Friday, December 13, 2013

Todd's Visit

 My son, Todd, came for a short visit. He wanted to spend some quality time with me. He also is a Civil War enthusiast and wanted to visit the two forts that were protecting Mobile Bay during the Civil War. The Naval Aviation Museum located in Pensacola was on the way. I wanted to show him some of the aircraft that flew off the USS Saratoga when I was stationed with VA 36 aboard the ship. Below Todd is pictured on the ground floor of the museum. Admission is free, and if readers of this blog are ever in the area, it is well worth spending time there,




The Pensacola Light house is located within sight of the museum. Todd wanted to climb the 177 steps to the top. I had climbed earlier in the year and waited in the keepers quarters.


 Pictured below is a cannon just outside the entrance to Fort Morgan. Fort Morgan is located on the east side of Mobile Bay.


Todd reading one of the many informational signs within Fort Morgan.



After leaving Fort Morgan we drove around the Bay and stayed overnight. The following morning we went to visit Fort Gaines located on the west side of Mobile Bay. Below Todd is reading one of the many informational descriptions of the activities of the battle.



Following are three more pictures within Fort Gaines.










Following is a picture of the Sand Point Light visible from Fort Gaines.




Below one of the many oil platforms located in Mobile Bay. When the wind is right one can smell the crude oil.



We were going to take the ferry over to the east side. The wait was several hours as the queue was amazingly long. We took the time to drive north to I 10 and we picked up I 110 that connected up to route 98 and we drove along the coast to home in Panama City Beach.

I enjoy visiting Civil War sites with Todd. He knows the history and he imparts his knowledge to me. We visited Gettysburg a couple of years ago which was another enjoyable time with my son.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Pennsylvania Dutch

 We went to Rhode Island this past September to visit family. Carol had never been to Pennsylvania Dutch. We stopped there for a few days before we went to Michigan to visit more family. The Amish farms are so neat and perfectly laid out. Following are two pictures of a typical farm in Lancaster County.







We were told that the Old Country Store in Intercourse was the best place to check out hand made quilts. We arrived there a few minutes before the store opened. I was able to take the following picture of a local Amish horse and buggy. The Amish do not like having their person photographed, but the buggy was OK. They actually move at a good pace. All their horses are really very beautiful.




The Old Country Store. If you check out the bottom of the sign, it advertised the fabric sale. It seems like fabric was on sale everywhere that day.



I was thinking of purchasing a local hand made Amish quilt. We looked at several designs. I liked this quilt as I felt the colors were bright and also happy colors. I felt it depicted how I feel - happy. Picture below is that quilt on our bed here in Florida.




The following picture was taken in one of the several fabric stores that Carol visited during our stay. Needless to say, she added considerably to her fabric stash. She has several projects planned.



We wanted to eat in a typical local restaurant. We were pointed to Good and Plenty. The food was exceptional both in quality and quantity.

Saturday, June 15, 2013

American Quilters Museum

 Carol started quilting about three years ago. I told her about the American Quilters Museum in Paducah, Kentucky. She expressed interest and I promised her that I would take her there. Its been about two years since I promised and every time we  planned to go something came up and we did not go. Driving home from the Black Hills seemed like a good time to stop in Paducah. We dedicated a day at  the museum and Hancock of Paducah, a very fine fabric store, which Carol really loved.

The museum does not allow any photography inside and we, of course, honored their rules. I did see one lady using her cell phone to take pictures.  Below are three picture of the outside of the museum.








Outside we saw a display of bronze statues honoring the Lewis and Clark Expedition.







A short walk from the museum and we were on the banks of the Ohio River. The picture does not show how quick the current was that day.


This was our last stop and we left the next day for home. We had a great trip. We both want to go back to stay in the cabin just to relax and read without all the driving to the sites. Well, maybe we would go back to the Mammoth Site and Custer State Park.

Friday, June 14, 2013

Maxwell Homestead


 The Maxwell Homestead (circa 1840?) is located on what is now Jack Pine Road which is off West Argyle Road. The elevation is just about 5000 feet. This site is at the bottom of a slight hill just below the cabin that we stayed in. Our hosts have tried to find more information about the Maxwell's but so far have been unsuccessful.  We could only imagine the hardships that this family endured to get there and survive for ever how long that they stayed there.

The location is beautiful, but the terrain does not look (to me) suitable for farming. Perhaps they had cattle grazing on the land. However there  is a fairly dense woodland surrounding this site.

Following are pictures of the structure as it looks today. The third picture was taken from the side of our cabin. From the picture you can see the downward slope of the site.







Monday, June 10, 2013

Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse Memorial


 Mount Rushmore is a National Monument. Admission is free, but there is a charge for parking. The parking pass is good for the year. So not a bad bargain. The Presidents are below.


 
There is a long walkway leading up to a viewing area. All the state flags are presented in the order that they joined the Union. There is also an excellent gift shop on site.



We also visited the Crazy Horse Memorial and Museum. Below is a scale model of what the finish product will look like. This site is privately funded and I felt the $10. per person fee was reasonable. They also cap the amount at $25. for a carload.


