Covid Cross Day #15 Ashkum, IL to Henry, IL
Covid Cross Day #15
June 16, 2020
Ashkum, IL to Henry, IL 96.5 Miles
Start 6:46 AM Finish 6:44 PM
Ride Time 8:07
Ascent 440 Feet
Descent 616 Feet
Tour Total 1352 Miles
I had a good nights sleep in the Ashkum Village Park. It was a nice park located in the center of town. Unfortunately the bathrooms were locked and I couldn’t find an electric hook up. There were picnic tables where I could drink my beer, eat pretzels, and edit yesterday's blog post. I had waited until after dark to set up my tent. I had twice dialed the contact person listed on my ACA map, but both times no one had picked up. I was 99% sure that camping would be permissible. Throughout the night I could hear the distant murmur of I-57 as well as freight train horns. A major train artery ran through town, and yesterday I spotted the Amtrak 'City of New Orleans' passenger train.
I woke up at 6 AM Central Time to sunrise and chirping birds. I straddled up to a large tree to relieve myself. The park was surrounded by houses. I rode to the BP station on the edge of town where I purchased two bottles of Starbucks Frappuccino and a pack of mini powdered donuts. There I met Bob, who lived in one of the houses ringing the park where I had slept. He said that it had been perfectly fine to camp there. He enjoyed talking to cross-country cyclists and would have offered me electricity and water had he noticed me last night. He mentioned a restaurant on the west side of town called Beans and Barley. Had I not stopped at BP I could have enjoyed breakfast there. According to Google they had been closed yesterday afternoon, so dinner last night would not have been an option.
I needed to find electrical power tonight. My power-pack was down to 30% and all my devices were empty. I also needed a shower and a place to do laundry. I found myself stair-stepping around fields on one-lane asphalt country roads. There was a slight breeze out coming from the east. It was sunny and clear.
A giant wind farm came into view to the north west. It stretched for miles on the horizon. I was wearing my sweater and short sleeve jersey and shorts. I'd been wearing the same clothing since I left Fort Thomas, and I hadn't showered. I know, it was disgusting. I took a birdbath this morning at the BP station. I washed my hands and my face. I stopped to remove my sweater and put on some sunscreen. I was almost out of sunscreen. I hadn’t cleaned my chain in over a week, and I really need to. A man watering his garden asked how far I was going. When I replied, "Oregon", He responded, "Oh my!".
Birds had a strong presence here on the prairie. I noticed blackbirds and a bird that I hadn't yet identified. It was brown with a long wing span and a white belly. It had a white stripe along wing edge along with orange feathers. These birds were especially friendly and often flew alongside me or overhead at the same pace. There were also these brown little sparrow-type birds, and the occasional robin.
Bill, the cyclist I met yesterday, had a funny cycling idea. Pick a random starting point and a tour duration. Every day, basically just follow the wind. He had been fighting headwinds for several days. I approached the edge of the wind farm that I had been seeing for miles, and noticed that one of the turbines wasn’t working. As I got closer I could see that workers were trying to fix it. I stopped and visited wind turbine number J-15. I could not believe how big these things were. I estimated 150 feet to the swivel part and one hundred foot long blades.
The first town I came to was Kempton, population 235. I could see the water tower from miles out. I passed the cemetery, the elementary school, and small houses with trees in the front yard. I rode by the grain elevator complex and crossed a set of railroad tracks. I spotted the mural that I had photographed last year. I went to Tom’s Tavern and restaurant where I’d gone last year. Table service was set up outside on the street, yet it was closed.
They were doing road construction at the intersection of Highway 47, where new asphalt was being laid down. The road crew signaled when it was safe for me to cross. I could see the blue tower in Odell from six miles away. It would be my breakfast stop and I was hungry. I had already traveled 33 miles.
