Tuesday 8-28 The Rain Has Come

The rain has come

The weather report indicated a strong possibility of rain late today so we left Forbes State Park early this morning hoping to get to our next destination before the rain.

As we drove we saw a lot of farm fields and drove through small towns. When we got to Vandalia we stopped to take a picture of the third Statehouse in Illinois. It was a beautiful building but we couldn't walk through it because it was too early. After taking a few pictures I came back and noticed that one of the exhaust pipes was hanging down. Larry drove to NAPA Auto Parts Store and removed it. He asked if they knew where he could find an exhaust repair shop. They told him where to find a repair shop called McDowell's Service. Off to McDowell's we went. We were told that it would only take 45 minutes but they had to send out for a part so it ended up taking over two hours. It's a very nice facility and has a lot of big tow trucks. We were very happy they got us right in.

The Third Statehouse in Vandalia

The Minnie getting its exhaust pipe fixed

Larry checking out the work area

By the time we left McDowell's it was close to lunchtime so we drove to the next town called Pana. They had a super nice city park with a big playground, a beautiful bridge that went over a pond, a fountain, a big ramada for group gatherings, a swimming pool, very nice memorial honoring people who lost their lives in the military, a walking trail, restrooms and ball fields. We stopped there and had lunch.

The playground at Pana City Park

The bridge that goes over the pond with a fountain

We were about 120 miles from our next destination and rain clouds were building up so we decided to find a place for the night. We found that Starved Rock State Park was just 30 miles away so that's where we went. We were driving through the park when Larry remembered we had stayed here when we visited Illinois eight years ago. 

Starved Rock State Park is a huge park. There is a visitor center, hiking trails and campgrounds. The hiking trails are by the visitor center but the campground is a few miles away. The campground has two loops. One loop has a lot of trees to give you privacy and keep you cool. There is a bathroom with showers. The other loop is smaller and doesn't have as many trees. All the sites are a nice size with a fire ring, picnic table and power. There is no water at the sites.

Camping at Starved Rock State Park

We found a site and filled out the payment envelope, then we walked down to the booth and paid. On the way back it was thundering and started to rain. It only lasted a few minutes. I made dinner and then I walked around to get my steps. It was very muggy and by the time I got back I was soaked with sweat. Later the rain came back with a vengeance, wind, lightning, thunder and driving rain. The good news was it cooled things off.