Indiana-part 2 and a detour into Kentucky

I ended part 1 of our Indiana trip with Tuesday night.  We had reached the Indiana/Kentucky border and decided to spend the night in Louisville since I found a nice hotel there.  

In an attempt to give us some flexibility on our travels, I had built in a free day on Wednesday.   I made a conscious desicion to be willing to change plans, stay in an area longer, or just head off the planned path if I felt like it.  We had no reservations at any hotels along the way and could be completely spontaneous.  Definitely not normal for this planner!

We had mainly stayed on track, with a couple of minor adjustments, so we ended up having a day to do anything we wanted to do.  I decided that we would take our journey a little farther South to the beautiful Kentucky Capitol city of Frankfort. 

 

It was a gorgeous day for a drive through the Kentucky countryside and for a walk around this historic town.  

This was both girls first trip to Kentucky.  The Capitol was bustling with people and there were so many things for them to see and smell.  We walked the grounds and the surrounding neighborhood amd really enjoyed being there.

We also took a walk along the Kentucky River to enjoy this scenic view.  It's such a pretty river.

We ended our time in Frankfort with a drive through the historic cemetery.   Not a bad view for eternity. 

A number of important historical figures are buried here including a Vice President, but the most famous person buried here is Daniel Boone.  We stopped at his memorial which overlooks the entire city.  It's a beautiful place.

After a several hours in Frankfort,  we continued our journey, making  the fairly short drive from Frankfort to Lexington.  After years of spending most of my vacation days traveling to Kentucky while Nicol was in school at UK, it had been years since I had been back and I decided we needed to change that.

We found a hotel for the night and then headed out to explore.  I don't know how I never visited the UK Aboretum in all my previous visits, but we all loved it there!  What an awesome spot for a walk.  

The girls were very popular there and we met a lot of people, which they loved.  They also thought that this was some of the best grass ever!

After driving around and checking out the area a bit, it was time for dinner.  Joella's Chicken was recommended to us, so we decided to try it out.  There was a small outdoor patio, so the girls could join me while I ate.  

Of course they got to try some chicken too.  It was pretty good and I'd definitely go back.

We finished dinner and then headed back to campus for another walk.

This walk took us along Avenue of Champions and the area of campus where Nicol's dorm had been.  Since she graduated, they have torn down most of the old dorm buildings and replaced them with much fancier living spaces.  This plaque commemorates the original dorm.  

It had been another long, busy day and it was time to head to our hotel for the night.  I was so happy we had spent the day in Kentucky! I do love it there.

Before leaving the next morning, we spent some time walking around downtown Lexington and visiting the historic cemetery there.  I have visited this cemetery in the past and it also has several historic figures buried here including a vice president and Henry Clay, but probably most important to the UK faithful, Adoloh Rupp, famed UK basketball coach.

Traffic issues and a stop for a late lunch outside of Frankfort delayed our travels North, but eventually we crossed the bridge from Louisville back into Indiana where we had a stop planned at the Falls of the Ohio State Park.

While I thought this would be a short stop, it was not. 

The weather was beautiful and the area was really interesting.   

We took our time exploring and climbing all over the rocky formations.  It was a really interesting spot and pictures don't do justice to how pretty it was there. 

Before leaving, the girls made friends with a group of elementary school kids here on a field trip.  While they enjoyed all of the sniffing and exploring, I think they liked making new friends most of all.

We now had a long drive across Southern Indiana ahead of us.   Not many places to stop along the way, although I did make some quick geocaching stops to break up the travel.   We also spent some time in the town of Santa Claus, but the forecasted rain for the day had arrived, so we didn't stay long before continuing our journey. 

We reached Evansville where we planned to stay for the night and grabbed takeout before settling into our hotel.  We all slept well for the night!

Looks like it's time for me to stop for now.  Things to do and places to be.  I will continue with Indiana part 3 and the end of our journey soon.

Indiana-Part 1

This week we hit the road for a multi-day out-of-state road trip.  This is the first time we've taken a trip like this since Peaches, Maddie, and I spent a week in Kansas in April 2019.  And it is the first road trip like this that I've taken since I finished my 50 State journey in Hawaii in October 2019.  

After years of taking road trips all around our amazing country every Sprjng and Fall before the Covid years, it was nice to get back on the road again.  But since I've completed my 50 State/50 State Capitol goal, it was time to figure out what to do and where to go next.  

Last Spring when I was fostering Hershey, I planned a trip around Indiana for us, but the weather got really hot the week we were supposed to go, and at the same time Hershey's health took a turn, so I decided I'd save this trip for another time, and this Spring seemed like the perfect time to make the trip Mina's practice road trip.  

