Pictures from Hikes on the Hennepin Canal Trail in Illinois

August 3, 2023 Here are some pictures of wildlife (animal and plant) along the Hennepin Canal Trail that I took the last week we were at Hickory Grove Campground. I was very surprised to discover the lotus species was native to the Americans. The campground was magical in the evenings as the fireflies started their […]

Lock 22 of the Hennepin Canal Parkway

July 23, 2023 On July 17, 2023 (Monday), we rode to the Wagon Wheel Restaurant in Mineral, Illinois. Mineral is a small town and didn’t seem to have a lot of businesses there. The food was bar food and I had a good hamburger. Bruce wanted fried chicken, but the kitchen was so backed up, […]

Buffalo Rock State Park in Illinois and Dinner

July 20, 2023 After our stop at the US Army Corp of Engineers Rock Island Visitor Center, we headed on to the Buffalo Rock State Park. It wasn’t crowded like the other two state parks. There was a birthday party going on in the pavilion, so I didn’t take any pictures of it. We were […]

Rock Island State Trail Wyoming Depot Access in Wyoming, Illinois

July 10, 2023 On July 4, we looked for a hiking location using Google Maps as we wanted to see more of the area. The Rock Island State Trail came up. It is a rails to trails conversion and based on pictures people shared, it looked like it was near water. We rode south along […]

A Day Exploring Near Princeton, Illinois

July 9, 2023 On July 5, 2023, we decided to go for a motorcycle ride and see some local sights before buying some groceries. Since it was Wednesday, we expected the visitors center at the Hennepin Canal Parkway State Park to be open. We rode to the visitors center and found it closed. I took […]

Walking West Along the Hennepin Canal in Sheffield, Illinois

July 6, 2023 On June 29, after some rain that cleared up the smoke from the Canadian wildfires, we hiked along the Hennepin Canal Trail to the west. We walked a mile down the trail to a road. The road had two culverts, one for the canal and one for the trail. After walking through […]

Walking Along the Hennepin Canal State Trail in Illinois

July 1, 2023 On Sunday (June 25), we decided to walk to the Hennepin Canal Parkway State Park along the Hennepin Canal State Trail. The trail runs right behind the campground. We headed to the left (east) and found the trail to be level and easy to walk along. We saw many birds. Two bright […]

Last Hike in Great Salt Plains Lake State Park in Oklahoma

May 29, 2023 The day before leaving (May 18), we went on one last hike. We walked over to the beach area campground along the road. We had to go out of the state park and onto the main road before going back into the state park. We walked past the dam. Once we got […]

Hiking by the Salt Fork of Arkansas River in Oklahoma

May 26, 2023 From the River Road Campground, we walked across the bridge over the Salt Fork Arkansas River. Nox started out ready to walk and got tired part way over the bridge. She had to be put in her backpack. Looking over the bridge rail, we saw so many large fish. We crossed the […]

From Texas to The Great Salt Plains Lake State Park in Oklahoma

May 23, 2023 As we headed north on I-35, I saw so many wildflowers blooming. I also saw fields of oil wells. Cattle ranches and horse ranches were common sights. We crossed into Oklahoma. I know this picture is not that great, due to the reflections on the window, so please forgive the poor quality. […]