Riding and Camping in Southern Illinois.
Riding my Honda CT125
April 10th, 2023

 

 

 

 

Climbing a small tree I got this cool picture of a monument in Kaskaskia State Park where I camped.
If you think about it you would realize I'm very sarcastic as I can't climb a tree.
Sarcasm is so funny-------people with bad attitudes think differently I've found.

 

 

I present you the "Chester Bridge"
It will get you over the Mississippi river in Chester, Illinois
Bridge was built in 1940 and 2 years later got blown into the river by a tornadic wind in the middle of the night.
No one died as back then people slept at night.
It took longer to fix it than it did to build it in the first place.

 

 

The bridge is coming down in the near future and is one of the reasons I was down here nosing around and seeing
my good friend.

 

 

Besides the engineering, what you are seeing here is one of the first steps to build the new bridge.
This is the East side. They are driving pilings I was told.

 

 

On the other (West) side I had nice sandy beach to roost around on.
About all that I could see having been done over here was some tree removal and bulldozing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My wife sees UFO's all the time---I don't believe in them.
Ain't seen a real picture of one, so what's that tell you ????

 

 

The bridge will go thru right where my bike is and will be right beside the old one I was told.
There is a gas line right under me that is attatched to the bridge------don't know what they are going
to do with that--------not even sure it's in service as another one is down river in Grand Tower and it's
being replaced with a bigger one and will go under the river.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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4-10-2023

So........the next day me and my buddy Jay went riding ---------an awesome ride it was.
He had come down later in the day yesterday and camped with me.

 

 

 

 

I had a couple things I wanted to check out---and there was no public access to it by vehicles---private.
So we rented a couple of flying parachutes to see what the heck is going on up there.

Remember-----------I am full of shit.

 

 

You can get close to it on a public road on top of Fountain Bluff but this area is gated.
What the hell is going on up there ?????

August 27, 1934: "A steel lookout tower and observation station is to be erected high on Big Hill (Fountain Bluff)
where the government has obtained a foothold. A tower has been completed on Bald Knob, near Alto Pass.
A phone communication line served the two points." (Murphysboro Daily Independent)
The remnants of it are almost totally gone today. The old tower was near these 2 pictures above.

 

He's stuck in the mud.

 

 

A little push please.

 

 

 

 

Perfect camp spot down a dead end road to the Mississippi river.

 

 

Nerver been down this road---where does it go ???
We bumped and plodded along on our CT 125's for miles---got pretty rough sometimes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here we are on a levee just below Fountain Bluff'

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jay and his bike are in there somewhere I assure you.

 

 

 

 

Getting off the old railroad grade below fountain bluff were going to go right ...........
But our bellies said left.

 

 

 

This wasn't easy to get too at all.

 

 

 

 

And that road we had never been on finally led to a place we rembered riding 2 a couple months ago.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back at Fort Kaskaskia state park right across the rode from the pavillion was this tree that had been hit with lightning.
It was like this all the way to the top.

 

 

My riding buddy Scott Williams liked these shinguards so much I willed them to him.
He's a professional trials rider but has been healing from a shoulder replacement.

 

 

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4-15-2023

 

I eventualy left Fort Kaskaskia State Park and moved to a campground in Rosiclare, Illinois
this was on the banks of the Ohio River.
Went for a ride on the Honda CT125 and found this neat overlook up high on a cliff.
This is in the San Damiano Retreat Center.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A good friend told of this road I had never been on which had a nice creek crossing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The old iron furnace in Southern Illinois

 

 

 

 

The oldest operating jail in Illinois---there was one prisoner in there---otherwise the Sheriff would have gave me a tour.

Rosiclare, Illinois

 

 

And a couple hundred yards to the West was the oldest operation Baptist church in Illinois.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I took this picture because it was the year I was born-----don't know what it referenced.

 

 

 

 

Back at camp it was a beautiful evening with barges continually going by.

 

 

4-45-23

 

4 of my best friends showed up at camp and of course we went for a ride.
Jay Grafton (Honda 250 rally), Roger Hayes (KLX 250), Ron (Yamaha XT250),
Mark Beckman (WR250R).

 

 

 

We all agreed this Dogwood was the prettiest one we'd ever seen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Walterburg Church
A spectacular church on a one lane gravel I've been by many times.
But this time was different-------way different------it was open---and it was raining
like the dickens outside so we got out of the rain for a bit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our bikes patiently waited outside in the rain for us.

 

And I got to (with permission) to ring the bell------this is the 4th or 5th time this year I've got to do this.
The others were outside.

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The last 20 miles back to camp it rained really hard and I thought it was hailing for a bit.
It was a thrilling ride none the less and I declared back at camp that this was the best ride of my life.
Jay popped up and said----"everytime we go for a ride you say that".

What I'm saying is---------I appreciate and enjoy each and every one.
Some day I'll hit a tree and that will be it-------so be it.
Mark Sampson