Yesterday started out nicely from the good night sleep. After getting my stuff together and letting traffic die down, I told the GPS to get me to the Sears Tower. It got me there quickly and accurately. I found parking and went in line. There was hardly any wait, so I paid my fee and went to the top of the Sears Tower. The weather was perfect for going to the top. I got some great pictures and video. When I got back to the parking garage I found that parking for the little bit over an hour I was there was $22! More than the ticket price and the souvenirs I bought at the top of the Sears Tower.
The pictures will be uploaded soon (30 minutes or so). The internet here isn’t as fast as the place last night, but I really like this hotel. Clarion Suites in Madison. Total bill here was $91. Seems expensive compared to a campground but I wanted to stay close in to Madison and this place seems nicer than the Best Western in downtown Evanston that I stayed at on Monday night.
After the Sears Tower I started heading for Milwaukee. I hit a rest stop and made some lunch. A little over 2 hours after leaving Chicago I arrived in Milwaukee. A few friends suggested the Miller Brewery tour, but I mainly just wanted to walk around and find some nice places to get a couple of tappers. The weather was awesome. In the 80’s, not a cloud in the sky. Perfect day to walk around a nice city. I hit up Water Street Brewery which was good and also Rock Bottom in Milwaukee! I’ve frequented the Rock Bottom in Bethesda many times so it was nice to check out one halfway across the country. They had mostly the same beer selection, but they had a Scotch Ale that Bethesda doesn’t have. So that’s what I drank, and it was good.
After Milwaukee I drove (soberly, of course) to Madison WI and checked into my hotel. The person at the front desk gave me a good recommendation for a place to get food and tappers so I headed out to that place. It was a good place filled with friendly people who were all interested in hearing about my trip. After that I went to downtown Madison and walked around the capitol and found another nice bar to get some local tappers. Then I headed back for a good night sleep.
Today the plan is to walk around downtown Madison, snap a bunch of pics, then head over to the House on the Rock. After that I’m going to find a camp ground somewhere. Tomorrow will probably mostly be a travel day. I want to get close to the Badlands tomorrow, so I can do some hiking there on the 22nd and 23rd. I will also try to see Mount Rushmore on the 23rd. Then the 24th will mostly be a driving day to Denver. Brian gets there around 8pm, so I’ll have plenty of time to get things situated.
The map so far:
View Larger Map
It is highly likely I wont have internet access the next few days. We’ll see how that works out. I don’t anticipate having very good cell reception in the middle of nowhere that I am going to. I also will be camping every night (unless there’s really bad weather which seems unlikely currently) until I get to Denver. So, back to roughing it! I’m going to miss these comfy king size beds.
Day 4 pictures will be uploaded shortly after this is posted. Check em out: http://gallery.james2009roadtrip.com
ncterp
Yo Jim Bob,
Thanks for the travel log. I’m enjoying reading about your adventures.
BTW, is “tappers” your new favorite word???
James Crawford
Glad you’re enjoying it! Yeah tappers is definitely going to be a word that sticks for awhile. Seems to be a Wisconsin thing. I’ll be bringing it back east with me.