Just like my trip to Kansas, I was determined to prove that Indiana was much more than flat farmlands.  I believe each of our States has unique beauty to share with the world and I want to see all of it!

We headed South and East to start our trip and our first scenic spot was Hanging Rock National Natural Landmark.  

While the preserve is small, it is a very interesting spot to explore and the views of the river from the top of the rock are pretty spectacular.  We saw several Spring wildflowers too.

Our next stop was the nearby Salomonie State Forest to visit the 3 Falls loop trail.  This less-than 1/2 mile loop trail promised views of three waterfalls, so we couldn't pass it by.  Unfortunately, the creek beds and falls were dry, but we still had a nice 1 1/2 mile walk through the woods.   This is the spot I saw my first Trillium of the year. 

Next we were off to visit the Seven Pillars of the Mississinewa Landmark.  This is another small preserve, and while there was a 1 1/2 mile hiking trail on property,  we didn't need to hike at all to see the Seven Pillars along the riverbank.

There was a small park and we walked along the river for a bit enjoying the beauty.  See, there is more than cornfields in Indiana!

Our final stop of the day was at Mounds State Park.   This park highlights earthenworks(mounds) built here by prehistoric native Americans.

In addition to the interesting history of the mounds, the park features several scenic hiking trails.  

While here, we met a nice couple who were also traveling with their dogs and we had an interesting discussion on places we've been and other things to see and do with dogs.

By the time we finished our hike, it was nearing sunset and we needed to get dinner and find a place to stay for the night.  Luckily we found a nice hotel just 10 minutes away and picked up some Mexican food close by as well.  

It had been a busy day and we saw a lot of interesting stuff, so we were happy to settle into our room for the night.

We were up early on day 2 and ready for more adventures.   Our stops for the day were remote and not close to each other, but that just gave me more opportunities to see lots of Indiana.

Along the way between stops, we would make some quick stops for some geocaching as well.  I found this egg while looking for a cache.

Our first stop of the morning was the Wilbur Wright birthplace and museum.  It is in the middle of farmland not really close to anything.  While the grounds aren't dog-friendly, I was able to get the girls out for a walk along the road.  I'm always grateful to the people who had the foresight to preserve places like this.  It was an interesting little stop. 

Next we were off to another remote stop, Hoosier Hill, the highest spot in Indiana. The "climb" to the top was a whole 30 ft, but I find these places so interesting.   I also appreciate the people who  own this property allowing access to the public.

Next we were off to Thistlewaite Falls.  These are a road side Falls that you have to get out of the car to view, but it is just a short walk. This also had some interesting history as the site of several different mills, including a saw mill, grist mill, flour mill, and paper mill.

Not far from the Falls, i saw my first lilacs of the year.  They smelled divine. 

And the Pink Panther was watching while I picked up a geocache. 

As we continued our journey, we drove by the Whitewater Canal Historic site.  There is a bunch of interesting information about the history of the canal here, but the historic site was closed the day were were in the area.

While we didn't get the full experience, we were able to check the area out a bit before continuing our journey. 

This headstone also has an interesting history since it is made of zinc.   That was apparently a short-lived way of making headstones, but it sure has held up well to the elements.

Our stop at Anderson Falls was supposed to include a longer hike, but I found out when we got there that to access the longer portion of the trail, we would have had to walk across the top of the Falls.   I decided to skip that hike because I didn't want wet dogs for the rest of our day.

It was a cute Falls and a pretty and very quiet location and we were able to get in a short walk while we were there.

We saw more Spring wildflowers too.

While I had a few other stops planned at some other smaller waterfalls, most of the small waterfalls were dry.  I was disappointed since I figured Spring would be a good time to see them.  

We continued on to our final stop of the day, Clifty Falls State Park.

This stop did not disappoint!

 

While the Falls were flowing very slowly,  the scenery of the area was outstanding. 

We saw both Big and Little Clifty Falls and Cake Rock on our hike. 

The trails here are rugged, and while we didn't hike them all, we really enjoyed the areas that we did visit.

These columbine growing in the rocks were very pretty. 

I'd definitely recommend this park to anyone looking to do some hiking in Indiana.  What a great stop!!

We finished our hike at Clifty Falls and headed off to find our hotel for the night.  We ended our day in the farmlands of Southeast Indiana following this tractor for a bit.  It seemed a fitting was to end our travel day.

I picked up some Chinese take out near our hotel and the girls made friends with a little girl while we waited for the food...and after dinner they crashed for the night.

It had been another excellent day!  Oh how I love vacation. 

The journey continued, but the story of the next couple of days will have to wait for another day.  I'm off to snuggle with the girls and relax after another busy day of vacation.   Part 2 will come soon, I promise!