Day 8 - ending at Fairmount, IN - Northern Indiana on the Open Road

September 6, 2011

Day 8 - ending at Fairmount, IN

Posted via email Wed Sep 7 05:48:01 2011 PDT

Awake at 6:00am. It was cold last night - 47 degrees F at 7:00am. I broke out my 'emergency' space blanket last night, as well as another hand warmer. They worked and I slept warm.

Worked on report, sent some emails, and packed. Ready to leave at 11:02am. Stopped at the shower house for water and was at the exit at 11:12am.

Even with two GPS's, a paper map, and directions on the BlackBerry, I had to backtrack, since I missed my first turn.

Strong northeast winds made it slow going. My first focused goal was to make it to Elwood for breakfast. I made it to Walnut Grove at noon. At 12:17pm I took a break at a creek bridge near high voltage cross-country lines. Had an oats-and-honey bar and some trail mix. Left at 12:34pm, pushing on to Elwood. I was off the Google Maps route again, but this time my road selection was better (paved, not-busy roads).

Made it to Richard's Restaurant in Elwood at 2:05pm. Had the country fried steak breakfast and coffee. Tried working on the report, but first one, then another older gentlemen wanted to talk. That was OK - they were interesting and knew a lot about the local area. Decided to also have peach pie with ice cream. Finally left at 3:32pm.

I took advantage of the lesser wind in town to make my way another mile north.

My destination from the list of five Kris had provided was Marbrook Campground near Gas City. A little head-figuring made me realize that at my speed, I'd be getting there after dark. The paper map (DeLorme) showed a campground nearer on Route 37. I headed there.

At 5:00pm there was a nice spot for a break where I could pull off the road and sit. Not that I needed to be off the road - there were no cars.

Found a beautiful shoulder on Route 37 when I got to it. Arrived at Hidden Lake Campground at 5:55pm. Checked in and was shown a spot I could use next to an outlet. No picnic table, though. I got set up and then went back to the camp office/store for a Dr. Pepper. Ate some ginger snaps with the soda, then sat on a nearby merry-go-round to finish up yesterday's report.

It was mostly cloudy today, but you couldn't tell it from the pictures. The sun came out for them.

Spent: $9.70 + 2 (breakfast), $22 (campsite fee with 'lite' electric), $1.25 (Dr. Pepper).

Went: 28 miles.

Jeff

Day 8 - Cicero, In to Fairmount, IN

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