#10 Joliet, IL to Shipshewana, IN

                                                                                                                                              

#10   Joliet, IL to Shipshewana, IN

Welcome to Shipshewana, IN

The distinctive clip-clop of a horse pulling an Amish buggy on asphalt roads echoes around town. Amish women and girls drive the buggies for Monday errand running.

We started our Shipshewana tour day at the Rise N Roll Bakery with way too much sugar. YUM!  A visit to Shipshewana can’t be complete without a stop at this outstanding little store. Besides the delicious donuts, cinnamon buns, etc. They also sell pickles, salsas, jams, cheeses and noodles.  Some people come for their limited breakfast menu or lunch.

We met a fun group of people there with 18 rigs of friends joining them.  I loved this sign right above where they were seated.    Two of these delightful people posed for a photo.

Lynn and Jay posed in the farmer folk frames.

Rain hit hard last night and on this day presented us with blustery and cool weather.

 So we hurried from the car into the shops of downtown Shipshewana.  We found a few places to help the economy.

Shops around town.

At the Red Barn shops we found this delightful sign.

Wonderlust: (n) a  strong desire or urge to travel and see the world.

Inside the Davis Mercantile’s four floors of wares I found these impressive quilted hot pads. Just looked!

This sign covered the south wall of the Mercantile.

A feed mill dominates the corner across the street from the Mercantile.

Behind this structure are some of the hitching posts provided all over town.  The posts provide a place to park the buggy and tie up the horse.   We noticed the horses look sleek and well-groomed as they trot around town.

The elementary school was hosting a quilt show.   Several buggies occupied the hitching post area. Quilt patterns show up all over town.

Buggy rides are provided for visitors who like a buggy experience.

Bicycles share the road with the buggies. Here 3 Mennonite ladies pedal off on their errands.

NOTE:  The Mennonites do not mind being photographed, but the Amish feel that photographs are graven images and ask that their faces not be photographed.  However I couldn't resist this open air buggy.

Down a back street we found the Bread Box Bake Shop.  We did purchases some needed bread.  Loved the old bread boxes on display!  Like the Rise n Roll this bake shop offered pastries, salsa, jams etc., but the Bread Box offered a large and interesting variety of bread from which to choose.

I had hoped to revisit the Menno-Hof museum.  This intriguing museum tells the Amish-Mennonite story through multimedia presentations, historical and colorful displays beginning in the 16^th century.  However after walking in the shops, my leg complained fiercely.  So we returned to the RV to ice.

This barn just across the street from the RV park displayed the Ten Commandments on their barn.

The Shipshewana Campground South sits just south of downtown. The wide spacious site and a well maintain park made this a pleasant stay.

 Right over the back fence horses and cows lazily grazed the pasture.

This GMC travel club happened to be in the campground with us. GMC developed this motor home between the years of 1973-1978.  They appeared to be way ahead of their time.   About twenty of them were parked here.

  For non-campers Shipshewana offers large inns and many Bed n Breakfast sites.

Derrille and Jay walked the Pumpkin Vine trail twice during our stay.  A recommissioned old railroad line creates the trail. If they wanted to walk from Shipshewana to Elkhart, the trail offered that options in miles, which didn’t make the guys’ photo. We drove down to get pictures.  The guys walked along Amish fields and enjoyed the sights.

A Chief Shipshewana memorial stood along this path.

We chose the Blue Gate Restaurant for dinner, ignoring the reviews.  A better choice would have been to heed the reviews.  Knowing current recommended nutrition guidelines, nothing on the menu met our needs.  Several entrees had noodles and mashed potatoes. The chicken was greasy as the reviews said.  I had meatloaf that was OK and I got steamed veggies and a salad.  The menu fits an old farmers needs perhaps, and made me realize how differently we eat in 2019.

The Blue Gate facility also hosts live theater performances as well as a concert schedule. They also offer buggy rides. This large buggy was pulled by a beautiful, huge horse.

We did enjoy our visit to Craft Barn.  They featured some very nice wares.

All things do change. Shipshewana feels more commercial than it did nine years ago.  The stores offer things found elsewhere, and less homemade items appear for sale.  Shipshewana ranks as the third largest Amish community in the nation.  This trip, more non-Mennonite girls worked in the stores.  Amish girls rarely if ever would work in a store.  The restaurant had male waiters, also new for this area. 

  However, even with change, the one constant feature of this community remains the clean look of well-maintained homes and fields. The sleek well cared for horses and the crisp look of their clothing.

Glad we returned for this visit.

NOTE:  We had picked up a toll ticket at Portage, IN.  We exited the freeway at Shipshewana. Because we have 5 axles our cost was $34. 80.   Jay and Lynn have four axles.  The toll taker said he owed $28.60 even though the driver’s monitor said $26.60.  Jay gave the man $40 and got change for a $28.60 toll, even though the receipt said $26.60 which they didn’t see until later.  Hmmm who do you suppose gets the extra $2?

Tomorrow more toll roads as we head to Grafton, OH, southwest of Cleveland.