The Road Trip on U.S. 6 continues through Indiana

More photos from Route 6 in IndianaTuesday, June 14 — Gary, Indiana to Utica, IllinoisHow is it that I'm sitting on a rocking chair on a hotel porch in Utica, Illinois?Just a few hours earlier I was overlooking a train station near Gary, Indiana.I and my sons Will and Payton traveled about 120 miles of U.S. 6in roughly eight hours with plenty of stops along the way.Our day started at a railway freight station in Chesterton, IN. No, I wasn't trying to ship the boys back to Sandusky on the fourth day of our trip. We stayed at Riley's Railhouse a few miles north of U.S. 6 in the quaint town of Chesterton. A very convenient place if you like the Indiana Sand Dunes State Park and if you like breakfast. We like both.The boys and I took a tour of the Times of Northwest Indiana after driving a stretch of 6 that was had several roadside greenhouses including Remus Farms, a roadside market in operation since 1932.Our tour included a look at the newsroom and press of the Times and the boys were taught how to make press hats from newspapers by Pat Kincaid who works in the library of the paper.U.S. 6 piggybacked and paralleled Interstate 80 during our Tuesday stretch and I have a feeling we will see plenty of 80 for the rest of Illinois and Iowa. We weren't able to get a photo at the state line as it was a busy interstate. Payton took a video from the back seat as we crossed into Illinois. You will have to check it out online.We even piggybacked Historic Route 66 for about a mile in Joliet.The route winds through the countryside, the Illinois River and the IAM (Illinois and Michigan) Canal with stops in small towns like Marseilles and ChannahonWill keeps a checklist in our van during the trip and on this Flag Day 2016 he counted 545 American Flags along U.S. 6 with a big chunk of those coming during our trip on the flag-lined section of the route through Harvey, Illinois.We will start our Wednesday in Utica with a stop at the Starved Rock State Park. I didn't know rocks had an appetite.Monday, June 13 — Nappanee to Gary, IndianaNo cell phones, no iPads, no computers.Could you imagine living without those things?The boys had a taste of that life in Nappanee, IN on Monday and the three of us had a taste of the Threshers dinner at Amish Acres, a farm and heritage museum in the Amish country of Indiana.Amish Acres is the restored location of the Stahly-Nissley-Kuhns farmstead, the only Amish farm listed in The National Register of Historic Places.Guests to the property can experience the sustainable life of the Amish, from a smokehouse to a garden to a home without electricity. The tour of the home was the boys' favorite part of our visit other than dessert. More on that later.We met with Brian Bell, chief operating officer of Amish Acres and a Columbus native. "Between U.S. 6 and the railroad, I'm sure that's a big reason for all the traffic that comes through the (Nappanee) area," he said.Amish Acres is also home to the Round Barn Theatre, which is home to Plain & Fancy written by Joseph Stein. He also wrote Redhead and Fiddler on the Roof. The stage is named for Smith and there was a youth theater practicing when we stopped in. The barn is 60 feet tall and has a 60 feet diameter. The theater group performs Plain & Fancy throughout the year and also performs several other shows in one-month stints. All Shook Up, a broadway musical about the King, Elvis Presley, is the current show. Unfortunately, Monday is the only day there are no productions so it looks like we will have to return.Another reason to make a return is the Threshers Dinner. The boys, who are usually picky with food other than chicken tenders and macaroni & cheese, couldn't eat enough. And they still made room for dessert where the choices are brought out to you on a silver tray. I chose the shoofly pie, Payton opted for chocolate cream pie and Will made the best decision of the day with the apple dumpling. Good thing he shared.We had a short drive on U.S. 6 with a stop in Walkerton and to the Traveling Gamer where we sat down for a quick card game.We stopped just east of Gary, Indiana where the plan is to travel a few miles north to see the Indiana Sand Dunes State Park. On Tuesday we will travel into Illinois after a stop at the Northwest Times of Indiana. Sunday, June 12 — Bowling Green, Ohio to Nappanee, IndianaJudging by the start and the end of our day on U.S. 6 you would think it was windy. The day started in Bowling Green where there are four turbines at the Wood County landfill.The