I opted to explore Renssalear, IN because there's a brewpub there that's on the South Shore Brewery trail: Fenwick Farms. Its store is off Main Street in town. I had never been in that town. It was an excuse to visit Renssalear, 30 miles south of Crown Point on US231 in Jasper County. Like many other Indiana towns, it has a pretty limestone courthouse.
I saw some of the healthiest fields of corn south of Hebron with stalks at least three feet tall as I drove south on US231. The landscape is as flat as it can get. The Kankakee River was high but not over its banks. I got to town at 1:30pm, walked the half-mile trail at the small Potawatomi Park along the Iroquois River, then stopped at Embers across from the brewpub for lunch. Embers has a large, shaded dog-friendly patio. It's a nice place that almost looks out of place in that farming community. The brewpub allows dogs but only on the patio, and that patio is not shaded. The beer and pizza were OK. (I'm not a fan of flatbread pizza)
The brewpub also was ok. The local wheat ale was good, but drinking outside in the warm shade was no fun, so I didn't stay very long. A female folksinger was inside entertaining the guests. Speakers outside let me hear the music, too. On a cool night this place would be more enjoyable.
A notable landmark in Renssalear is Saint Joseph's college, a Catholic college on the south side of town that closed in 2017 due to high debt. It began as a school for Native American boys (which means they were forced to convert to Christianity, take on Christian names, learn English and forfeit their own culture). The campus roads are now gated shut, but the impressive cathedral is visible from US231. Grass is now growing in the cracks of the asphalt. The 1971 ABC movie "Brian's Song" about a Chicago Bears football player dying of cancer was filmed here.
I would have explored more of the town but it was now 93F. Walking outside was not an option. I needed to get back to the cooler lakefront region.
I took a different route home instead of US231. I wanted to return via US41, the iconic highway the Allman Brothers sing about in their hit "Ramblin Man." I have a fondness for US41 which straddles the Illinois/Indiana border in a north-south direction before turning southeast in Tennessee, but IN114 linking me to that highway was closed due to flooding and I was diverted on farm roads that really showed the flooding in the area. I found out later that Jasper County was hit hard with last night's storm and I was seeing the after-effect. Roads were either closed due to the flooding or had standing high water. Fields were not just saturated with water, they were now totally submerged again.
I finally reached US41 via IN10 in Lake Village. It was now a straight shot north on the divided highway, pass massive family farms and more flooded fields. One of the farm complexes right off US41 that I always enjoyed photographing is now for sale and is in a dilapidated state. For years that complex to me was the symbol of Indiana farming. The next time I come to Indiana, that farm complex will surely be gone
The final stretch now was driving through Lowell, where more flooded roads forced me to detour. Lowell is surrounded by small hills. This is pretty farm country and I've often driven backroads between Lowell and Crown Point. Cedar Creek, which flows north, provides water for the fields. Water settled in all the low-lying areas and I had to be careful. Some of the flooding had receded by the time I drove through, but it was enough to put me on edge. I'm so glad I still had plenty of daylight to help navigate me.
Lake Dalecarlia is north of Lowell. Most of its shore is on private property. Water was coming right on the edge of the road; any more rain and the road would be submerged. Kids were wading in flood waters off Cedar Creek and the spillway into the lake. The Lake Dale trail was flooded. Perhaps the water was a new thing for the locals, as there were plenty of people walking around looking at the lakeside, including me. More rain is expected overnight.
The drive from Lowell to Cedar Lake and Crown Point is a pretty one, and a popular route for road cyclists. Rolling hills add some challenge to cyclists as they speed up and over hills, around corners, and coast downhill. I road my roadbike down these roads many a time as a college student.
My last stop was a quick walk around a "fishing lake" in Lemon Lake county park south of Crown Point. The park closes a half-hour before sunset. The guardshack was closed, but there were still plenty of people fishing or finishing up a game of disc golf. This was my last opportunity for a quick jaunt around the lake on an old, cracked path. Side trails were muddy, the bugs were out, and deer were feeding off the flora. Dark clouds once again were coming in from the Chicago area. I totalled a mere 2.93 miles today. Hopefully tomorrow I can at least get four miles in again under better weather conditions.
I stopped to get groceries that Carol had requested. On my way back to her house, my stepdad called asking if I could please come by Culver tomorrow and help him finish packing. I guess I now have a plan for tomorrow.
It wasn't until I was safely back home that I read about the latest flooding in northern Indiana and specifically Jasper County. Northeast Illinois and the greater Kankakee river valley are affected.
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