Spoffords Travel

Day 20 September 17, 2025 Burlington Iowa to Glenwood Nebraska 267 miles

The day started out sunny but ended up cloudy. In fact we had some rain. The biggest shower was just as we stopped for lunch. It was really coming down. We had three of the side curtains off. By the time Rob had those back on the car the rain stopped. He got a cold shower and was very wet.

We drove almost the entire day on the same highway. What a change from previous days. Most of the terrain was flat with corn and soy beans. Some places were rolling hills with assorted trees.

Not many towns and certainly no cities. Lots of places have pumpkins for sale. Some houses are decorated for Halloween. Harvesting is beginning for the corn. The equipment they use is huge.

While we ate lunch a train went by. That is one of the few we have seen even though we have crossed lots of tracks. Most of the track crossings have been very rough.

The number of semi trucks was higher than expected. We were not on the freeway. They go much faster than us and are very loud. Sure glad we have head phones on. However, the murder mysteries we listen to always seem to get solved.

Day 19 September 16, 2025 Olney Illinois to Burlington Iowa 270 miles

Another hot day with some big white puffy clouds.

The terrain most of the day was flat with fields of corn and soy beans. They are harvesting in some fields. Some really large farm equipment. Some of the harvesting kicks up a lot of dust. Unfortunately the woodie does not have power windows.

We didn’t go on quite so many narrow roads today. Some of them are a bit rough however. Rob had to work to keep the car on the road a few times. We actually got some distances of 40 miles before changing roads.

One of our gas fill ups had such old pumps they couldn’t process a credit card. Then as we left a customer came out of the shop. He asked about the car and then said a prayer for our safe travels.

We crossed the Mississippi River into Iowa. Burlington sits right on the river.

After arriving in Burlington we went in search of Snake Alley. It is supposedly the crookedest street in the world. Constructed in 1894 from brick and limestone, it features a series of seven curves—five half-curves and two quarter-curves—that drop 58 feet over 275 feet, offering a unique test for drivers. A young lady was having her senior pictures taken on the road. Glad we didn’t hit her. The drive down in the woodie was interesting. Brakes are a requirement. Cars are only allowed down in warm weather. To us the curves seemed closer together than on Lombard Street in San Francisco.

We also filled the car with gas and went to the grocery store. It was a really nice store. It even had a small cafe. All we bought was a salad kit for dinner.

Our hotel has a guest laundry so after eating we went to do laundry only to find out the washer was broken. Lucky for us a 24 hour laundromat was nearby. Still only one headlight so we were very careful. Connie offered to help with her cell phone light.

Day 18 September 15, 2025 Shelley’s house to Olney Illinois 262 miles

The weather feels nice when we first went outside. The temperature went up quickly. By the end of the day the temperature was in the low 90s.

Not far from Shelley’s house we saw a deer. We later saw several roadkill deer. Those vultures need to get busy.

We drove along the Ohio River for most of the morning. We were really on the backroads. We decided some of them didn’t qualify for county roads. They were more like paved drunken donkey trails. It was late afternoon before we got more than 10 miles without a turn.

Lots of big manufacturing plants. Don’t know what they are manufacturing. The signage just didn’t give enough information.

At one spot there was a dam and locks on the river. The river seemed as wide on the other side of the dam.

We ate lunch at what seemed the smallest Dairy Queen ever. They had very little parking and very little seating. In fact we had to eat in the car. We talked with one man who was still very bitter about his mother and aunt selling his grandmother’s antique Chevrolet. The car was sold 20 years ago. It was supposed to have been his.

Some of the houses along the river and in the small towns near the river were really big and beautiful. Some were old and some were new.

We crossed the Ohio River into Indiana and from there left the river. Now the land has flattened out and the big fields are back.

The woodie has been running fine. It still has a very small coolant leak. However, it is still running at normal temperatures without needing more coolant. We have extra coolant along if the need arises.

Day 17 September 14, 2025 Shelley’s house 0 miles

Rob and Michael replaced the gas gauge on Shelley’s Model A. They spent a large part of the day trying to get it started. They never did. They said they tested everything. Well apparently not quite everything.

