Day 11. Rest day in Barry Il.

We decided it was time to have a rest day. We all needed it.

Taters quote of the day: "It should be considered child abuse to make kids go camping."

The Ice House Inn has no windows (former ice house), so it I don't wake up naturally. No sounds from the outdoors, no light. Katies cell phone alarm woke us up at 8am to head to breakfast.....it startled me. I rarely sleep later than the birds, usually I am up with the sun.

Breakfast at Barry Cafe was decent. We stopped at the local grocer and picked up some bananas, strawberries, and soda. We also picked up some easy to cook meals to replenish the supplies we burned through yesterday. We were pretty much out of food! Everything in this area is closed, gone, or has unreliable hours. It is amazing how few businesses these towns have, even when they have a fair number of residents.

We then picked up some snacks and slurpies at the gas station, along with some maps. The MRT guide book sadly doesn't even show the crossroads and such on the route, so a map is needed. The towns in this area have almost no amenities, so we are having trouble finding routes. A town just off route might have exactly what we need, but our map only shows those right on the route. Also, this leads to problems with road construction and detours. We expected this however.

The girls took a nap back at the hotel, while the guys played Age Of Empires.

In the afternoon, we went for pizza around lupper time at Stearns pizza, which was quite good. Afterwards back at the hotel, the guys watched Star Wars while the girls watched something lame.

We rested well today, and hopefully it shows tomorrow.

Another Taters quote of the day: "We have to go through St. Louis? The crime rate there has to be like ten out of ten!"

Our lodging options look limited tomorrow, and everyone tells us that there isn't even a gas station for several towns. This is the area right before the Illinois and Mississippi rivers merge, kind of a void. I am surprised we don't see at least a gas station in these towns. We are going to shoot for a long day and a hotel...........but there are camping options as a backup plan. The weather says we should have a small tailwind, Wahoo! If the road is flat, we will probably make it.

Thank you everyone in Barry Il. for your hospitality.

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