I woke up 45 minutes late. Let's just get that out of the way from the start. I dragged my ass out of bed, layered myself up in flannel and hoodies, threw on my parka and was out the door with my pre-packed camera bag and tripod.

But there was a problem.

I needed some sort of greasy meat and egg and carb device to sit like a brick in my stomach. And orange juice. Pulp free.

So I decided on Hardee's.

Partly because I knew it would be at least moderately delicious at 6am, but mainly because I knew the true prize would be the cinnamon and raisin biscuits. I ordered them as a present for Future Jeff , who is going to want a snack in 5 hours. Always be prepared in order to avoid the hunger monster. The Hunger Monster is real.

So it was onward from there. Fueled on carbs and greasy deliciousness, I picked up a friend and we drove to Alton, IL. Here we were able to catch the sunrise at the Cora Island Unit... Sort of. We missed it by about 15 minutes. My alarm didn't go off, but we've already covered that bit.

Ice at sunrise on the Mississippi River. Canon T3i, Sigma 10-20mm f4.

Here we also found a few remnants of washed up debris from the January floods, and a daunting view of the Clark Bridge from below. The sheer size of modern infrastructure is still baffling to me. The Clark Bridge is an absolute behemoth, especially when you are standing directly below the southern approach. It's also very well lit at night, but that doesn't really apply here.

Aside from the bridge, I must admit that I've never been that impressed by Alton, IL as a city. But it's the beginning of a great stretch of road that runs west along the Mississippi River. It runs north up the length of the state, but the bit we are concerned with ends 22 miles west of Alton in Pere Marquette State Park. Take the scenic drive once you enter the park, it's well worth it. But only take it in the winter. Between January and early March the leaves have all fallen and you can see for miles. When Spring arrives, the leaves grow back and cover the hills in front of the overlooks. Once you enter the park, the road climbs along the hills for a few miles. There are pull-offs and overlooks every half mile or so, each one is a great place to get out of the car and sit in nature for a while. I would suggest a scarf and many many layers of warmth if you plan to take this journey in the winter as we did.

This is where I witnessed one of my favorite things.

Silence. Natural silence.

I knew the bald eagles were a sheer numbers game. Roughly 2,500 of them nest in this area each year, so I was bound to see at least one. But silence is a rare thing, and I make sure to always be aware of it. The wind died down, the trees stood still. The goddamn sparrows in the bushes shut the fuck up for 30 seconds.

And there was silence.

Then there was a goose. About 4 miles away. Making his dumb goose noises and ruining what was otherwise a very cold but very enjoyable moment in nature.

Sparrow in the bushes. Canon T3i, Canon 70-300 f5.6

An unexpected cardinal. Canon T3i, Canon 70-300 f5.6

From there it was back down the scenic road to the riverfront south-ish of the park. Here, a bald eagle dive bombed us. No joke. He had gulls as wingmen.

Land gulls. Because it's not the sea.

River gulls?

We drove back east to Alton along IL 100. And here, Mother Nature finally smiled upon us with 6 bald eagles hovering over the cliffs along the road. We could see the cars in front of us pull off onto the shoulder every half mile or so. Five or six of them at a time. And each time we would pull off onto the shoulder as well and look up. We were all looking for the same thing.

Bald Eagle over IL 100. Canon T3i, Canon 75-300 f 5.6

Golden Eagle over IL 100. Canon T3i, Canon 75-300 f 5.6

About 10 miles west of Alton, we stopped seeing eagles, and traffic resumed its normal flow following alongside the limestone cliffs and the mighty Mississippi River. There's even a power plant along the way. Hurray industry!

So what did we learn here?

Pere Marquette State Park. Bald eagles, sparrows, cardinals, golden eagles, RIVER gulls, and ducks. Silence, except for the goose. Then there is IL 100. 22 miles of great scenic roadway.

If you wake up early enough and can brave the cold, all of this can be yours for less than a half tank of gas, and a belly full of indigestion.

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