I’m writing tonight from Lincoln, Nebraska, continuing our trip to California.
This was a good day on the road. The goal was 600 miles and we did 627… though Google informs me it’s only 563 miles as the crow flies.
Next time we’re going by crow!
Overall we’ve driven 1,384 miles since we left Connecticut. That’s 48% of the way.
Lots of folks have been asking about Doppler. I can’t overstate how good a traveler she’s been, laying on Helaine’s lap with her head resting on the center console. Most of the time she’s dozing. She’s never a bother.
The trip has affected her appetite. She has refused to eat her normal food. We spent an hour or so going to Petsmart in Mishawaka, IN¹. The dry food we got made no difference!
We’re told she will eat when she’s hungry. She’s still eating treats.
Google’s navigation app is how we find our way. Leaving Petsmart it took us to a road closed for construction!
Google knew the road was closed. It said so on my screen!
We tried to find another route, but Google kept asking us to u-turn and go back.
We ad libbed our own route, skirting around the Notre Dame campus in South Bend. This shopping trip/detour (and stops for gas and the bathroom) is why we only averaged 57 mph today.
Traffic was moderate on the Indiana Tollway. We stayed mostly at the speed limit with little opportunity to go faster. Things slowed down as we drove into Illinois, staying south of Chicago. Speeds finally picked as we moved into rural Western Illinois.
It’s easy to think of the Mississippi River as the center of the country. Not so! We’re 400 miles west of the Mississippi and just approaching the middle.
Next up was Iowa. I expected boring. It’s actually quite pretty. Both Helaine and I were pleasantly surprised.
We passed hundreds of farms along the way. It’s early in the season. The corn is as high as an elephant’s ankle.
What is tall (and huge) are the dozens of power generating windmills we saw. I’m all for clean energy and wind power, but the truth is, they’re a blight on the landscape.
If the folks here don’t mind, I don’t mind. I’m a definite NIMBY on wind power.
Around 6:00 PM CDT, 20 miles short of Council Bluffs IA, we pulled into a rest area to make hotel reservations. Iowa provides free WiFi at the rest areas. I plopped the laptop on the hood and pecked away. Thank you Hawkeyes.
We’re staying across the road from the Nebraska State Penitentiary!
The goal is another 600 mile day tomorrow which would bring us past Denver and through the Rockies. With Nebraska’s speed limit set at 75 mph (meaning a cruising speed around 83 mph) it’s easily doable.
¹ – Mishawaka is best known as the home of Ann Nyberg’s sister.