Matthiessen State Park

Well we had expected a raining wake up call but it was a blue sky and warm sunny morning. We popped down the I-80 to Peru to get a few supplies and wine then off to Matthiessen State Park just down the road from yesterday's Starved Rock State Park.

Back on the hiking trails and next pic

Ummmm ok for folks with long legs, notice the larger gap ! Ok this time but not so lucky later on !

Due to high water some trails very very muddy or impassable

More roots and muddy trails

This is the trail we had to hang onto roots to get along it !

Waterfall into The Giants Bathtub

This is the one where I get wet feet, just one little biddy wobbly stone !!!

We had a good day and a good hike. Even more steps than yesterday (one set is 50 down and we did up and down twice) and our poor old legs were feeling the effects of Sundays bike ride and yesterdays hiking. This park not so dramatic as Starved Rock and it was very very muddy due to the winters storms and the very heavy rain of last week but still worth a visit. The trails were suffering from the mud and debris and high water and I did have to say "no way" to one spot that Himself with long legs was happy to leap from stepping stone to stepping stone, my excuse I did have the camera and lens to think of !!!

Got back to camp site just as the weather changed to quite cold and very very windy and as we are so close to Chicago the song for today is from Calamity Jane of course and "Just Blew in from the Windy City".

Ok folks we are off tomorrow to Wisconsin to stay with Sandy and Jack who we met in Alaska last year, so not sure when we will be connected to the big collective again.