Day 23 ending near Sullivan, IL

September 15, 2015

rode on Lincoln Prairie Grass Trail

Up at 6:00am (CDT) this morning, without using the alarm. It was warmer overnight, and I slept well without all the cold-night accessories.

It wasn't until this morning that I discovered how close to the lake I am. It's peaceful, reflecting the morning light.

Last night the camp host explained the large plastic circle at my campsite. It's to channel rainwater away from a tent set up inside the circle. He'd said I could set up anywhere, and since rain wasn't predicted, I set up outside the circle.

For today, I had planned a diversion from straight-line home routing. I want to ride on the Lincoln Prairie Grass Trail. This trail goes between Charleston and Mattoon. From Mattoon, I'll head to the US Army Corps of Engineers Forrest "Bo" Wood Campground on Lake Shelbyville.

I saw the camp host this morning when I was getting water, and asked him if there is a shortcut for getting out of the park (no). So I left my campsite at 8:42am and rode the loop back to the entrance/exit, arriving at 8:54am. I always see a lot of wildlife along parks roads, and this morning was no exception. One big bird was sitting on a guard rail with its wings outstretched in the sun. Trying to get pictures of this sort of thing never works.

From the park exit, I went east a little ways to get to the main road south to Oakland. Wind was from the south today, so there was a little resistance on this flat road south.

Arrived in Oakland at 9:22am. I started riding a loop around the square looking for a restaurant. I passed a place named the Oakland Noodle Company. I saw people in there, and someone came out just then. I asked if that place was a cafe. He said they just make noodles there, and pointed out a place to eat down the street beyond the square. I was glad, because I don't like noodles.

There were two men outside 'Steve and Shirley's' when I pulled up and parked the bike. One asked if I worked for Caterpillar, since I'd told them I was heading to Morton. He had a relative who had lived in Pekin and worked at Caterpillar for a while back in the 1950s.

There was a group of ladies finishing up their breakfast meeting at a large table toward the back when I walked in. I ordered eggs, bacon, pancakes, orange juice, and coffee. My waitress was the daughter of the cook, however it was her mother who presented my freshly-made breakfast. I noticed she did this personal delivery for others, also. The pancakes were very good. I asked about pie, but that was just being made now, so I ordered two more pancakes - as good as dessert.

I left an hour later, ready to follow my GPS waypoints toward the trailhead in Charleston. They had me going west first. A mile west of town I came to a 'Road Closed' sign, so turned around to head south first. My Illinois Bicycle Map came in handy here.

I got off this main road south onto CR-1300N at 11:44am. The road off this gravel road provided a nice spot for a break. Recorded the noon distance covered (I was still on break): 13.7 miles. It was my plan now to cross the Embarras River on Old State Road, keeping me off IL-16. Taking back roads south and west from here would get me there. I passed by Charleston Stone Company on Old State Road and got up to another 'Road Closed' sign. I can't seem to get across this river! Actually, the solution was close-by - get on IL-16 - which I did.

I finally made it to the trailhead for the Lincoln Prairie Grass Trail at 1:35pm. It's an older rail-trail, paralleling power lines. Made it through Charleston on the trail without problems. Back in the country, the trail jogged over to underneath power lines held up by twin poles. This is how the trail stayed most all the way to Mattoon. There were lots of grasshoppers - some hopping on for a ride.

I passed through Loxa at 3:00pm, and under I-57 at 3:30pm. At 3:45pm, I was in Mattoon, taking a break by a water tower. Made it to the actual trail-end at 4:06pm. Now west on streets to get out of town.

I saw a Dairy Queen ahead at 4:15pm, and thought "supper". Had a bacon cheeseburger, fries, and a chocolate shake.

Back at it at 4:46pm. I followed my waypoints (mostly), making it to the small town of Bruce by 6:30pm. I needed to go a mile west from here, and the sun was in the worst possible position for me to be seen by drivers going west. Fortunately, only one car came by, and I was well off the road when it did.

Now, finally, for a straight ride north with a tailwind, about two miles. I was hoping to get a nice near-sunset photo of Lake Shelbyville as I passed by, but road construction - a stop light-controlled one-lane bridge situation - prevented that.

Made it to the campground turn-off, then the gatehouse at 6:48pm. I asked for an electric site, and was told all their sites have electricity. I picked site #139 in the tent-only area at 6:55pm. An earlier arrival than last night, but not by much. This site is next to the lake, though there's quite a drop-off near the bank. A cool breeze was blowing off the lake, and I stood there a while enjoying that, before getting set up.

My mileage today was higher than I'd calculated it would be. It's probably good I didn't know that ahead of time. I had the bottle generator engaged for about two-thirds of the day, and was happy to see it brought the bike's battery voltage up from 12.2 volts to 12.4 volts.

I'm heading north from here. Hope the south wind lasts a few more days.

Jeff

Spent: $9.83 plus $3 (breakfast) + $8.74 (supper) + $18 (campsite) = $39.57.

Day 23 - Oakland, IL to Sullivan, IL

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+ plus signs indicate pictures added after returning home from the trip +