Pilot Knob, MO

Early this morning we crossed big muddy (and it was), the Mississippi River, to enter our fourth state, Missouri. The weather was cloudy all day and low 80's, a welcome relief from the sun. And once again, we were favored with a tailwind for much of the time. After the river bridge, the route was flat for awhile along the river. But soon the hills of Missouri began. In contrast to Kentucky, the hills tend to have sections that are fairly steep. They are steep enough that I have to resort to my fall back climbing technique of last resort, standing up in the lowest gear. The other contrast with Kentucky so far is the roads are much busier, with lots of trucks. Hopefully that will change as we move west deeper into the Ozarks.

We are staying tonight in Pilot Knob after 73 miles. The actual Pilot Knob is the highest point in Missouri at a little over 1500'. It turns out there was/is lots of mining in the area for lead and iron. There was a Civil War battle here over access to the mines. The Confederates attacked the Union forces at their Fort Davidson in the Arcadia valley. The Union retreated but eventually turned the tide. Earlier we had lunch in St. Joe State Park that was donated by the mining companies to the state. We read that the mining was so extensive that there are 300 miles of railroad tracks underground in the region.