Wednesday, we left Island View and traveled for 8 hours heading to Wisconsin. Before we left, we played our free play. The Magma slot machine caught my attention. After all Magma is a legend at the Crane Ranch with it's wonder lust, traveling where no other Mississippi Sandhill Cranes have been known to go. It was a good hunch. My $10 free play turned into $72 cash. Lauren did pretty good too, cashing in $35 from his $25 free play. Unusual for us to have a win win!!
We hit the road around 9 am and traveled to Sikeston, Missouri. We happened upon a room/suite at the Days Inn & Suites. This is way more room than we need for the night, but we aren't complaining.
Thursday we woke up to clear skies. Lauren got up earlier than me, which is nothing unusual. As he was heating water in the microwave, the cup caught on fire. Note to self, read the small print that states not to be used in a microwave. Then he sat in the desk chair and it almost threw him when the back of the chair was loose. Whew!
We got on the road at 8:20 and were expecting to be in Tomah, Wisconsin 8 hours later. Everything was going good, until we were ready to pull off and get diesel in Springfield, Illinois. That's when the phone, the radio, and the roadside sirens started blaring about a tornado heading our way. Not a good place to be. It was one of those, should we stay or should we go moments. We chose to go!
We had some really nasty wind and sideways rain as we proceeded trying to get ahead of the storm, seeing a couple of 18 wheelers blown over, then we literally hit a road block. The interstate was closed both North and South. After an hour or so, we were turned around and took a detour. All the while wondering if there was anywhere with electricity we could get fuel before running out. Luckily, we had plenty of fuel to get to Bloomington.
We finally made it to Tomah, Wisconsin. What should have taken 8 hours turned into a 10 1/2 hour drive. We walked over to the Mexican Restaurant adjacent to the hotel and had a fabulous dinner!! We have had quite an exciting day! It's time for Mother Nature to turn it down a notch.
Friday, we spent the day with our tour guide, Angie, at Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. We had a great tour doing our usual, nature chasing and got a big boost on iNaturalist observations. This place has some awesome birds, blooms, and such.
We also got to see the blind that was used by the big wheels during Operation Migration. Pretty cool.
We continued our enjoyment of nature chasing when we got to Angie and Chad's place. They live on top on the hill, surrounded by crop fields and have plenty of birds frequenting their yard. You can see for miles and miles.
We went out to eat at a yummy fish restaurant then stopped by a local bar to listen to the band. After we got home we played 5 Crowns until 1:30 in the morning. Lauren won a game, me on the other hand was always dead last. It was a lot of fun, even if I didn't win.
Saturday, we did a little bit of day drinking and eating at Chicken Chasers Bar and Grill. Pretty good food.
We also stopped by Weavers and stocked up on cheese, summer sausage, chips, and several different types of Dark Chocolate treats. It's a good thing for my waistline that this store is 1000's of miles away from home.
We went to the Falls Creek Water Fall and sat for a bit, listening and watching the falls, while getting some photos of critters and such. There were all kinds of cool stuff here.
We made another trip to the bar and listened to the band before going back home and playing more 5 Crowns.
Sunday, we lounged around and enjoyed the nature at Angie and Chad's. It was a nice, laid back, kind of day.
Monday, we all got quite the surprise when the trap that was set to catch a bird feed stealing coon, caught a skunk. After 4 hours of pondering how to get the skunk out without being sprayed, we managed to successfully let him loose .
Angie carefully approached and placed a towel over the trap. The first attempt Pepe jumped up and lifted it's tail, so needless to say, Angie retreated. Her second attempt was a success. They opened the gate and propped open the trap door. We thought Pepe would run right out, after all it had been pacing all morning trying to figure a way out. We thought wrong.
We decided we needed to pull the towel off of the trap. Angie layed on the porch, got a stick with a hook, and pulled the towel off. The dang skunk still didn't try to get out. It appeared Pepe went to sleep.
Lauren stood on the porch and dripped water on Pepe to wake it up. The skunk woke up, stuck his head out the door, and started eating grass. Dang, we thought we would never get it to leave the trap. Finally, he took a few steps and ran to the woods. Whew, what a morning!!!
The afternoon we went to Chad's hunting property and took pictures of all kinds of cool stuff. This is our kind of place.
Tuesday was a Happy 4th of July. We enjoyed a hike until the thunderstorm started. We made it back safe, sound, and soaked.
Before the rain started, we watched an Eastern Towhee vigorously take a bath. So much fun to watch.
Lauren and Chad got to see an Eastern Hognose snake up close. Angie and I missed it. Oh well, we got to see the pictures.
On our way back home, we stopped and admired Sandhill Cranes and a flock of Wild Turkeys. We can't get over how the Sandhill Cranes look so different in Wisconsin than they do when they migrate South. They paint themselves a reddish color with mud when they are in Wisconsin.
We helped Angie and Chad move some furniture, grilled, played cards, then called it a night.
Wednesday, we had another fun day at Necedah NWR, getting in some hiking and nature chasing.
We were greeted by three young Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrels when we arrived to the parking lot. At first we saw one, then a second head popped up, then a third head popped up. So stinking cute!
On our way to buy some fresh cherries, we found a Sandhill family in one of the pastures.
We went to Trail's End Bar and Grill for dinner and drinks, then went to a couple of other bars before making it back home and calling it a night, (or maybe it was morning??)
Thursday, we lounged around and got some nature chasing done while being supervised by Jax.
We went back to Weavers and stocked up on goodies to take home, then did some shopping in Eau Claire. When we returned home, we grilled and played 5 Crowns. I actually amazed myself and everyone else when I won a game!!
Friday, we woke up to 47 degrees. We lounged around and drank our coffee getting some more pictures of the many birds that reside around the back porch. After getting packed up, we started our trek South.
We took the Great River Road, easing through towns, and enjoying the scenery. We made a stop at the National Eagle Center in Wabasha. It was fun playing the soar like an eagle game. Lauren quit and had a zero score. I finally hit a target and got a 100 points! We checked out the exhibits, purchased some tee shirts, then headed on our way.
We made it to a motel in Clinton, Iowa and enjoyed those Weaver goodies before going to bed.
Saturday was another enjoyable day of taking the scenic route. There were some mighty cool towns that we drove through along the Mighty Mississippi River.
We were planning on staying in Sikeston, Missouri at the same hotel that we stayed in on our way over. Their weekend price was over $40 what we paid during the week. We found a cheaper hotel a few miles down the way. We were pleasantly surprised when we got there and found they have a restaurant and a live band. The food was good. The band was awesome. We got entertainment, food, and a room for what it would have cost us for just a room in Sikeston. Sometimes, you just get lucky!
Sunday, we wrapped up our Wisconsin trip after 8 hours and made it back to Crossroads. We will get our laundry done and the grass mowed before heading back to the Crane Ranch tomorrow.
Mileage: 2643.7 miles, Fuel 135.7 Gallons
