Today we drove from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to Fergus Falls, Minnesota. Along the way, there were several cool stopping places, so we took advantage of them.

The first, the John Deere Tractor & Engine Museum, was in Waterloo, Iowa, (and yes, ABBA’s Waterloo song hits me every time I read a Waterloo sign). We arrived just after the museum opened, so we had the place pretty much to ourselves. The museum is free and is full of restored tractors, interactive displays, history, and nicely arranged exhibits. It’s worth a stop if you are in the area.

John Deere also offers free tours of the nearby Engine Works and Drive Train Operations (see the bottom of this page for more info). Unfortunately, we didn’t have time for that.

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I tried to tell her that it wasn’t a ‘pole’, but that didn’t stop her ….

Yesterday we slowed down a little so that we could check into our hotel early and get Ann some rest. To kill some time, we did a little sightseeing.

First, we stopped in Peoria. The city took us by surprise. Peoria sits on a river bank overlooking the Illinois River. Knowing nothing about the city, I had assumed it would be a small city with an industry feel. So, we were surprised to see a fairly modern looking city with a park along the river that lined much of downtown. Our reason for stopping there was to take a photo with a huge American Gothic statute, one that has spent the last decade traveling around to different museums.

That stop got us looking around the city a little bit. There’s a really cool looking Caterpillar Visitors center downtown (see this site for some pics), but it didn’t open until 10am. We couldn’t wait that long, so we took off, but we’d like to visit again to check out that, the “The Art of the Brick” display, and some of the other spots.

PHOTO CREDIT: https://www.rbauction.com.mx/blog/make-tracks-for-the-caterpillar-visitors-center-this-summer- … Caterpillar’s visitors center

Here’s Ann at a nearby monument in downtown Peoria.

Downtown Peoria. That’s Lincoln on the building looking at a War Memorial.

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We’ve stopped in Champaign for the night. Just as we entered the city, a storm arrived. By the time we found the statute of movie critic Roger Ebert, which sits outside the Virginia theater in Champaign, Illinois (now showing John Wayne in Red River), sheets of rain could be seen and gnarly clouds were everywhere. We saw lightening and heard the thunder that followed. Thankfully, there was no rain falling on us. All three of us thought it made for a great storm, worthy of three thumbs up!!

Bernd’s been busy with his CJ-5. Last we saw it, he was using it to set up a local train for a public event in Austria. Recently, he needed to transport a diesel engine to a repair shop. These ordinary, utilitarian-type tasks is exactly how we often used Dad’s jeep.

Another long day on Saturday (fortunately, we spent lots of it talking and very little of it driving), so no updates on Sunday. Rusty has a new home. After a short visit with Merlin Hansen to see his new place, we are heading home. We should make it to Champaign, IL, by Sunday evening, where we plan to take a photo with Roger Ebert.

This April 22, 2013 photo provided by Thompson-McClellan shows a bronze statue of Pulitzer Prize winning film critic Roger Ebert giving his famous ‘thumbs up” sign in Champaign, Ill. The statue will be unveiled Thursday, April 24, 2014, outside the Virginia Theatre in Champaign where Ebert held his annual film festival. Ebert died in April 2013. (AP Photo/Courtesy of Thomspon.McClellan)