Day 0.3 – Hartford to Alton

Today we parked the van in front of the library in Hartford and took the Confluence Bikeway to Alton.  We discovered a great museum on the way up.  The National Great Rivers Museum is a new museum that Keith and I both enjoyed.  It’s right by a navigational lock and dam on the Mississippi and you can watch the barges travel though the locks.  It’s a new museum with many interactive displays,  Both Keith and I wished we had more time to spend.  Unfortunately, we had to get back to the convention so we couldn’t stay as long as we wanted.

We traveled on up to Alton.  Someone in the visitor’s center told us about an eagle’s nest that we could see from the trail.  We looked for the nest but couldn’t spot it.

In Alton we rode across the Lewis and Clark Bridge.  It’s a neat suspension bridge across the Mississippi with a bike lane both directions.  Unfortunately the it’s not well maintained for bikes and we had to always be on the lookout for debris and broken glass.  The bike path on the other side wasn’t all that well maintained either.  Too bad.  It’s a beautiful place to ride.

On the way back we were able to spot the eagle’s nest, but didn’t see any activity at the time.  A great section of trail to ride!