By traveler 
I rolled over in the hotel bed this morning and muttered a word inappropriate for this PG-13 blog. They say that payback is a b—-, well my body was demanding payback for all the dancing and late night celebration of the night before. After I finally dragged myself to a seated position, I gave very serious thought to taking the straightest route back to Grinnell. It was a close decision, but I opted to head up to Effigy Mounds National Monument in upstate Iowa as originally planned.
Since I didn’t get onto the road until after 10 a.m., I did the drive-through breakfast thing and headed back across the Mississippi into Iowa. The river doesn’t look like all that much size-wise this far north, but it still has it majestic moments. I stopped at a scenic view along the road and got these shots:
Effigy Mounds is a bit off the beaten path, and I’ll bet a hiker would find walking its trails an edifying experience. Under the best of circumstances, however, I wouldn’t call myself a hiker, and today ? No way!
I got some shots of the ranger station and immediate area. You’ll have to visit for yourself if you want the view from the mounds’ heights.
The rest of the drive was a relaxing, mostly low-traffic excursion down scenic roads, through small towns, and past farms readying for the Spring planting season. It was a beautiful day just to be out and see things. I did cut out the stop by my mother’s favorite Iowa casino and pointed RB homeward.
(BTW, since testing out my new hat was one of the excuses I gave for this trip, I should report that the hat did its job, including staying on my head in strong breezes. However, it reminded me of a child’s hat too small for the head it covered. I never wore it again.)
Overall, it was an enjoyable trip, but I was definitely still feeling it as I drove back into home base. This is a forewarning to me about my upcoming planned trip. Gotta be in better condition, or I won’t get all I want out of it.
The music for this part of the trip started with a continuation of the “E” part of my drive-time playlist, but since it was Sunday, I switched to the set of CDs in RB’s player. Got to enjoy Gospel, Spirituals and contemporary sacred music by Take 6, Chanticleer, and assorted performers from 50’s, 60’s, 70s to the 2000s–from the Swan Silvertones, to Edwin Hawkins, to Mary, Mary.
I am very glad that I’ve been exposed to so many styles of music over the years. I find there’s not much I dislike. Listening, and often singing along, helps the miles of driving all the more enjoyable.