I don't have any really cool pictures to show of the last two days home. We did stop by one of Robert Johnson's three gravesites in Mississippi. That was cool. But it was pretty ordinary travel down a flat road through MS, AR, and Texas.
We found caches in 15 new states. Check out our new map of found states! (Iowa should be on there, but I found out last night that I hadn't logged the Iowa cache yet)
Thanks for coming along with us again. It's good to be home.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Three States and Two Time Zones
This is the spot where TN-AL-GA come together. It's also along the line where the Eastern and Central time zones come together. It's got a fairly nice trail headed up to it, but it's covered in poison ivy. We wiped down with baby wipes afterwards, and so far, 24 hours later, no itching.
Yes, there's a geocache hidden nearby, with lots more poison ivy to wade through. Massive baby wipes wipe-down and tick patrol ensued.
Yes, there's a geocache hidden nearby, with lots more poison ivy to wade through. Massive baby wipes wipe-down and tick patrol ensued.
Andrews town
Lookie what we found! Andrew's town!
We stayed here a long time -- had lunch at Andrew's Mickey D's, found a geocache at Andrew's rest stop, and rang a bell at Andrew's train station, part of the Smoky Mountain Railway.
We stayed here a long time -- had lunch at Andrew's Mickey D's, found a geocache at Andrew's rest stop, and rang a bell at Andrew's train station, part of the Smoky Mountain Railway.
Blue Ridge Parkway
The Blue Ridge Parkway is a 469-mile road and one of the prettiest drives in the U.S. It goes from Smoky Mountain National Park in Tennessee to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. It was built in the 1930's as a Depression-era public works project.
We picked it up near Asheville, NC and got off in the Cherokee Indian Reservation.
Entering:
Typical of the scenery. There are many overlooks, one at least every 3-5 miles along the way. The speed limit is 45mph along the entire parkway, and most of the time we were doing under that so that the driver (me) could see the scenery as well.
Lots of fun tunnels.
This is near the highest point of the parkway, 6033 ft according to the sign, 6047 ft according to the GPS, and I see 6047 according to a map, best two out of three wins. We had lunch at an overlook and our view was similar to this picture. There's a fire tower on the hill in front of us, along with some antennas.
Beautiful escarpments covered in green.
One day, we'd like to come back and travel the entire distance. We passed a lodge on the way, and a number of visitor centers. There were not as many bicyclists than I had expected.
One funny story -- back at the giant peach, we noticed a motorcyclist taking pictures of the peach when we were there. We especially noticed him because of the bright green fleece jacket he had on. At the last overlook before the end of the parkway, we noticed him again -- more than half a day after we saw him in S.C.
We picked it up near Asheville, NC and got off in the Cherokee Indian Reservation.
Entering:
Typical of the scenery. There are many overlooks, one at least every 3-5 miles along the way. The speed limit is 45mph along the entire parkway, and most of the time we were doing under that so that the driver (me) could see the scenery as well.
Lots of fun tunnels.
This is near the highest point of the parkway, 6033 ft according to the sign, 6047 ft according to the GPS, and I see 6047 according to a map, best two out of three wins. We had lunch at an overlook and our view was similar to this picture. There's a fire tower on the hill in front of us, along with some antennas.
Beautiful escarpments covered in green.
One day, we'd like to come back and travel the entire distance. We passed a lodge on the way, and a number of visitor centers. There were not as many bicyclists than I had expected.
One funny story -- back at the giant peach, we noticed a motorcyclist taking pictures of the peach when we were there. We especially noticed him because of the bright green fleece jacket he had on. At the last overlook before the end of the parkway, we noticed him again -- more than half a day after we saw him in S.C.
The Giant Peach
Literally just before we stopped for the night in Gaffney, South Carolina, we saw what we had been looking for the entire trip: a giant peach. I knew we would see one, I just didn't know where or what form it would take. This giant peach took the form of a water tower. It has even won awards for best water tower. Who knew?
Obviously, there's a geocache hidden nearby, and obviously, we had to find it. The first stage was to look at a plaque commemorating the guy who the park is named for and get some numbers. The problem is, I didn't write down the instructions before leaving the hotel, reasoning I could get them from my phone at the site. I chose...poorly. The cache owner had used omegas and phis and other strange characters to denote the numbers we were supposed to pick up at the plaque. Some of these, but not all, did not render on my phone's web browser.
