The World Travelers are Back

Yes, my daughter and I have arrived home safely from our 36 hour excursion to the great Northwest corner of Illinois.  Actually, spent almost as much time on the Iowa side of the Mississippi as we did on the Illinois side.  We made our way on Wednesday to the wonderful river town of Savanna, Illinois.  We checked into our motel which was a nice small ma and pa operation.  While there, the owner came out and met with us and gave some tips on how to use our time best.  It was great advice. Of course, this was a photo expedition so we grabbed our cameras and headed out before it got dark and generally stayed around Savanna.  We dined at the recommended establishment......Poopeys.  Yeah, you pronounce it like its spelled.  It was an experience.  But, it was a good experience.  We stayed out past dark exploring the area and snapping pics.  After a good night's sleep, we got up early and followed the path the innkeeper told us to.  It brought us up to the beautiful town of Galena(via scenic route), and instead of continuing on the planned path, we crossed the bridge over the river into Iowa and explored the area around Dubuque.  We were glad we did.  Sometimes when you travel roads not normally traveled (unpaved roads) you find yourself in gorgeous surroundings and that is exactly what happened to us.  After awhile exploring we crossed back to Illinois and continued on our path back south to checkout Chestnut Mountain Ski Resort for some nice views from up high and then we finished our excursion at the Mississippi Palisades State Park.  Quite nice and would've like to explore that area more, but, to be honest, we were both pretty worn out by then and we had a 2+ hour trip back to home. It was a wonderful trip and fulfilled my number one priority- (no, not taking pictures) To spend some good quality time with my 10 year old who is already starting to find excuses to not hang out with her old man.  I think she had a good time and I know I did.  After a quick review of some, not all, of my pics this one stands out as one of my favorites.  I'll have more in future posts.