Brother Be Excellent

Who knew Bath, IL was a place to wash away the toils of the city and have some good old-fashioned fun in the middle of no-where. I landed in Mason City, Il on my way to visit Coronado Heights Castle in Kansas, Which I figured was too far to drive, so I settled with Mason city, Illinois which I thought was an address for a castle. But when I arrived, I realized that this wasn’t any castle, but something much greater. This was a small farm town That, due to a new Walmart being built a few miles away, slowed down the mom-and-pop stores leaving most places run down, with remnants of life along the floor. I walked around this town that had an old western type of feel. Some Buildings were run down, but others that stood erect also had mural paintings on the walls. I realized that it was the people that made Mason City what it was, A close-knit pile of hope. I was a bit down in my spirit because I ended up in a town with far and few people in it and with a cherry on top a nice confederate ...

Coronado Heights: Me climbing down the side of the turret. All photos Courtesy of Jake Mcmillin     During my research of ‘Castles to Visit in the Midwest area’ The architecture of Coronado Heights in the review left a little more to be desired, but still the structure of this castle gave me enough inspiration to want to go out and see it. So, I set off on the journey that at first, led me to Mason City, Illinois . Once I began heading towards Kansas for the first time, I can say that I was highly impressed. No wonder Dorothy from the wizard of Oz wanted to get back there so bad. The hills and boulders of Kansas are a wonderful sight to see. When arriving to the castle you start to see hills sitting in the sky and I couldn’t help but wonder which on the castle is on. When you pull into its front gates you drive up a winding gravel road surrounded by beautiful trees and sights of farmland and distant cities like, Salina, Ka. Once you get to the very top the views become br...

 On June 30th, 2022, I went to Indian Caves in Bourbonnais, IL, just above an hour from Chicago, IL. When I first arrived at the spot it wasn't what it seemed like from the google search that I did. The directions take you down into a residential area that spiral into what they call, "Cavalier Park" At first, I thought that I was sent off and was directed into the wrong direction, but you know, keep a positive mind and you will reap positive results. So, I traded my traditional sandals and put on my Nikes that I used to work in at my old warehouse job. When I arrived at the cave entrance, I was welcomed with a huge pool of water right in front of the cave. Water way too deep for me to hike in wearing my shoes. So, I took my shoes off but before I headed off into the water, I saw two young kids searching the waters with a catcher's net looking to find snakes that they caught just the day before. Now that you are forewarned you are now forearmed. But, through my travels...