave us a brief lecture on race and the such. Rise above, I say, though it is hard sometimes. Schultz looked at me, said "drop it" before could comment, and we left. Great little town this was though....Prarie Roger Illinois.
A few more hours of riding along the river basin (the river is not always visible) we stopped for the night in Chester IL, a great little town where, again news to me, the guy who created the cartoon character Popeye (E. C. Segar) was from. There are statues of Popeye everywhere.
Bikes are covered with lime dust. Sean and Schultz are covered with lime dust, but a great travel day with lots of adventure.
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