032: Days 40, 41 May 18, 19 2021: Morris to Starved Rock State Park, Utica Il: 38 miles and 1338 in total (m421.0)

We left Morris in two minds. It had been raining on and off these last two days and we were wondering whether we should use the trail (Christine's preference) or the road (my preference if the trail is wet, soft and muddy). We decided to give the trail a try and at one of the trail entrances we met another new friend, Jeff Shaw and his dog, Zeus.

Jeff showed us to the Trail and cycled with us for longer than he originally planned. Zeus must be used to this, as he soon got into an economical jog and caught up with us every time we stopped. 

Jeff, thanks a lot for the friendliness, the guidance and your enthusiasm. We loved the short time with you.

The overnight rain did not soften the surface too much and we were making good time. However, you could see that this part of the Trail is less used with the result that we had to single-track. This was fine on the harder surfaces of the morning, but more difficult later in the day when the rain started falling again.

We passed under this wooden arch bridge.

The Trail is beautiful and Christine is considering this as her best trail to date.

We had some obstacles as well.

We could also see that the primitive camp sites have not yet been preprared for the season. This is a negative point compared to the C&O Canal where the camp sites have been open for more than three weeks now. 

At Seneca the trail opened up a bit and we cycled past this grainery that is open for tours. It started raining shortly after we passed Seneca.

Christine flashing me a smile after we passed over a particularly nasty 2 miles of road - the adjacent farms are also using this short section and the road was regravelled with 12-19mm crushed stones, semi-compacted. We bounced and swerved a lot.

West of Seneca the Trail became a green tunnel

and you can clearly see the singletracking. It is difficult to ride this narrow road with a normal bike and the trailer made things more difficult.

Nothing prepared us for this though. Just east of Marseilles the local fertilizer factory is adding an extension with a couple of rail lines that cross the canal and Trail. I passed the sign on foot - just like we did at construction sites before.  

And I followed older bicycle tracks, so I knew others did this before. In less than 50 yards we were so bogged down in clinging mud that neither bicycle could move. In fact, they stood on their own without the use of the kickstands. 

These about 100 yards of clay took us the best part of an hour to get through and thereafter clean the bikes and trailer. We literally had to carry the bikes and the trailer over this section while we were hoping not to get stuck ourselves. And then we had to scrape the clay off the wheels and all running parts to prevent any hassles later. Like Christine commented afterwards, we could have asked to walk on the side of the construction site and bypassed this clay. Anyway, now we know more- -both about clay (this is worse than Virginia or North Carolina clay) and about checking out options before you do something.

This photo shows a crossing as we got used to it and, wow, we were glad to see the last of that clay patch.

We passed by a lock and 

a beautiful pedestrian bridge as we entered

the Town of Marseilles.

We pulled in at the local Circle K-gas station (even though we do not have Harley's 🤣🤣🤣), got some coffees and walked across the street for lunch. We used the sidewalk furniture of a closed restaurant, Ziggy's, and watched the cars drive by.

The rain was coming down steadily now and the cycling became more difficult. But, the scenery remained beautiful.

And then you get a good stretch  

of pavement and you build up your faith again.

We passed the La Salle River aquaduct. The original structure was replaced with this steel structure with a mesh bottom.  Soon thereafter we decided to cycle the last 5 miles to the Starved Rock State Park on road. 

We passed the Starved Rock Dam and Lock System and saw the overlooks of the State Park on the other side of the Illinois River. 

We crossed the Illinois River on a new bridge with a wide, separate cycle path.

On the way the the Lodge I fell and badly damaged my front wheel. I was knocked out and an ambulance took me to the hospital for a checkup. 

Here we experienced how God also works wonders. The Maintenance Manager for the Starved Rock Lodge, Charlie Frandin, the Conservation and Local Police, the Ambulance Team and the hospital staff, as well as passers-by that stopped, like Glen Hamilton and two young people were all part of God's plans. The young couple requested to pray for Christine and I, Charlie and the police took the bicycles to the Lodge where Charlie stored them for us and the second policeman took Christine to the hospital. 

I cried when Christine told me all this and thank God for sending these people over our path.

The scans did not show any problems and I was discharged from the Hospital in Peru that evening.

Thanks also, Nurse Stephanie, for following up on my wellbeing after my discharge.

Thanks, also, Jeff for being on standby for assistance. 

We booked into our Cabin for the originally planned two days and took our stuff to the cabin that evening - thanks again, Charlie, for having your staff available to assist and bring the bicycles to the Cabin. 

We had an amazing morning. Glen came over and was very happy to see me pottering around. He was worried since he saw the fall and he told me how it happened. 

Then it was Charlie. We told him that we wanted to stay longer and must still go to reception and he looked on when the largest taxi vehicle in the area, an old van, arrived. I arranged with a local bicycle shop to have my bicycle repaired and to also service both bikes. He saw that the bikes would not fit and after the taxi left, offered to take the bicycles to the shop. 

Then it was other staff at the Lodge, enquiring about our health and being amazed at our plans. 

Anyway, we decided to stay over for two more days and shall now leave from the Starved Rock Lodge and State Park on Saturday. I am glad we could arrange it, thanks Charlie, as it would assist our recovery (I from the fall and Christine from the shock) and we would have more time to hike to some of the highlights in this State Park. Our next Blog will be devoted to the Park and its beauty.