In my mind, Indianapolis is a place that is along the way to St. Louis, Missouri — a town where my brother had relocated to.
In downtown Indianapolis you will find the beautiful JW Marriott Indianapolis. It's actually a skyscraper. This hotel is so tall that you can see the blue glass of this tower as you drive through downtown. I've never stayed there. However, I've walked through the lobby and into the Indiana Convention Center that is right next door. Both are remarkable.
Of course there's the large pharma company, downtown. They've donated a bunch to the city and you'll see the signs in various parks, about that. In my mind, it's similar to what Rockefeller was to Cleveland.
Meanwhile, there is an excellent Children's Museum in downtown Indianapolis. We went there when our kids were toddlers. Look for the Chihuly that hangs down from the ceiling several floors. (I'll see if I can locate a picture of the Chihuly.) Seriously, this is one of the best children's museum's we've ever been to.
Then, there's the race track. I saw it from the outside when there was nothing going on inside. "There it is!"
Then, you have the suburbs to the north of downtown — which I'll mention a few paragaphs down the page.
Meanwhile, say are driving from Cleveland, Ohio to St. Louis, Missouri on the I-70 west. There is a good chance that you might reach downtown Indianapolis along the I-70 at the wrong time — and that time is rush hour. "Fiddlesticks - I should have taken the outerbelt!"
Then, during rush hour, you will find the typical snarl of traffic through downtown Indianapolis. Sometimes there will be gridlock. A few years ago, the Indiana transportation department had been working on the I-70 through downtown Indianapolis — which created another type of snarl — something that I refer to as "Orange Barrel Fever."
I'll use it in a sentence....
That summer, Orange Barrel Fever swept across the circle city at the I-70. It seems to me that at one point, the city of Indianapolis had closed the entire I-70 through downtown for those people making their way to St. Louis.
Then, when you get past "all that jazz" downtown, you keep heading west out of Indianapolis. You will see the Indianapolis International Airport on your way out of town.
After that, you'll be on your way to Terre Haute. Then, you'll drive past Pocahontas, Illinois home of country western star Gretchen Wilson — hence the song named "Pocahontas Proud."
Eventually, you will reach St. Louis, Missouri.
It's a long drive from Cleveland, Ohio to St. Louis, Missouri across Indiana. However, unlike driving across Pennsylvania, the terrain across Indiana is mostly flat. Driving across flat Indiana, you won't chew through brake pads like you will when you are driving across Pennsylvania.
Working for a company that had been headquarted in Carmel, Indiana, from 1996 to 2003, I got to know Carmel, Indiana fairly well—a suburb now frequently named one of America’s best places to live.
I've probably have only been to Carmel, three or four times.
While Carmel has grown with new parks and roundabouts, one recent upgrade caught my eye by pure coincidence.
In July 2026, while researching Cleveland’s own Sherwin-Williams ("Cover the Earth"), I stumbled upon a feature story about Carmel’s old, faded water tower. It had recently been restored using protective coatings from the company here in my hometown.
Seeing an Instagram reel featuring the newly painted tower brought back fond memories, proving once again what a small world it is when Ohio and Indiana craftmanship intersect.
The Indiana Tollway to Chicago (and beyond) is a stretch of road that I’ve traveled, probably hundreds of times since the day that I was born.
Every summer since the '70s, our family made the pilgrimage to Wisconsin, returning to the dairy farm where my mother was raised to spend time with her side of the family. In a future post, I can tell you more about Wisconsin farming. Wisconsin farming is the true meaning of a hard day's work. Wisconsin farming includes baling 50-lb bales of hay during the scorching heat of summertime. I'll mention all of that in the chapter about Wisconsin.
Meanwhile, I do remember many of the trips along this stretch of road. Plus, I see myself as a baby, included within the old pictures. I'm pictured in my mother's arms with the family, right there, in front of a big, red barn that housed the milking cows. Therefore, we must have driven the Indiana Toll Road? I can't remember.
Meanwhile, you can research the history of car seats as you ponder the 70s. My dad remembers the drive from Cleveland to Wisconsin before the Indiana Toll Road was built. Apparently, before the toll road, it was Route 20 straight west out of Cleveland and all the way into Chicago. Can you imagine? And before that, he remembers taking a train from Cleveland to Milwaukee. It's probably not the same Amtrak that we have now that boards in Cleveland at inconvenient hours in the middle of the night on the way to other places. Cleveland is halfway between New York and Chicago. This is the reason for the odd boarding times, here for the Amtrak. It's also the reason that I have a deep understanding of New York Style pizza and Deep-dish Chicago style pizza. They're both great! More about that under the section named "Illinois" but here's a teaser if you're in Chicago ordering a pizza. "Leave extra time!"
For now, we'll talk about Indiana and driving along the Indiana Toll Road. Along the way are some sand dunes. Different from the dunes in Michigan, yet still impressive. You probably would not even notice the sand dunes, unless you exit the Toll Road and check-out some of the seasonal resort towns that dot the coast along the way. For example, Michican City. All of that requires exiting the Indiana Toll Road — which would be a rare occurance unless we were getting drowsy on the way back.
Meanwhile, there's a Tire Rack warehouse that you can see from the tollway. It's a place from where I've ordered a few sets of snow tires in the past.
Then there's the state of Indiana's peculiar relationship with the Indiana Toll Road, itself. They don't own it, anymore — or something like that. Rumor has it a politician leased the toll rights to an Australian firm—a move that explains a lot, even if I don't fully understand or care about the politics behind it. Look, it's all on Wikipedia. At the end of the day, I just want a decent rest area - just like the nice rest areas that you find along the Ohio Turnpike. What is Indiana's deal, anyway? If you want to make a neighbor feel welcome, provide a decent rest area to "wheel on in" and take care of things. It never fails to spark a debate on the way to Chicago.
(Here's where my Territory Knowledge section turns into a travel guide, of sorts)
Anyhow, if you need a pit stop or a place to overnight, check out the town of Elkhart. Seems safe. "Any port in a storm" as they say. "We couldn't find a rest area — but hey — there's Elkhart! Pull into Elkhart — right now!"
Hahaha. *Whew!* It's like that.
The locals in Elkhart have always been friendly and rolled out the red carpet for us. I appreciate it. I know these people work hard. I've worked in restaurants, myself, It's hard work. Strange hours. Plus, the food has always been delicious at the Elkhart restaurants. The service in Elkhart has always been attentive. I always leave a good tip. The hotels I've selected and decided to try-out in Elkhart have been clean and comfortable. I usually drive around and do a visual when we are considering an overnight with the hotels. "How about that one?" They have all types of affordable motels, there, in Elkhart. "Just down the road from high prices" as they say.
Again, Elkhart is probably one of the better choices that is located directly off the Indiana Toll Road. Like me, you'll probably find many places in Elkhart to be quite inviting when you are feeling drowsy. Sleepy. *yawn!*
Many times, Cleveland is simply too far away to continue that drive all through the night.