Much Ado Along the Mississippi River


I've crossed the Mississippi River before and flown over many times, but never lived along it, touched it or felt its pulse.  Shortly after we arrived, we drove down Parley Street.  This is the street that leads directly to the river and landing in the 1840's where visitors and new converts were welcomed.  It was often that Joseph Smith went out to meet the new arrivals.   Ferries stopped here to sell or buy goods.   Members of the Church were able to establish businesses to support their families here.   

Today, tugboats move barges up or down full of coal or corn every day.  Each barge hold 56 semi truckloads of goods.   Often they are pushing fifteen at a time.   There are small parks all along the Illinois River Road making it easy to turn-out and experience it's charm. 

On the west side of the river, a train, the Burlington Northern Sante Fe, runs at least a dozen times a day.   We can hear it's whistle from our house.   It's bringing coal from the states north of here.  

On a clear day this spring, we could see the river.
The chill from it's moisture made us both quiver.
The Mississippi is much like a liver,
Bringing water to all, it's the main giver.

Turtles of all sizes like to climb on the logs stuck in the mud to warm their backs in the sun. 
Pelicans, geese, wood ducks, blue herons and more varieties than I recognize live along here. 

I had to touch the water of the Mississippi River the first time we walked down to the shore.
 Here's what it looked like in March with the barren trees.  Now they are all leafed out and full of residents.
 Elder Schmidt standing on a model of a flat boat/ferry?, much like the ones used to ferry wagons and such across in the 1840's.
Because the river is so wide there are red and green buoys designating the channel.  Illinois are red and Iowa's are green.  Many hunting/fishing blinds dot the east side of the river going out some 200 feet.   Dead trees with their roots sticking out of the water several feet liter the east portion of the waterway.



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