Indiana - Day 1 - driving south to north

Elkhart Co/Middlebury KOA
Saturday, 1 June 2019

On our 2nd walk this morning at Stonelick campground, I counted about a dozen empty campsites in the park, out of more than 100 sites.  Meaning it was pretty full for a Friday night.  Once again I'm glad we're leaving.

T@G trailer

Last night as I was putting up the curtain across the front windshield, I watched the family across the street from me.  They had arrived with a car and a station wagon and a tiny T@G trailer.  This photo on the left is the only one online that didn't have copyright problems, though it looks bigger than the one this couple had.  But the thing is they looked well into their thirties and they had 3 very young children.  I don't know what they were using the trailer for - though this morning I saw the mom open up the kitchen at the rear end - because they quickly raised a sizeable tent with a separate rain tarp, covered the floor in what looked like a very large sleeping bag and, while I watched, assembled a bunk bed that consisted of 2 tiers of cots.  Meanwhile these tiny children were bouncing around (literally), clearly thrilled to be on such an exciting adventure.  I know there was never a time in my life when I had enough patience or energy to cope with - let alone enjoy - that situation.  Brave people.

today's route

I took the ring road around Cincinnati that I've been on before and, even though today's a Saturday and I left the campground before 7:30, there was still plenty of traffic on the road.  I didn't expect it.

Not many miles past Cincinnati I crossed the state line.

Welcome to Indiana!

Indiana - my 15th state

The welcome sign said Indiana is the Crossroads of America (it's their state motto, per Wikipedia, though that sounds more like a nickname to me or a slogan, but their nickname is "The Hoosier State" and their slogan is "Honest to Goodness Indiana" (huh?).

The welcome sign also said Indiana is the boyhood home of Abraham Lincoln and that Benjamin Harrison is the only US president from Indiana.  Actually, B. Harrison was born and raised in Ohio, but he moved to Indianapolis when he was 21 and continued to live there until he died - which probably makes it okay for Indiana to claim him.

I passed a sign letting me know I could take an exit to get to the Milan Miracle Museum.  The Milan (Ind.) basketball team's victory over a Muncie (Ind.) high school team in 1954 was the basis for the wonderful movie "Hoosiers," and they've got a museum now to honor the team.

I'd intended to stop at a rest area that's shown on the map as being a welcome center.  Sadly, I didn't feel welcomed because the entire area was closed due to road construction.  The dogs were not alone in being ready for a break, so I found a shopping center a little farther down the road and stopped there for a bit.  The parking lot was separated from the highway by a swale of swamp, including cattails and, of course, Red-winged Blackbirds, just singing their hearts out.  It was also the home to so much honeysuckle I could smell it even above the highway and parking lot smells.

I passed a sign saying I should come to Greensburg to see their world-famous tree growing in the roof of a tower.  I looked it up and it's apparently true, and you can see for yourself at this link.   https://www.decaturcounty.in.gov/history

As I passed just north of town I saw that Greensburg also seems to have a really big Honda manufacturing plant.

I had lunch at a place called Bub's Burgers - I figured with a name like that I couldn't go too far wrong - and I was right.  They cooked and prepared each order in the order they received them, and they used real food.  My burger was actual meat that tasted like meat, and was well seasoned and flavorful.  I'd forgotten commercial burgers could taste like that.  Good choice.

Bub's regular hamburger + extra patty for (spoiled) dogs

I passed an exit for Galveston and wondered if I'd taken a wrong road somewhere.

And a bit later I passed a longhorn standing in a field and really wondered where I was.

Then I passed a round barn and knew I wasn't in Texas.  It really was round.  I slowed down and stared at it as much as the traffic would allow.  It looked like stone to about 3' high, then wood placed to run vertically (can't run lengthwise because it's round) up to the roof, and then a shingle roof with patterns in it, including a chicken and a cow and a flower.

Then a little farther down the road I saw another round barn, this one just plain white with a shingle roof.

All day I drove past farm fields, though many haven't been plowed yet.

I passed a sign telling me to turn here for the Anabaptist Seminary, which actually told me there're quite a few Amish people in the area.

I passed a pond with a pair of Canada Geese, each at the opposite ends of a line of 8 young 'uns, all swimming along peacefully.  What a nice picture they made.

I passed several RV manufacturing plants, including the Thor plant where mine was probably made.  I'll check to see if they offer tours.

I've seen several really rusted newer-model cars today and am speculating that they use liberal doses of salt on the roads during winter.

Just before I turned into the KOA, I saw a highway sign saying I'm 2 miles from the Michigan state line.  I hadn't realized I was that far north.