I pulled into Odell, population 1046, and pedaled off the route into the center of town. I went to Cafe 110 West which had tables out front and was closed. I rode over to Rentz Tap & Dining which also had tables and chairs out front, and it was closed. The minimart was closed. On the way out of town I passed GD's Saloon, which was also closed. I could have stopped at the BP station on the way out of town, but decided to keep going. The small town of Cornell was eleven miles ahead. Hopefully the bar that had hosted last year's Skunk Holler would be open and serving food.
Fortunately I was a camel and I could get away with skipping meals. My fellow cyclist buddy Scott would have needed four meals by now. I took a left and headed south on State Highway 170 S. I was met with the wind, which was out of the Southeast. Eventually on this tour, I was gonna be on the wrong side of the wind for hours or days at a time. Or maybe I’d get lucky. I took a right on State Highway 23 W and the wind was behind me again.
After almost an hour of pedaling I entered Cornell, population 500. I'd been seeing "Pritzker Sucks" signs in people's yards all morning. Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker was being assailed on FOX news for mandating social distancing. Dense urban areas like Chicago and New York needed strict social distancing policies, whereas it was less of an issue in rural areas. My goodness! Was it not possible to bridge the urban/rural divide?
It felt like a homecoming as I pedaled into Cornell. I recognized the grain elevator complex and knew that the bar was directly across the street. Last year I had attended Skunk Holler here. A photo of me made their Facebook event page. Adventures bar and grill was open, and they were serving food. Social distance spacing was in effect, but no one was wearing masks. I elected for the air-conditioned interior and sat myself at the bar. I plugged in my power pack which was down to 18. I learned that Skunk Holler 2020 had been canceled because of COVID. I ordered a cheese burger with mushrooms and ham, and had three Dos Equis with a lime and a frosted glass. I was hungry and could have eaten another burger. I grabbed a quarter roll of toilet paper from the bathroom, and my power pack charged back up to 22 percent. Cornell had taken good care of me two years in a row. I put on more sunscreen and headed back out onto the road.
I zigzagged around cornfields on straight roads going west, north, west, south, and west. The wind was now out of the south so on western headings I had a crosswind, and on southern headings I had a headwind. Finally, I got on pleasant one and a half lane wide County Road 2900 and headed west with some cloud cover overhead, and it was refreshing. There was a line of trees to my left and soy beans to my right. The sun returned and it was bright. I heard a freight train horn and looked over to my left about a mile away, and saw a freight train headed east. It was about a mile long and an exhilarating sight to behold.
It was hot and sunny, and I realized that if I had wanted to pull over and take a nap in the grass, there were no trees or shady areas here. Corn rows were to my right as far as I could see, and soybeans to my left until the horizon. There were some puffy clouds but not enough to provide shade. I detoured off route to ride into Wenona, population 1000. I was still hungry, and desired another burger and beer. I passed lots of TURD signs, and finally a Biden. Only Steve’s Boardwalk Tap was open, and I ordered a Blue Moon. The kitchen was closed. I still had another twenty miles to my destination in Henry. I crossed over I-39 and was on a small two-lane County road with no road markings. I was followed by my bird friends.
I finally spotted a big tree and a nice plot of grass with shade, so I pulled over and took a nap. It was totally refreshing! On my way into Henry, I passed the yard with hundreds of shrubs growing in red pots arranged on black plastic that I had documented last year.
I enjoyed a nice downhill into Henry, and couldn't remember the last time I had ridden down a hill. I crossed a long narrow steel truss bridge over the Illinois River. I stopped at Rio Vista Grill, but they only offered take-out, and didn't sell beer. I had spotted The Landings At Henry Harbor from the bridge. This was where I had met Luisa, Caleb, and Kahvi last year. Once again I sat on the back porch. I remembered last year's extensive flooding of the Illinois River. I had two BBQ pork sandwiches and had several Sierra Nevada Pale Ales. I asked them to recharge my power-pack, and called the police department to get permission to camp at the city Waterworks Park. I was promised a working bathroom and electricity.
I brought a six-pack of Sierra Nevada and a bag of ice to the park. The bathroom was locked and the electricity wasn't working. There were families and enjoying the riverside park. I cringed at the imbecilic conversation.
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