Garden Of The Gods - Buzzard's Roost

This hike was done in the afternoon of September 18.

 Taking more water than you think you will need is essential because it's easy to get turned around and lost here. 

A nice camping spot. 

Buzzard's Roost is a place for equestrian riders to camp below a cliff. This is looking up through the separation of the cliff.

The trail takes us below Buzzad's Roost and circles us to the top of it.

Now, we are on top. 

This is now looking down through a separation in the cliff. Was it the same one I looked up? It's hard to tell.

Garden Of The Gods - Indian Point Trail

 Garden Of The Gods is a hiker's paradise. 

Indian Point Trail is a 2-mile loop trail. 

This is sometimes what my trail looked like.

With some imagination, you can see a head, nose, and mouth in this rock formation, hence the name of the rock.

Some beautiful vistas and dangerous cliffs.

Gateway Arch National Park

Gateway Arch National Park is the smallest designated "national park" at over 90 acres.

Huge base

A view looking toward St. Louis

A view towards the river.

My attempt at a selfy of Gypsy and me. 

 

Mark Twain's Childhood Home - Hannibal, Illinois

I ate breakfast at Becky Thatcher's Diner, then did a self-guided one-hour tour of Mark Twain's childhood home.

Mark Twain's story of Tom Sawyer was taken from many of his boyhood experiences . 

 

Nauvoo, Illinois and Nauvoo State Park

Nauvoo State Park is peaceful but not a destination for hikers like me. 

Nauvoo is the birthplace of Mormonism and draws many Latter-Day Saints pilgrims. This is a massive Latter-Day Temple.

The founder of the Mormons, Joseph Smith Jr., has a family cemetery just a short distance from the campground and is buried there.

Baxter's Vineyards in Nauvoo is the oldest winery in Illinois, and I enjoy sampling many of their wines. I brought this bottle home with me.

Many historic buildings and people dress in 1840-style clothing. Some Mormon youth sang and danced while telling about their history in Nauvoo before moving to Salt Lake City, UT.

Mormons sing and dance in Nauvoo (September 15)

Pikes Peak State Park (McGregor Iowa)

After leaving the Mississippi River from its headwaters, we have returned just a short distance from Prairie die Chien on the Wisconsin side of the river. In the background is my dream camper van. It is perfect for two persons or one person and a big dog like Gypsy. Comes with a built-in refrigerator slideout bed, etc. Here at this campground, I encountered pesky raccoons who tried their darndest to get into my cooler and nonperishable food container. Despite being fastened to my trailer-hitch cargo carrier, they were strumming the bungee cords that strapped them down and their lids tightly closed.

 

Pikes Peak provides many panoramic views of the Mississippi. 

Just a short hike down the Bridal Veil Trail is the Bridal Veil Falls. Not much water flowing at this time. 

Pilot Knob State Park

On the morning of September 11, while still in Western Minnesota, I decided not to go any further West but to begin my travel back in a Southeast direction towards home. I decided to reconnect with the Mississippi River, and Pilot Knob S.P. was the halfway point to stop and stay the night. 

This observation tower was built by the CCC in 1934.

The structure is only 30 feet tall, but it's up upon a hill, which gives you over 1,400 feet of view of everything around you.

The next morning before moving on, we took a 3.3-mile hike on the Equestrian Trail that connected with the East-West Trail. The issue hikers will have to deal with when hiking trails we share with horses is the occasional stepping over horse manure.