Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Evansville, Indiana…

Evansville, IN 020

Evansville, IN 008We left Kimmel Park at Vincennes, Indiana just in time as they had acquired a massive water leak the evening prior to our departure and had to turn off the water to campers. We planned a short trip to our next stop in Henderson, Kentucky just across the Ohio River from Evansville, Indiana. The John James Audubon State Park is located just off the highway but looked to be a really nice retreat nonetheless. We drove around the camp loop a couple of times trying to locate a site to accommodate our size. We settled on site number 44 but never were able to get power due to a defective plug. Luckily it was pretty easy to pull out and back in next door into number 43 where we had no power problem at all.

After setting up we decided to visit Evansville. The ornate and massive Courthouse building was our first stop and we chose to park so we could walk all the way around to admire it from every angle. This courthouse was a completely different style than the one we had seen while visiting Vincennes. The one in Vincennes was also very impressive but had more of a French flair to it.

Vincennes IN 006Evansville, IN 012

Adjacent to the Courthouse was an impressive World War II memorial and around the corner we noticed an old building resembling a castle. We were amused to read that it was once the Sheriff’s residence and the jailhouse! It had an underground tunnel extending over to the courthouse. Maybe that was an easier way to transport prisoners to trial and back. Before heading back to the car we strolled over to the Tropicana Casino, one of the riverboat casinos, but it was way too smoky to stay and donate some change.

Sharon wanted to drive by the University of Evansville and their athletic facilities. It was fun to see the students milling around between classes. The tree lined neighborhood near the campus had many beautiful homes so we were glad to meander along enjoying the sights. As it was nearing 5:00 pm we used our smartphones and discovered a nearby brewery so we decided to try Tin Man Brewery in the old Warehouse District.

Evansville, IN 013  Evansville, IN 015

The brewery is only a couple of years old but seems to have become a local favorite. Several very friendly patrons joined us around the bar. Interestingly our bartender was from Ireland and her parents also enjoy RV’ing so we had a nice chat. When we closed out we had a nice surprise upon seeing our beers were half priced on Mondays! We must be living right!

On the way back we stopped by and the a park and strolled along a walkway by the Ohio river where we came upon an cool sculpture. The Four Freedoms Monument depicted the goals of President F.D. Roosevelt. During his 1941 State of the Union address he proposed four fundamental freedoms that people Evansville, IN 018everywhere should have: Freedom of speech,Freedom of worship,Freedom from want and Freedom from fear… Can’t argue with that!

Back at camp nestled in the trees we heard from our friends in Newton, Illinois after Sharon posted some pictures on Facebook from our day in town. They laughed that we had left them three days ago yet we were only a little over two hours away. We laughed too as this is what we do. We like shorter travel days so we have part of the day left to explore our new location. We have one more day here so tomorrow we plan to hike some park trails in the morning then explore Henderson, Kentucky in the afternoon.

Note: A little behind on the blogs, but will catch up soon, as we are moving to the Nashville area today

5 comments:

  1. We too love the short travel days, enjoy Nashville!

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  2. I love that courthouse. It is so beautiful. I would have to make Paul walk all the way around it also.

    You didn't let me down...you found a brewery...lol

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  3. I like those nice slow easy days too. A park named after Audubon would surely catch my eye.

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  4. I always love reading about the great breweries you find for us to visit some day!

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