I used my razor sharp memory to make a guess at the coords, saw where the trail went (through the blackberry briars) and sent Richard off to find the cache. After 10 minutes, when he hadn't come back, I remembered a bit more about the cache page, to be specific, the terrain rating was much easier than the trail I had sent him down. I concluded my razor sharp memory was not as sharp as I had remembered. Luckily, Rich came back from his adventure, I cleverly found another permutation of the numbers which made a whole lot more sense, and off he went again into the briars.
Two minutes later, he came back with a duct-taped ziplock bag. Interesting container. I read the outside, opened it up, and discovered it was a letterbox. The clue was when the contents said, "This is a letterbox. It is not a geocache. It is not trash." I thought that was funny. Rich, bless his heart, went back one more time and in one minute was back with the real cache.
The cache was loaded with goodies and the kids made good trades. Rich's legs are feeling *much* better now, but they look pretty scratched up. The next day, he waded through woods of poison ivy, so everything's relative. More on that later.
Obviously, there's a geocache hidden nearby, and obviously, we had to find it. The first stage was to look at a plaque commemorating the guy who the park is named for and get some numbers. The problem is, I didn't write down the instructions before leaving the hotel, reasoning I could get them from my phone at the site. I chose...poorly. The cache owner had used omegas and phis and other strange characters to denote the numbers we were supposed to pick up at the plaque. Some of these, but not all, did not render on my phone's web browser.
I used my razor sharp memory to make a guess at the coords, saw where the trail went (through the blackberry briars) and sent Richard off to find the cache. After 10 minutes, when he hadn't come back, I remembered a bit more about the cache page, to be specific, the terrain rating was much easier than the trail I had sent him down. I concluded my razor sharp memory was not as sharp as I had remembered. Luckily, Rich came back from his adventure, I cleverly found another permutation of the numbers which made a whole lot more sense, and off he went again into the briars.
Two minutes later, he came back with a duct-taped ziplock bag. Interesting container. I read the outside, opened it up, and discovered it was a letterbox. The clue was when the contents said, "This is a letterbox. It is not a geocache. It is not trash." I thought that was funny. Rich, bless his heart, went back one more time and in one minute was back with the real cache.
The cache was loaded with goodies and the kids made good trades. Rich's legs are feeling *much* better now, but they look pretty scratched up. The next day, he waded through woods of poison ivy, so everything's relative. More on that later.
Why we drive the little roads
We've been staying on state and US highways, trying to avoid the interstates. It adds many miles and many hours to the overall trip, but my goodness, this is much better than straight flat roads through trees.
Somewhere in North Carolina:
Somewhere on the Blue Ridge Parkway:
Somewhere near the TN/GA border:
The Road Not Taken, by Robert Frost
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Somewhere in North Carolina:
Somewhere on the Blue Ridge Parkway:
Somewhere near the TN/GA border:
The Road Not Taken, by Robert Frost
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Showers
I've complained about this before, but after almost 3 weeks of hotel/motel living, it's time to complain again. I've seen a lot of fancy showerheads since I last showered at home. Some with massages, some with different kinds of spray, some crusted with lime or rust (yuck!). They invariably have one thing in common -- a hole in the spray due to the pattern of water coming out of the head. This has always bugged me about American showerheads. That's why I have a showerhead which is simply round with holes poked in it, in a pleasing and functional radial pattern.
There are some good things about American hotel/motel showers. Whoever thought up the rounded shower curtain bar is a genius. This thing holds the shower curtain away from the tub at the top, so the curtain tapers down to the tub, and your tummy isn't constantly bumping up against and sticking to the shower curtain.
Another good thing is that the vast majority of these showers actually have more than enough water pressure. And the showerheads are really high on the wall, terrific for someone as tall as I am. I have bad memories of having to do backbends to rinse my hair in a trickle of water.
On a related note, the beds in hotel/motels have gotten a thousand times better in the past 10 years or so. These are tall enough that my legs dangle over the sides, soft enough that I can sleep all night, the sheets stay tucked in (for the most part), lots of pillows, just the right amount of covers, soft sheets, and sometimes, like last night, we get a room with a KING bed and pullout sofa and I sleep like a baby all night.
Next needed improvement -- taller toilets.
There are some good things about American hotel/motel showers. Whoever thought up the rounded shower curtain bar is a genius. This thing holds the shower curtain away from the tub at the top, so the curtain tapers down to the tub, and your tummy isn't constantly bumping up against and sticking to the shower curtain.
Another good thing is that the vast majority of these showers actually have more than enough water pressure. And the showerheads are really high on the wall, terrific for someone as tall as I am. I have bad memories of having to do backbends to rinse my hair in a trickle of water.
