Our Journey : Hillman Ferry Campground

11/09/2015

November 9, 2015 Three States and Two Rivers

This morning we left our little spot on Kentucky Lake and continued our journey west:

Heading towards the great rivers:

The Ohio River flood plain – yes, it is farmed:

Over the Ohio River:

Into Illinois:

There is a small strip of land here between the Ohio and Mississippi. Yes, it also mostly farmed:

And getting ready to cross another mighty river:

The mighty Mississippi:

Into Missouri:

Where we road the levy road for a few miles:

We are staying south of Charleston, Missouri at Boom Land RV Park. It is $12.00 for full hook ups – not bad. I will take some picture tomorrow.

After setting up, we took a road trip south to explore. Most of this area is farmed and many of those areas are being harvested. I just find it fascinating to watch.

Many ponds and swampy areas:

Check out this barn on a mound – protection from river flooding maybe?:

No hills, just flat farmland – WOW!:

There were many farm silos and barns but very few farmhouses as we got closer to the river:

Irrigation Ditches:

We saw many buildings that looked like this but were being used to store machinery. Imagine the stories this could tell:

And we are there!:

We arrived at the Hickman Dorena Ferry on the Mississippi River. Hickman, KY is across the river where there are loading grain into barges. This Ferry is one of the few remaining riverboat ferries in the United States and the only operating ferry crossing the Mississippi River between Missouri and Kentucky.

The ferry is coming our way:

We are at Dorena, MO side where the only thing in this area is a huge Consolidated Grain and Barge Plant – lots of trucks coming and going.

Very interesting. We hung out for a little watching the barges and headed north over the levy wall:

Lots of farm equipment on the road:

We followed another road that led to the Mississippi, It did but ended in a business so we stopped nearby and took these photos:

Many barges docked here:

Check out the cables and chains holding them here – WOW!:

There was a little side area that talked about the history of this area. This was part of the Trail of Tears and it also played a part in the Civil War along with Columbus, KY directly across the river.

From there we made our way over the levy:

The levy roads are all along the river and also another series about a mile in. Very interesting!

Tomorrow we will explore the New Madrid area so stay tuned and enjoy today.

Stats for today:

Miles Traveled: 89 Miles

Routes Traveled:

Kentucky: The Trace Road; SR-453; I-24; US-60

Illinois: US-60

Missouri: US-60; I-57; SR-105; Beasley Park Road

11/08/2015

November 7–8, 2015 Land Between the Lakes

November 7th, we continued our exploration of the side roads as we made our way to the Nature Center where they were having their fall festival.

After going thru their museum, we went to the backyard where we found gardens, birds, and animals.

Coyote- he looked so sad:

Isn’t he just the cutest:

This summer we had a family of ground hogs living on our street. They were quite huge by the fall – Smile

Gobble, Gobble:

There were signs on the fence about the turkeys – Don’t put your fingers near the fence – The turkeys can bite.

They followed us as we walked along the fence.

Red wolves:

With their coloring and the leaves, it can be hard to see them (can you find him/her):

He was up and watching something very intently.

The red wolf was near extinction in the 70’s but since then they are slowly being reintroduced in the east. This pair is part of the breeding program overseen by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

There was a small family of deer: