Yesterdays.......Hike?

JK Knives

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Well it stopped raining (it poured all night), so after dropping Maggie off at the vet, we decided to go with our plan of hiking and picnic. We stopped back home to make some sandwiches and pack the cooler. First mistake, no cooler! We have two, but did not realize that our oldest daughter had borrowed them last 4th of July, and never returned them! Well instead of going 25 miles out of our way to get them, we decided we would grab lunch someplace after our hike. We drove to Mathieson park, started to head for the trail, when a conservation officer pulls up. He said there will be a helicopter flying over in a little while spraying for wasps. No worry he said, it`s not supposed to be harmfull to humans, but it might damage the finish on your car. Hmmm, not harmfull, but might eat paint? We got out of there, and drove back 2 miles to Starved Rock, to be met by flooded, muddy trails. We went on a short walk (notice I said walk, not hike), on some paved walkways around the lodge, just to stretch our legs. Here is a photo looking across the valley.

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Here is one looking across at the Rock itself.

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This last one shows a neat little shelter with a stone fireplace.

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We left shortly after, and instead of taking I-80 home, we drove down old RTE 6, through the small towns. We ended up in Morris, and took a 3 mile hike along the I&M Canal, one of the oldest manmade waterways in Illinois. This trail is gravel, so no problem! Here`s a few pics from the trail.

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A "natural" bridge across the canal (no I did not cross it :eek:)

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Some flowering bushes.

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A look down the canal at the old railroad trestle.

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Here`s the best part of the trip. We stopped at a little antique/junk shop in Ottawa, and I bought these 2 old Plumb hatchets, the small one is an "Official Boy Scout" model. The bottom one shows how my old Collins is coming along. Paid $10 for the pair.

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So at least there was a happy ending!
 
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Well at least you got out of the house and into the open air! Beautiful country you have in your neck of the woods. I love the pics, so green and lush. Everything over here this time of year is either dried out or almost died out, not much green unless it's a tree. Great pics. You are making out like a bandit with the hatchets lately! That Collins is coming along great.
 
I seem to have a hatchet "fetish" lately! I figure if I see a knife I like, I can always make one, but there is something about old hatchets, especially when they are cheap! It was still a great day to be out, and there are a lot of great trails not far away from us. The one I show in Morris goes for around 65 miles. It runs between the Illinois river and the old canal.
 
Shame about the spraying but it looks like you still managed to make it an enjoyable day and that's the main thing !

That canal looks a really nice place to walk and reminds me a lot of some hikes I used to do in England !
 
How dare you steal those from under my nose!:) What place did you stop to get them John? Did you leave anything good?
 
That brings back memories. I used to drive through Morris and go to Starved Rock when I lived in Dundee.
 
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