The following picture was taken with a short lens. The picture after was taken with my telephoto lens.


The opening below the out stretched arm is large enough to hold a 10 story high building. That will give you a reference for the scale of this monument. We began our tour with a movie showing the beginning and a history of the sculpting thus far.


We spent a couple of hours in the Indian museum. There are a number of paintings depicting the old West. Many Indian artifacts are displayed throughout the museum. Several local Indians artisans were also on site making their wares. There was another very nice gift shop. Following one of many displays.






Tuesday, June 04, 2013

The Badlands


 We were about two hours away from the Badlands. As we were driving, Carol asked me several times, "why are they called the Badlands?". Each time I answered, "you will see."  This is an area devoid of water and with difficult terrain to transverse.  The good news for the early settlers, the Badlands were not very wide and could be avoided.

Traveling in this part of the country, almost requires a stop at Wall Drug. Early on, the owner put up signs promoting stopping for a free glass of ice water. Today it is a sprawling complex selling every thing imaginable. Carol bought herself a cowgirl hat. She is pictured below with her "friend"




Following are several pictures taken during our scenic ride through the Badlands Park.










The scenery was awesome and well worth the time it took us to drive there and back to the cabin.

Sunday, June 02, 2013

The Mammoth Site

 When we were planning this trip, we did not have the Mammoth Site on our to do list for the Black Hills. Once there our hosts talked about the site and Carol added it to the list. I was neutral. I have to say that it was well worth the time and I found it most interesting.

It seems that when the earth was forming and the volcanic actions were pushing the Rockies, Devils Tower and other formations up, A fairly large pit was formed. The area beneath the pit was "super heated" . Even during the cold of winter, grass was readily available around the rim. The speculation is that the Woolly Mammoths and Columbian Mammoths came for an easy meal and slipped into the pit. They were unable to climb up the walls of the pit and fell prey. The estimate is that an average of three mammoths fell in every ten years over a period of three hundred years.

The land was purchased by a man who was going to develop it. When grading was begun they discovered a tusk and it was soon identified as a Woolly Mammoth. A non profit corporation was formed, funds raised and the owner sold the property for the same price he paid. A building was built over the property where the pit is located. A core sample was taken to a depth of sixty feet. So far excavations have reached the forty foot depth and sixty Mammoths have been uncovered.

Following is a small sample of the pictures that I took.








The picture below is model of what a Woolly Mammoth would have looked like.



This is a picture of what an ancient hut may have looked like. It was constructed of mammoth bones covered with animal hides.




A skeletal model of a mammoth. This is a frontal view of the head.



The site is located very near Hot Springs, South Dakota. We are talking about a repeat trip just to stay in the cabin and relax. However, we did agree that the Mammoth Site and Custer State Park would be the only two repeats.



Thursday, May 23, 2013

Custer State Park, South dakota

 Admission to the park is $15.00 and it is good for 7 days. The first time we went into the park we saw a few buffalo bulls grazing. We went back two days later. We were rewarded. The herds were close to the road and we were able to not only view the animals close up, we got some great pictures. The buffalo mamas are very protective of their calves. You would never get between a mother and calf. We watched several cross the road. An approaching car slowed but did not stop soon enough  and the mother moved so her body was between the car and baby. We saw over 599 buffalo, including about 200 calves. It was just awesome. Gizmo and Pillo remained in the cabin.







This little guy seemed all tuckered out.




There were a number of antelope throughout the park.



The mules were once used in the construction of local roads. Once the project was complete they were released in the park. They are very tame and are the only
animals in the park that folks are allowed to feed.


Black Hills, South DAkota



 We recently returned from a vacation in the Black Hills. This will be the first of several accounts of that trip. Our journey took us through several states with overnight stays in Tupelo, MS, Springfield, MO and Kearney, NE. We arrived mid afternoon on the fourth day. I had arranged to stay in this cabin earlier in the year. The cabin is off West Argyle Road below Pringle. The elevation was about 5000 feet above sea level. We both noticed the difficulty breathing. After all, we live at 21feet above sea level. Breakfast was included and Cindy and Stoney prepared an excellent meal every morning. Several days we skipped lunch.

Following is a picture of Carol standing on the front porch. Stoney had just put together a new grill and I did grill one night. Their home is in the background.  A second identical cabin is also available.


Stoney designed and built the cabins. Each cabin can sleep 5. There is a queen bed, a queen fold out couch and a bunk bed in the loft. Following are several pictures of the inside.



Pull down stairs to the loft area. Carol peeked and said it looked comfortable.




The bed was quite comfortable and we slept fairly well. Probably a combination of the rarefied air and the tiring days that we had.


Stoney and Cindy have three horses and a mule. The dark animal below is the mule. This was part of the view from our porch.



While we were there we saw  wild turkeys, mule deer, and white tail deer roaming the property. I am sure that there were critters we never saw when we walked the dogs just before bedtime. Both dogs badly wanted to rush into the darkness.

The cabin is about two plus miles on a dirt road from the state highway. No lights, just a wonderful vantage point to look at the stars in the heavens.