On a related note, the beds in hotel/motels have gotten a thousand times better in the past 10 years or so. These are tall enough that my legs dangle over the sides, soft enough that I can sleep all night, the sheets stay tucked in (for the most part), lots of pillows, just the right amount of covers, soft sheets, and sometimes, like last night, we get a room with a KING bed and pullout sofa and I sleep like a baby all night.
Next needed improvement -- taller toilets.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Leaving North Carolina
It's time to start the drive back home. I'm looking forward to it. It's been a really long week of thinking. It will be good to use a different part of my brain for a while.
Anagrams for North Carolina:
Loch Narration
A Cilantro Horn
Oh Cranial Torn
No Racial Thorn
Rot Canal Rhino
Anal Iron Torch
No Choral Train
Chart Roan Lion
This hotel has a tennis court. Picture a six and seven year old playing tennis. It's funnier in real life.
Anagrams for North Carolina:
Loch Narration
A Cilantro Horn
Oh Cranial Torn
No Racial Thorn
Rot Canal Rhino
Anal Iron Torch
No Choral Train
Chart Roan Lion
This hotel has a tennis court. Picture a six and seven year old playing tennis. It's funnier in real life.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Painting a bridge
On the way back to Kentucky, we crossed a bridge over the Ohio River. They were painting the bridge, so of course, we chose the lanes they were painting. They were the slower lanes, but we chose them on purpose because on the way over, we had seen that...
...they had put up a tent over the bridge. How cool is that?
Actually, it was really hot and stinky in the tent and we were glad to get out into the sunshine again.
...they had put up a tent over the bridge. How cool is that?
Actually, it was really hot and stinky in the tent and we were glad to get out into the sunshine again.
Super Stop
Yes, we were in Metropolis, Illinois! Guess who we saw there??
Truth, Justice and The American Way!
Here's where we parked.
And a reminder of the need for superheroes in the county courthouse also located on Superman Square.
The town has a Superman festival and they were celebrating the 30th when we were there. There were funnel cake trucks set up ready to party. We couldn't stay though, there was another cache to get in another terrific park with a playground, pond, ducks, and a giant Indian head carved from a 58,000 pound oak tree (according to the sign).
Truth, Justice and The American Way!
Here's where we parked.
And a reminder of the need for superheroes in the county courthouse also located on Superman Square.
The town has a Superman festival and they were celebrating the 30th when we were there. There were funnel cake trucks set up ready to party. We couldn't stay though, there was another cache to get in another terrific park with a playground, pond, ducks, and a giant Indian head carved from a 58,000 pound oak tree (according to the sign).
Ft. Massac
We were going to hop over to Illinois and pick up a quick cache, but ended up spending the morning at Ft. Massac.
It was built by the Spanish in the 1500's, taken over by the French, then the British, then the Americans, when George Washington garrisoned troops there.
This is a replica of the fort. The real one is just next door, all that remains is the location of the buildings. The buildings had the original hardwood floors (!) and rudimentary furniture like bunk beds (no mattresses) and tables. Some had fireplaces. I think those were the officers' buildings.
Clark (of Lewis and Clark) visited here, and there are plaques with his name on them in the old fort.
This is the view of the Ohio River from the fort. I suppose if the Indians had bridges, the fort-holders would be in much more trouble.
A big tractor had just come by to remove flood debris from the boat ramp. He just pushed it all back into the river.
The first row of stakes is in a moat. There was no water in the moat, but there was a faucet nearby. No crocodiles, either. The post in the middle is a flagpole.
There are steps up the flagpole. I thought it was a lookout tower, but it really is a flagpole.
We did find the cache. It was a nice walk through the woods to an easy find. The boys had brought along items to trade and went away happy. We then drove to the fort and found 5 playgrounds on the way. The boys were very impressed.
It was built by the Spanish in the 1500's, taken over by the French, then the British, then the Americans, when George Washington garrisoned troops there.
This is a replica of the fort. The real one is just next door, all that remains is the location of the buildings. The buildings had the original hardwood floors (!) and rudimentary furniture like bunk beds (no mattresses) and tables. Some had fireplaces. I think those were the officers' buildings.
Clark (of Lewis and Clark) visited here, and there are plaques with his name on them in the old fort.
This is the view of the Ohio River from the fort. I suppose if the Indians had bridges, the fort-holders would be in much more trouble.
A big tractor had just come by to remove flood debris from the boat ramp. He just pushed it all back into the river.
The first row of stakes is in a moat. There was no water in the moat, but there was a faucet nearby. No crocodiles, either. The post in the middle is a flagpole.
There are steps up the flagpole. I thought it was a lookout tower, but it really is a flagpole.
