Day 30 - Sunday, June 10th - Kirksville, MO to Quincy, IL

-


Distance:  75.9 miles
Elevation Gain:  1669 ft. or 22.0 ft./mile
Net elevation change:  -144 ft.

 Click Here To Ride Along !!

Our distance today was about the same as yesterday as we headed east-southeast and crossed the Mississippi for our seventh state line crossing and our eighth state. We also passed the 2000 mile mark for the tour leaving about 1400 to go. The weather wasn't quite as hot especially as we got passed the half way point and the sun gave way to clouds and even rain for a five mile stretch. A couple of isolated claps of thunder had us scanning the sky and looking for cover if needed. Fortunately, it wasn't. We spent all but five miles in Missouri but unlike the past three days, the early rollers were easier and flattened out at about mile 25. The whole day was a gradual decline in elevation with the exception of a short climb after getting across the Mississippi.

 Out of the hotel we headed east on MO-6 (Shepard Ave.) and reached Brashear at mile 11. Brashear is a small town of 270 people that was laid out in 1872 and named after Richard Matson Brashear, a prominent farmer, businessman and the son of one of the first white settlers in the area.

Next up at mile 15 was Hurdland, a village of about 160 people that was laid out in 1872 when the railroad was extended to this point. It is named after John Hurd, the original owner of the town site.

At mile 22 the road turned north as we headed to Edina, a city of nearly 1200 people and the county seat of Knox County. Laid out in 1839 it is named after Edinburgh, Scotland in the manner in which Scottish poets refer to Edinburgh. 

 Here are some pictures from the ride into Edina.











The road turned southeast at mile 28 and at mile 32 we reached Knox City, a village of 200 people laid out in 1872…when the railroad reached this point. It also was the location of out only SAG stop.






Mile 38 brought us to La Belle, a small town of about 650 people founded in 1857. Its name is derived from the French meaning “the beautiful” and was so named for its scenic setting. Based on my memory and these two pictures "scenic" is not what comes to mind.



Mile 43 brought us to Lewistown, a town of 500 founded in 1871…when the railroad reached this point, and the town took its name from Lewis County where it is located.


Mile 52 had us at Ewing, a town of about 450 and is named after William Ewing, a pioneer citizen. James Earl Ray, the assassin of Martin Luther King Jr. lived here from ages 7 to 16. It was in this stretch that I was getting rained on and otherwise preoccupied so Ewing came and went without an pictures.

Another 18 miles and we were in West Quincy, our last stop in Missouri. As outposts go this is different as it is solely a commercial area with no permanent residents. It is home to a number of gas stations that service residents of Quincy, Illinois. It seems Missouri has lower taxes on gasoline and cigarettes. During a flood in 1993, the levee was sabotaged and the floodplain filled. A barge was sucked into the break in the levee and hit one of the gas stations causing an explosion. All the Quincy bridges, the only links between Missouri and Illinois for over 200 miles, were closed. One of the bridges was closed for 71 days.

 No pictures of West Quincy...it looks like every other truck stop you have seen just off the interstate. From there we went across the Mississippi and into  








Quincy also happen to be home to some really beautiful old homes.






Sneak Peek at Tomorrow


107 miles to Springfield, IL, the land of Lincoln, that looks to have some small climbs and rollers that go flat after we cross the Illinois River at mile 45. The distance should be more of a factor than the climbing.


Springfield, the capital of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of over 115,000. The city was settled originally by trappers and traders that came to the Sangamon River in 1818 and its first cabin was built in 1820 by John Kelly. The city was originally named Calhoun, after Senator John C Calhoun of South Carolina who was also the seventh Vice President of the US. By 1832 Calhoun had fallen out of favor with the public and the town renamed itself after Springfield MA which was the silicon valley of its time and residents were looking to emulate it. Springfield was home to Abraham Lincoln from 1837 until 1861 when he was elected President.  Barrack Obama used the state capitol to announce his candidacy and later to announce Joe Biden as his running mate.
Location: Quincy, IL, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

LA to Boston on a Bike - Stay Tuned

-
Image
On Thursday May 10th I'll begin a trip that I've been getting ready for since February of last year when a friend of mine convinced me that we should ride our bikes from LA to Boston. It sounded like a cool idea at the time. Now that it's almost time to actually do it, I'll admit to having some doubts about my sanity. 😨 We will start at Manhattan Beach in LA on Sunday May 13th and finish 3400 miles later at Revere Beach in the Boston area on Friday June 29th. 43 days of riding spread over 48 days. For those of you who would like to follow along virtually, I plan on doing a daily post starting a day or two before we actually start riding. I emphasize the word plan simply since I'm new to blogging, and more likely, I may be to damn tired. We will see how it goes. You can follow on Facebook, or  go to  https://mruane1953.blogspot.com ,  and  if you would like to get a notice in your email inbox about a new post, just hit the subscribe button at the top of the blo
Read more

Day 11 - Tuesday, May 22nd - Holbrook, AZ to Gallup, NM

-
Image
Distance: 94.2 miles Elevation Gain: +2411 ft. or 25.6 ft./mile Net elevation change: +1290 ft. Click here to ride along Today’s ride was to the northeast and started under overcast skies and light winds with temps in the mid 50's.  We finished up in Gallup under sunny skies and temps in the mid 70's. Although the winds picked up they generally were out of the southwest and at our back, especially over the last 20-25 miles. We crossed our second state line into New Mexico at about mile 72 and like yesterday we used I-40 nearly the entire way. Unlike yesterday it was pretty much uphill all the way, but nothing  dramatic. It basically was a series of long rollers with very gentle grades up and down similar to this shot. We rode 425 miles and spent 5 nights crossing Arizona.  In crossing New Mexico we will travel about 450 miles and spend 7 nights in state, including our second rest day in Santa Fe. About 12 miles into the ride we passed exit 300
Read more

Day 48 - Thursday, June 28th - Brattleboro, VT to Burlington, MA

-
Image
Distance:  92.9 miles Elevation Gain:  4698 ft. or 31.75 ft./mile Net elevation change:  -167 ft. Somehow it is only fitting that today is 93 miles AND almost 5000 feet of climbing and we will accomplish a first for the tour by crossing two state lines. I've had visions of the route designer just gleefully mapping this one out laughing to themselves saying "...you think you are done....ha....suck it up buttercup..." So here we go. I wrote that paragraph at least two weeks ago. I forgot to add rain to the mix and didn't quite have a full appreciation of the quality of the roads, namely narrow, uneven (to be kind), and in my opinion, full of very impatient and at best, mildly aggressive drivers. I am not going to belabor the point. After 28 miles I chose the van. For me it was too dangerous. Chapeau to all those riders that gutted it out. For the group, today was mostly southeast as we left the hotel and crossed the Connecticut River and about 2
Read more