Rain, rain, go away

Downtown Hannibal, Missouri

It's just my luck. After a summer-long record drought in Nebraska, I head out on the road for a few days to take photographs and it won't stop raining. It wasn't until I was driving back to Omaha that the sun decided to come out for an extended period of time. 

Cloudy weather is something I've learned to deal with (and even embrace) photographically and rain is usually little more than a minor annoyance that makes things a little more difficult. The rain on Sunday, however, was about as obnoxious as weather can possibly be.

At times, it would cease and I'd get out of the car to walk around. Then, as soon as I'd get a distance away from the car, there would be an absolute downpour. This went on for most of Sunday afternoon, all the way from Hannibal to Keokuk, Iowa. After crossing the Mississippi to Illinois, the clouds welcomed me with a deluge of rain of which I've only seen once or twice in my life. State Highway 96 was unable to cope with the excessive amount of rain water and its edges became deep pools that lurched the car sideways. I pulled off of the highway not once, but three times, as the rain let up momentarily before resuming the downpour just a minute or two later. For reference, this was my view of the Mississippi River through my windshield at a roadside turnoff near Nauvoo:

The rain ultimately didn't let up for good until I had reached my destination in Burlington, Iowa. I was ready to admit defeat and seek refuge in a hotel room before heading home today. Instead, I looped back around through Fort Madison and took a couple of very good photographs before calling it quits. It ended up definitely being worth the second effort.

Today was another story. I did a little exploring but chose to start the long trip home without much to show for the day. It's as if I was creatively exhausted and ready for a break after a few days of constant image searching. And now it's time to get back to the reality of a full time job and classes. Such is life, right?

Also visited Sunday: La Grange, Canton and Alexandria, Missouri. Quincy, Hamilton, Niota, Dallas City, Lomax, Carman and Gulfport, Illinois.

Also visited Monday: Gladstone, Oquawka, Keithsburg and New Boston, Illinois. Muscatine, Nichols and Lone Tree, Iowa.

Paris, Florida and Louisiana

Sumner, Missouri

I visited all of these places in one afternoon. Of course, all of them were towns in northeastern Missouri. Mexico wasn't too far away, either.

Paris is a nice, yet fairly nondescript, small town with a charming little main street. Nearly non-existent Florida is the birthplace of Mark Twain and finds itself surrounded by a large man-made lake that bears his name. I got my first sight of the Mississippi River while walking up and down the hills in downtown Louisiana. It's exactly what a person would expect an old river town to be, equal parts charming and industrial. The old, narrow river bridge on US Highway 54 is fantastic.

The photograph above is of Maxie, the "world's largest goose," in a tiny, tiny town of about 200 off the beaten path called Sumner. Most of Sumner has definitely seen better days; More than half of the town's main street is abandoned and dilapidated.

I'm in Hannibal for the night and will be exploring tomorrow morning. Then I'll be heading north towards Keokuk and more river towns in Illinois and Iowa.


Also visited: Avalon, Forker, Salisbury, Moberly, Madison, Victor, Perry, Ashburn and New London, Missouri. Atlas, Illinois.

Towards the Mississippi...

Rulo, Nebraska

This weekend finds me headed towards Hannibal, Missouri and the mighty Mississippi River. I spent a day taking photographs around Burlington, Iowa back in 2008 and have wanted to head back to the Mississippi ever since. For those who may not know, Hannibal holds a special place in American folklore as the childhood home of Mark Twain and his literary creations like Tom Sawyer. It's one of those places that I have wanted to visit for as long as I can remember.

As for today, I meandered to Chillicothe, Missouri via Rulo, Nebraska and Highway 7 in northeastern Kansas. The weather chose not to cooperate, as it sometimes does, but I still got in a few solid photographs over the course of the day.

I did manage to meet two very angry dogs on main street in White Cloud, Kansas and get lost (again) in St. Joseph, Missouri. St. Joe completely throws off my internal compass for one reason or another.

Also visited: Troy and Wathena, Kansas. Watson, Phelps City, Corning, Craig, Big Lake, Easton, Hemple, Hamilton, Mooresville, Ludlow and Dawn, Missouri.