August 2021
I had an opportunity last week to head back to the Heartland. We, my wife Linda and me, flew into St. Louis and, over two days, drove to Mansfield, Illinois. I chose the long and scenic route along the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers mainly because it followed many of the stories in my book The Rats of Plainville: Tales from the Heartland.
We drove north, across the Mississippi River, into Alton Illinois. After lunch at the world-famous Fast Eddies, we followed the river up to Pere Marquette State Park and then rode the Brussels Ferry into the Land Between the Rivers. We wandered here and there as we made our way through Brussels and Batchtown and Hardin.
We had to stop in Micheal for a cold beer. Not just any beer – a Stag Beer. I stopped there several years ago, on my way back to St. Louis from Hannibal, Missouri. The temperature on that hot humid day inched toward 1030 Fahrenheit. I needed to cool off and pulled into the dirt lot in front of the Micheal Tavern. For $1.50, I was handed a cold (ice-covered) mug of Stag. It was so cooling, I had two. Ever since that day, every time I drove up or down Illinois Highway 100, I stopped at the Michael Tavern.
From Micheal, we continued north into Plainville. I showed Linda the highlights of the town made famous from my book. The tour of downtown to twenty seconds. We drove through and into Payson, a slightly bigger town. As we meandered along State Street I saw something right out of the book. A man with a parrot on his shoulder was walking through Payson. Could the bird be related to Molly? I had to find out. I circled around and met up with him. His name was Shawn and his parrot’s name was Benjamin. I asked Benjamin if he was related to Molly. He didn’t answer. Apparently, he’s not as talkative as Molly.
We spent the night in Quincy. The next morning, we drove to the Quincy Library and donated a copy of the book. We then drove into Hannibal and bought coffee at the Java Jive, a place I mention in my latest book Fifty-One: My Travels Across America.
Our sight-seeing was done and it was time to drive to Linda’s sister’s home in Mansfield. We followed smaller roads through central Illinois, passing through Clayton and Mt. Sterling and Rushville. Somewhere on Highway 136, near San Jose, a storm materialized. It wasn’t just a storm. It was a deluge. Rain pounded off the windshield and visibility was greatly reduced. But not before I saw a corn crib along the side of the road. Linda was not surprised when I pulled the car off to the side of the road, grabbed my camera, and ran across the road. I made an eerie photograph of the old structure being battered by the storm. One minute later, I climbed back into the car, soaking wet, but sure I captured the essence of the storm.
We made it to Mansfield later that afternoon and spent four days visiting family, breweries, and local attractions. Our trip to the Heartland was a great escape from the heat and smoke of Colorado.