Days Seven and Eight: Jasper, AL to Merriman, NE

On Tuesday I left Alabama and I have arrived in northern Nebraska. I am visiting a friend from the Buchanan presidential campaign on his cattle ranch here. I will upload photos when I get to a wifi spot later today or tomorrow. My planned update in Iowa didn't work out due to flooding along the Missouri river. All rest stops with wifi were closed closed unfortunately.

Update: I rushed to get to Council Bluffs, so there was little time for photos along the way. I did get a photo of the Memphis pyramid. I think there's a casino inside.

On the way into Iowa, I found that the Missouri River had been flooding. This caused interstate 29 to be completely closed for hundreds of miles. I took a detour onto smaller backroads, which took extra time. When I arrived in Council Bluffs I was able to get to one of the highest points in the city, the Lewis and Clark Monument. Lewis and Clark visited the area and named the city Council Bluffs after meeting with a council of Indians there. Anyway I got a photo of some flooding that caused I29 and other roads to be closed.

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I also toured the new Union Pacific Railroad museum, which recently moved from Omaha to Council Bluffs, the eastern terminus of the old rail line. The museum offered a picture of life in the area during the early 20th century even though most exhibits involved railroads or railcars in some way. I was amazed by the rail bridges that were built out of timber. One photo of a photo is below. I wonder if any of these bridges are still standing. I'd like to see one if so.

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