Everyone enjoyed having a relaxing day.

Day 16 September 13, 2025 Owensboro Kentucky to Shelley’s House 241 miles

The day is already hot when we walk out of the hotel. The skies are clear and there is not much breeze.

The terrain is what we have seen all week. Rolling hills covered with trees and open spaces with corn or soy beans.

A car pulled out right in front of us and Rob had to really slam on the brakes. Good thing he tightened them up recently. Don’t know if they didn’t see us or if they just weren’t paying attention.

We stopped at a small town to buy two foot long Subway sandwiches for supper. We figured that would be easy and fast.

The road Shelley lives on is very narrow. Parts of it have a canopy cover. Lots of twists and turns so you can’t see what is coming. Thankfully the road doesn’t have much traffic.

We arrived at the house about 5:30. We spent the rest of the day just catching up on everything.

Day 16 September 13, 2025 Owensboro Kentucky to Augusta Kentucky 241 miles

Stepped out the door into what felt like a blast furnace. It’s going to be a hot one today.

No sight seeing today. We are headed to daughter Shelley’s house near the small town of Augusta Kentucky. The drive has less farmland and more trees.

It’s a good thing Rob adjusted the brakes because a car pulled out right in front of us on a busy road. We were probably going about 50 mph at the time. Either they didn’t see us or they have no clue about Model A brakes.

The road where her house is located is very narrow only about 1.25 cars wide. It twists and turns and goes up and down. You just hope another car isn’t coming.

We arrived about 5:30 and spent the evening catching up.

Day 15 September 12, 2025 Owensboro 94 miles

Today is to be warmer than yesterday. The skies are mostly sunny. We didn’t wear our sweatshirts very long today.

Rob spent several minutes looking for the small emergency battery to use to start the car. The car battery is completely dead after yesterday’s event. Well that emergency device from Costco didn’t work. One of the other drivers went looking for helpers to push or tow the car. What he found was another driver with a bigger better jump start device. The car started on the second try. Rob let it run for several minutes before we departed.

The drive to Dream Riders was quite short. This facility helps people with special needs by using horses. They have been successful getting people to walk some and talk some. The horses are between 14 and 18 years of age. They have a nice indoor arena to ride in with some minor obstacles to maneuver around. We parked on a hill so that Rob could pop the clutch to start the car if necessary. Thankfully the car started right off.

Then we drove through the countryside for about an hour. Once again up and down hills of various sizes and around curves that can be gentle or sharp. Still lots of corn and soy beans but one field of a different kind of tobacco. Some of the houses have huge yards that must take all day to mow even with a riding lawn mower. The houses are quite a variety. Some are big and new. Some are small and old.

We arrived at the Bill Monroe Museum. Bill Monroe is considered the father of Bluegrass music. The building was full of items from his life. Connie took pictures of the important things in the museum which were two quilts. We picked up lunch tickets and a wrist band here. The wrist band is for the Bluegrass Festival which is next on the agenda.

The festival is held at Bill Monroe’s home place. They have a few food trucks plus other venders. Numerous groups will perform throughout the festival. We stood in line for nearly an hour to get our sandwich. It was really good with lots of meat. We got lucky and found a place to sit. The music was playing in the distance so the volume was okay.

The return trip was much the same. Narrow winding roads through farming country. We did have two people flag us down to a stop and ask what was going on. We made their day. Others must have known because they were sitting out in lawn chairs with snacks.

Tonight was the closing banquet which was much like the rest. They did not give awards for oldest driver, youngest driver or who drove the furthest. The room was freezing. One of the few times we were glad to get outside when it was over.

The bracket fix holding the alternator in place worked great. The car battery was back to a full charge by the end of the day. We do have a very small coolent leak. It is not real obvious where it is coming from so it probably won’t get fixed until it gets worse. The car is still running very cool for the current warm/hot weather.

Forgot to say yesterday that the odometer read 66666.