Nashville, Indiana-Brown County State Park

Brown County was gorgeous! It was a busy campground full of leaf peepers and families on fall break (yes! that's a good thing).

When we first arrived, the leaves were beginning to turn but not quite showy enough and it rained and it was cold. We even had a tornado watch, which is never fun in a trailer.

But we were still excited because every morning the leaves had changed a little more AND because Aunt Kristen and cousin Savannah were coming to visit!!!  It's not a real clear picture, but you can see the love in Jacob's face.

We had a great time with them. The leaves really began to put on a show and even the sun began to shine!

Together, we hiked around Strahl Lake to see the beauty. The trail started at the nature center and made a CONTINUAL descent to the lake (NOT good for the return trip!)

We lost Aunt Kristen (well actually she lost us while ooohhinng and aaaahhhhing over all of the colors) but met up again at the other end of the lake. Ha ha

It was tough and required a few rests, but we made it back up the incline and the million stairs!

Then we headed to the stables where Greg, Savannah and Jacob saddled up for a guided ride

Jordan did a couple of laps on a pony at the barn area

until the rest of the gang returned from their ride.

We also took some time to explore the quaint little town of Nashville just outside of the park. There were many cute places to shop and a few good restaurants.

There were also a couple of fudge shops and in this particular one, we were able to watch them make a batch of fudge.

This woman worked so fast and hard, pushing and folding this fudge!  And it turned out so beautifully.

Also that week, we checked out the Nature Center, attended programs on rabbits and deer and did some more volunteering to earn the kids' Brown County pin and Discover Indiana patch.

There was a fire tower in the park and we waited for days to be able to climb it because it was often closed if the number of park visitors were high.  Well one day we found it open and decided to journey to the top.  BUT, after climbing all the stairs, we discovered that the actual lookout room at the top was locked (phooey)!  We felt so deceived!

At least we were able to make it on the hayride, after giving up once before when the line was forever long.

Now get ready for all of the foliage pictures!  By the second week of our stay, the colors really began to show...

So beautiful...

Seriously! Just look at it!

This was my favorite tree because of the many colors.  It was at the showers so I was able to see it every morning!

And just when you think it can't be more beautiful, a double rainbow shows up!  So awesome!

The colors are truly amazing to see and I just don't think anyone can really comprehend it until they see it for themselves.

Before our departure, we made sure to take one last hike (trail 8). It was mostly through the woods, but crossed near to Hesitation Point.  It was a gorgeous vista.

and the kids had a blast rolling down the hill, over and over.

This was a great stop and one I will definitely remember in the years to come!

Next stop:  St. Louis, Missouri!

Turkey Run, Indiana (State #14)-Turkey Run State Park

Originally, we were unable to get a reservation here but fortunately with a change in our itinerary, we were able to arrive midweek and stay until Sunday. And we are so glad it worked out that way because this was an awesome place to visit!

While we did not have the best campsite, we chose that one for internet reasons. The rest were nice and just like in Illinois the campground was separated from the main park.

It had a nice little playground.  And unfortunately for the rest of the campers, this little teeter totter thing could be heard from far away ;)

We really enjoyed the Nature Center! The park interpreter, Mandy, did a great planetarium program and Feed the Birds program. The kids were able to help feed the birds and squirrels and learn some interesting facts about them.

There were also some animal exhibits in the center and we were able to choose a video to watch. We chose the City of Bees, which was very informative. I am even more amazed by them but I still dislike them immensely.

After several programs and some other activities, including volunteer work, the kids earned a pin for Turkey Run State Park :)

We also went out one evening and took one of the covered bridge driving tours. SOMEHOW we missed a couple of the bridges even though we were following the map, but here are two that we did find:

And I saved the best for last! The hiking trails were A LOT of fun! Per the recommendation of our friend, Tammy, we headed for trail #3.

First we had, to cross this beautiful bridge. Just look at the fall colors beginning to show!

The kids took a brief rest in this carved out area.

And then we followed the trail alongside the creek, which was barely flowing, and through canyons. It was a challenge to keep our feet dry though because of the trail path through rocky and muddy areas. But it was fun!

And how cool is this???!!! We have done a lot of hiking but we have never had to climb a ladder to get from one part of the trail to the other (actually there were 3 or 4)!

This trail was truly unique.  There was something different every time you turned the corner from cliffs and crevices to potholes formed by glaciers and waterfalls.  It was just so beautiful and exciting and we had a blast traversing all of these different terrains.

We practiced our barred owl call as one overhead repeatedly called out “Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you aaaalllllll?” And we caught a quick glimpse of it.

So the next night, it rained non-stop! I believe they said it rained 5 inches. Jacob begged to go back to trail 3 to see the falls flowing. And we all decided to accept the challenge.

And it was definitely a challenge to keep our feet dry, because not only was it wet and muddy, it was quite cold. The areas where we were able to walk before were now filled with water!

We made incredible leaps and hugged against the rocks to make it through water filled crevices. And it was so worth it.

Here is an area called the Punch Bowl before the rain (top) and after (bottom).

The kids had a wonderful time on their “adventure hike”.

We made it out with only one wet shoe (Jordan) that happened at the very end. It did start raining on us but with the tree cover we were okay and we booked it back to the truck.

Before we left Turkey Run, we also checked out trails 7 and 10. They were fun, but it's hard to beat trail 3!

Thank you to all of our Indiana friends that recommended this park!

Next stop: Brown County, Indiana

Champaign, Illinois-D&W Lake Camping and RV Park

We decided to stay a few days at this campground in Champaign, Illinois. It was such a nice place! We aren't big fans of private campgrounds since much of the time they are treeless and everyone is stacked in, but I would definitely come back to this one if ever in the area again.

Here is a picture of the lake area:

It was very close to grocery stores and shopping but felt far away. Originally, it was a privately owned fishing pond and after someone asked to pay to stay the night, the owner began adding campsites, 3 at a time. It is now run by the original owners grandson and appears to be thriving. I was visiting with the owner when he had to turn someone away because they were full on a weekday evening!

Not too far from there was the Museum of the Grand Prairie located in Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve in Mahomet. Although there was a direct entrance to the museum, we took the route through the main park. It was a beautiful park. On our journey through, we saw a few deer and drove through a covered bridge.

The kids loved this museum (and it was FREE)! It was not huge but had enough to entertain my kids for hours.

They planted a vegetable garden,

did some sewing,

sent a few telegraph messages,

built a log cabin,

prepared dinner and

carried in the water.

While they played, I visited with another mother who shared her farm life experiences with me as they have begun to raise some of their own meat, fruits and vegetables over the past year. Very interesting!

Then before we left, we checked out their “Discovery Garden”.

On another day, we visited the Orpheum Children's Science Museum (also FREE with our museum pass). This was a small museum that has opened inside the old Orpheum theater that was built 100 years ago. It is a one-third scale model of the opera house at Versailles.

The exhibits seemed a little random and old (like they just bought different things from other museums) but again, the kids enjoyed the hours we spent there.

Jacob had a good time playing boat captain,

and they had a really cool vet clinic with cages, exam sheets to document and xrays. The “animals” had something embedded that when held near the x-ray machine, the x-ray would change to show that animals condition.

They also had a water table and these magna tiles, both of which my kids love to play with.

Our time in Champaign was short, but we really enjoyed it. We are now heading to Turkey Run, Indiana!