Crazy Ice and Creeping Where I Should Not Creep.

Today started off monumentally, literally, when just after pulling onto the interstate, I drove under this monstrousity:
This is the Great Platte (pronounced Pla-as in apple, tay- as in tay-) River Road Archway. The arch is huge...note the tractor trailer passing underneath.

The drive continued on, and the second half of Nebraska looked just like the first, so I won't include any pictures.

I was getting bored on the drive, so when the first opportunity for adventure presented itself, naturally I jumped at it. I drove across the Missouri River, but didn't get a good picture at first...
So I was jacked when I saw what I though to be an access road to the river below. In Montana, there are plenty of access roads that lead right down to the river's edge, and they usually have tables or an outhouse or something similar. I assumed that the road I saw just after crossing the bridge would lead me to a similar situation.

I was SO wrong. Here is the road I soon found myself on:



















Which turned into THIS:



The road wound around, and I found myself illegally trespassing, but determined to get to the river bank. The road turned to ice, and I hoped that the Subaru would be able to get going again if I parked it. I was also worried that I wouldn't be able to turn around, and would have to back out a 1/2 mile on ice. Finally I came to a turn around - well - it was more of a fire pit where several residents had obviously set up shop during the summer, then abandoned for some warmer part of the U.S. once the weather turned. I'm not gonna lie - the place was creepy. I made sure nobody was around before I got out of the car and squished through the muddy ground to get my picture.

There was ice on the river from the storm system that had just come over - likely the same one that landed me in Hardin just days before. Now the temperature was rising again and all of the ice was melting.









Definately worth it for the photo.















Next I crossed over into Missouri, where EVERYTHING was encased in ice. I don't know HOW this happened, but it was so awesome I had to pull over and get a couple of pictures. It was a breathtaking experience - I felt like I was in some bizzare ice world. This was the first glimpse from afar:
When I got out of the vehicle I was surrounded by the crackling and popping of the melting ice. Some of it fell onto the road nearby and shattered loudly.
Not only were trees, telephone poles, and things ABOVE ground encapsulated, but everything at ground level as well, so it looked like the ice was growing out of the ground.
Kansas City was easily navigated, and I was lucky enough to catch a shot of these signs as I flew past. I was instantly homesick for Missoula, even though the last sign said "Go Tigers!" instead of "Go Griz!"














St. Louis was a mess and a half to get through, especially since it was after dark, but I made it and stopped for the night over the state line in Mt. Vernon Illinois. Nashville, tomorrow, baby! YEAH! I'm so sick of driving! aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa can you say CABIN FEVERRRRRRRRRR???????????????????????