We did find the cache. It was a nice walk through the woods to an easy find. The boys had brought along items to trade and went away happy. We then drove to the fort and found 5 playgrounds on the way. The boys were very impressed.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Caching and playing in Salem, Arkansas
We found a super park with a pond, ducks, geese, a playground, a hill, and ... a geocache. Here's the obligatory kid shot.
The boys try to lure some geese with corn. This park had one of those machines like you see at stores -- you put in money and out comes nerds or M&Ms. This machine had corn in it. We weren't sure if the corn was for the squirrels or the geese, but I'm sure they all enjoyed it after we left.
The boys try to lure some geese with corn. This park had one of those machines like you see at stores -- you put in money and out comes nerds or M&Ms. This machine had corn in it. We weren't sure if the corn was for the squirrels or the geese, but I'm sure they all enjoyed it after we left.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Photo Meme
I stole this from my buddy Jana. (I mean really stole it. I even copy-and-pasted her words. Thanks Jana!!!)
Rules:
1. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
2. Using only the first page of results, pick one image.
3. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into Big Huge Lab’s Mosaic Maker to create a mosaic picture of the answers.
Questions:
1. What’s your first name?
2. What is your favorite food right now?
3. What high school did you go to?
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. What is your favorite drink?
7. What is your dream vacation?
8. What is your favorite dessert?
9. What do you want to be when you grow up?
10. What do you love most in life?
11. What is one word that describes you?
12. What is your flickr name?
Mine:
Rules:
1. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
2. Using only the first page of results, pick one image.
3. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into Big Huge Lab’s Mosaic Maker to create a mosaic picture of the answers.
Questions:
1. What’s your first name?
2. What is your favorite food right now?
3. What high school did you go to?
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. What is your favorite drink?
7. What is your dream vacation?
8. What is your favorite dessert?
9. What do you want to be when you grow up?
10. What do you love most in life?
11. What is one word that describes you?
12. What is your flickr name?
Mine:
Where was I?
It's been a long time since I left Madison...
I met up with Rich and the boys at my mom's, then we left, ummmm, Tuesday, yeah, that's right, for North Carolina. We spent the first night in Arkansas and tonight we're in Paducah, KY. I think the camera is nearby, but it's almost 10 and I want to get to bed at a reasonable hour tonight! Plus my friend Jana posted a great meme on her blog and I wanna go do it. :)
I met up with Rich and the boys at my mom's, then we left, ummmm, Tuesday, yeah, that's right, for North Carolina. We spent the first night in Arkansas and tonight we're in Paducah, KY. I think the camera is nearby, but it's almost 10 and I want to get to bed at a reasonable hour tonight! Plus my friend Jana posted a great meme on her blog and I wanna go do it. :)
Saturday, June 07, 2008
Leaving Madison
Just a couple of pictures on the way out of town yesterday. We did go back and find the cache I couldn't find the day before. It was a terrific puzzle and a clever hide, and I'm very glad I found it.
Here is the hospital I was born in. Of course, 42 years later, it's a mega-conglomerate health care center, and this is just one wing of it.
We drove west. On the AAA central states map, it doesn't look very far to Minnesota. Turns out it's a couple of hours away, but that's ok. Grabbed a geocache there, it was on a nice trail in some woods. Great to stretch your legs at. Then turned south into Iowa. Somewhere along the way, we passed the Laura Ingalls Wilder museum and highway. There isn't much prairie left, it's all farms. Here are some Iowa cows having a good time.
The drive through SW WI and SE MN is just beautiful. The hills are round, rocky hemispheres, covered in deciduous trees and grasses. The road winds along the creek at the bottom of these hills. The land is glacier-formed.
Here is the hospital I was born in. Of course, 42 years later, it's a mega-conglomerate health care center, and this is just one wing of it.
We drove west. On the AAA central states map, it doesn't look very far to Minnesota. Turns out it's a couple of hours away, but that's ok. Grabbed a geocache there, it was on a nice trail in some woods. Great to stretch your legs at. Then turned south into Iowa. Somewhere along the way, we passed the Laura Ingalls Wilder museum and highway. There isn't much prairie left, it's all farms. Here are some Iowa cows having a good time.
The drive through SW WI and SE MN is just beautiful. The hills are round, rocky hemispheres, covered in deciduous trees and grasses. The road winds along the creek at the bottom of these hills. The land is glacier-formed.
Thursday, June 05, 2008
Three days in Madison
Hard to believe we're leaving tomorrow...but we are. It's been a lot of fun. We saw a nursing school friend of my mom's yesterday and did some geocaching today. There is nothing like standing on the street corner at a bus stop with your arm down the belly of an apartment finder magazine rack. And then not finding the cache. But I know where it is and we'll be back tomorrow before leaving town.
