Day 77 - Rock Falls, IL to Peru, IL - Two Far 2020 - NTF (Not Two Far)

August 15, 2020

Day 77 - Rock Falls, IL to Peru, IL

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We had two things to celebrate today. It was our first ride with an elevation gain of less than 1000 feet in a while and the forecast afternoon thunderstorms didn't materialize. It was very overcast much of the day which kept the temperature from getting too hot and we had a tailwind most of the way.

It felt good to be riding toward the light when we started out.

There's nothing new to share about the scenery - corn and beans and farmsteads for miles and miles.

We had many miles like this. We called them "corn walls" - solid tall corn on both sides of the road.

A few interesting old buildings we passed today.

And something that passed us just too soon for me to get a picture. We were 30 seconds too late to a get a shot of an Amtrak train going by.

Seconds ago, there was a Amtrak train here. The guard gates are not quite all the way open yet. I knew everyone would enjoy this picture :).

This train wasn't moving. It is outside the Depot Museum in Amboy, IL. We thought about making a quick tour of the museum, but thoughts of thunderstorms dissuaded us.

As we approached this property, I thought at first it was actually people working in their yard.

Sending a positive message - let's all do what we can to take care of each other.

Kerry is going to finish today's entry.

Lou - Even though the spelling is wrong, it made us think of you.

When we were a few miles outside Cherry, IL, I could see what appeared to be a mountain . It looked very out of place and we wondered what it was, as this part of the state is very flat and open. It turns out that it is an old shale pile from a coal mine and locally they are referred to as "jumbos". In the late 80's the state took a survey and identified more than 60 of these abandoned shale heaps. Once an eyesore, several communities have now turned them into parks to commemorate their history. This particular shale pile is larger than most, and the locals refer to it as a "whopper". It sits right next to a park that is dedicated to the tragic mining disaster that happened in the town in 1909.

According to Wikipedia, the Cherry Mine Disaster is the 3rd worst coal mine disaster in U.S. history. Amazingly, the 21 men that the monument mentions survived in the mine for 8 days before being rescued.

As we approached Peru, I saw these buildings from a couple of miles away and thought it might be a coal mine. It turns out it is a sand processing facility. The sand is trucked in from local quarries, processed, and then shipped out by rail.

Five years ago the facility, nor the rail yard, existed. It was built to support the shale oil demand for fracking sand.

Today's ride: 55 miles (89 km)
Total: 2,408 miles (3,875 km)

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Lou HarminHarmin has an "IN", not an ON.
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