site is Ohio's first utility-sized wind farm. The wind turbines are 257 feet tall and generate up to 7.2 megawatts of power — enough to supply electricity for approximately 2,500 residential customers, according the city of Bowling Green's website.Our next stop was Napoleon where we caught up with a tour of the city. The tour was walking past the historic courthouse on the business section of U.S. 6. The boys and I learned about a fire that destroyed most of the downtown in 1879. The city gained in popularity and population when a canal system was created next to the Maumee River.There were a couple photo opportunities in Ridgeville Corners as well as an ice cream opportunity at Tropical Freeze, a business in operation for 15 years in a building that has been an ice cream stand since 1948. The shop is at the corner of Ohio 34 and U.S. 6.We then crossed into our first of three "I" states in Indiana. "The Crossroads of America" as it is called appreciates the history of the road we are crossing with Grand Army of the Republic Highway signs along with the normal West 6 signs we have seen through Ohio.We took a photo of a boy in each state at the state line marker and continued into Indiana.It wasn't too far down the road to where we found Kendallville and the Mid-American Windmill Museum. It was closed by the time we arrived, but we were able to do a self-guided walking tour of the property.Will was sure to add the windmills to that section of his daily checklist. (And he also counted 1,333 barns on Sunday, over double what he counted Saturday.We stopped for the night in Nappanee, a quaint downtown with large apples that were painted by local artists along Main and Market Streets.Our Monday will start at Amish Acres, a historic farm and heritage resort. Look for updates at our site starting at 9 a.m.See what you missed on U.S. 6 in OhioRoad Trip Title sponsors: Mickey Mart Foodstores, Lake Erie Shores & Islands and Victory Honda of SanduskyPlease visit all of our partners: Cameo Pizza, RE/MAX Realty, McDonald's of Sandusky and Huron, Cedar Point, Knott's Berry Farm, MCPc Imaging & Technology, Shirt Shack/Pelz Lettering, Downing Billiards & Awards, Sandusky Dental Partners, Goodtime I, Sandusky Paint Co., Doebel's Flowers, James L. Ruthsatz CPA, The Hero Zone, Slater Scentsy, Amish Acres, Bristlecone Motel, The Willows Hotel.Follow the trip at www.sanduskyregister.com/GoWest or Facebook.com/SanduskyRegisterWerling or Twitter @WhirlybirdPhoto and Instagram @SanduskyRegister.Watch our Indiana updates as they happen in the stream below and follow our Twitter Tweets by whirlybirdphotoWill and Payton Werling are given a tour of the farmhouse at Amish Acres in Nappanee, IN. The Stahly-Nissley-Kuhns farmstead is the only Amish farm listed in The National Register of Historic Places.Will and Payton Werling stand near a state line marker at the Ohio/Indiana border on Sunday, June 12, 2016 during their road trip on U.S. 6. The boys will be in Indiana until Tuesday and will be going to Amish Acres on Monday.Payton Werling does his best Napoleon impression as the Werling Boys entered the town on Sunday, June 12, 2016.An ice cream shop called Tropical Freeze has been open at Ohio 34 and U.S. 6 for 15 years, but has been an ice cream shop at Ridgeville Corners since 1948.The first Grand Army of the Republic highway signs in Indiana on Sunday, June 12, 2016.The Mid-American Windmill Museum is in Kendallville, IN, just south of U.S. 6 and includes windmills of all shapes and sizes.A walking historical tour of downtown Napoleon walks on the business section of U.S. 6 on Sunday, June 12, 2016. The historic and picturesque courthouse is in the background.A one-room schoolhouse similar to where the Amish are taught until eighth grade. The schoolhouse is on the property of Amish Acres in Nappanee, IN.A post office at Ridgeville Corners in Ohio at U.S. 6, right.The inside of the restaurant at Amish Acres in Nappanee, IN.Hahn's Greenhouse has been just off of U.S. 6 between Nappanee and Walkerton, Indiana and includes flowers, seeds and anything else for the garden.Will Werling is in awe and his brother Payton smiles as they are given choices of dessert with the Threshers Dinner at Amish Acres on Monday, June 13, 2016.Will Werling sits down with a peacock on the grounds of Amish Acres on Monday, June 13, 2016. There are many livestock on the property including pigs, guinea fowl, ducks and a donkey.A youth theater group works through auditions at the Round Barn Theatre and Joseph Stein Stage on Monday, June 13, 2016.