April 2023 Wander: Part I
We did it! We squoze out the money for a quick wander and oh MAN did it feel good. It felt like heaven.
I think I've admitted in the past that whenever we leave on a trip we stop at McDonald's for breakfast. It's only allowed on the first day, never after that. So, with unhealthy food in hand, we happily headed out.
We were headed for Greene County, Illinois. I should have consulted my friend, James Alred, for advice as he knows the area well but it was a quickly planned trip. We spent Thursday morning at Carle as Ernie is starting back on Keytruda (with a trip to Barnes coming up as well). It was startlingly quick. I guess because he didn't need platelets or fluid on top of the Keytruda. We headed home and decided to splurge and wander the next day.
We took off on 72 headed for Jacksonville as our starting point. I couldn't take the highway for that long though so we got off closer to Springfield. Our last full on wander (last October if you can believe it) was centered around Pittsfield and the surrounding area. I was really smitten with the area. There is so much early settlement there and it hasn't been crowded out, it's still there just waiting for you. This trip was kind of a continuation of that last exploration.
We went south at Jacksonville, to Manchester, then Roodhouse, White Hall, Carrollton and quick side trips to Eldred and the remains of the Greene County Alms House. It was a long day---I think we need to exercise our wander muscles more.
I think we only got irritated with each other once. Not bad.
We always say we'll count how many times we turn around but we lose count every time.
Here are a few shots of Roodhouse to get things started:
As Ernie said as we were driving south of Eldred, it felt like a completely different place than our spot in central Illinois.
Lots more to follow!
Oh, and don't forget, if you become a Sandwich Life member (just click the blue coffee cup) I'll be sending out more photographs and notes on our wanders about once a month.
Onward.