This is the view from most of the windows of the conference. It's not sunny, thank goodness, or I'd have trouble concentrating. In fact, it thunderstormed this morning and was still raining when we started.
This is a shot along a walk I took at lunch. That's Stu Hunter in front of me.
This is the apartment my parents were living in when I was born. It is in a run down neighborhood now.
This is the married student housing my parents were living in when my sister was born. I think married student housing is the same the world over.
We did find 2 interesting caches today -- an earthcache and a webcam cache. Thank goodness. After the apartment finder magazine incident, I needed cache redemption.
This is the view from most of the windows of the conference. It's not sunny, thank goodness, or I'd have trouble concentrating. In fact, it thunderstormed this morning and was still raining when we started.
This is a shot along a walk I took at lunch. That's Stu Hunter in front of me.
This is the apartment my parents were living in when I was born. It is in a run down neighborhood now.
This is the married student housing my parents were living in when my sister was born. I think married student housing is the same the world over.
We did find 2 interesting caches today -- an earthcache and a webcam cache. Thank goodness. After the apartment finder magazine incident, I needed cache redemption.
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
Wisconsin, where the air is sweeter
The air is certainly sweeter in Wisconsin. The scent of lilacs, honeysuckle, green grass, and clean forest hangs in the air. The temperature was in the 70's so we have had the car windows down, and each mile gave a different scent. Ok, it's not all bliss -- you can always tell when you're passing a dairy farm!
We drove to Mayville to see my grandparents and other relatives' graves, also the farm where my gramma stayed and worked in the summer. We looked for the house her father built, but didn't find it. Here is a picture of the dammed river that she used to ice-skate on in the winter.
Next, on to Theresa and the best brick cheese at the cheese factory. Brick was named because of the what they used for weights. We bought cheese and summer sausage and a couple of bags of cheese curds that may or may not be gone already. I'll never tell.
This is my mom's old high school in West Bend. It's now the junior high. We saw a bunch of kids with Badger Jr. High Triathlon shirts on. They were all wet. I think they had just completed a triathlon and were still smiling.
This is the old Amity leather factory. I have bought a couple of wallets from the factory store here in the past. Now it is Amity apartments that look pretty run down. Why do they call them apartments when they are so close together?
And here's a lilac bush at the site of my gramma's house. The house (trailer) is gone now, and the ground is very overgrown. She spent three years picking every dandelion flower and crushing it to pieces before ridding her lawn of them completely. They are still gone.
And this is her street. There is pink and yellow honeysuckle growing all down the lane, the trees shade it, and it is so quiet. Perfection, except for the deer flies and horrible mosquitoes.
I've got a class on Tuesday, and the conference on Wednesday-Friday. But we hope to drive to Wisconsin Dells one evening and I've got some geocaches to find as well.
We drove to Mayville to see my grandparents and other relatives' graves, also the farm where my gramma stayed and worked in the summer. We looked for the house her father built, but didn't find it. Here is a picture of the dammed river that she used to ice-skate on in the winter.
Next, on to Theresa and the best brick cheese at the cheese factory. Brick was named because of the what they used for weights. We bought cheese and summer sausage and a couple of bags of cheese curds that may or may not be gone already. I'll never tell.
This is my mom's old high school in West Bend. It's now the junior high. We saw a bunch of kids with Badger Jr. High Triathlon shirts on. They were all wet. I think they had just completed a triathlon and were still smiling.
This is the old Amity leather factory. I have bought a couple of wallets from the factory store here in the past. Now it is Amity apartments that look pretty run down. Why do they call them apartments when they are so close together?
And here's a lilac bush at the site of my gramma's house. The house (trailer) is gone now, and the ground is very overgrown. She spent three years picking every dandelion flower and crushing it to pieces before ridding her lawn of them completely. They are still gone.
And this is her street. There is pink and yellow honeysuckle growing all down the lane, the trees shade it, and it is so quiet. Perfection, except for the deer flies and horrible mosquitoes.
I've got a class on Tuesday, and the conference on Wednesday-Friday. But we hope to drive to Wisconsin Dells one evening and I've got some geocaches to find as well.
Monday, June 02, 2008
Driving
We drove from Austin to Madison in two very long days. The first night was spent in the middle of Missouri, near Fort Leonard Wood, where Richard used to live years ago. Missouri is a beautiful state, especially in the Ozarks.
Can you guess where this picture was taken?
There's a wind farm either in north Illinois or south Wisconsin. I can't remember!
Can you guess where this picture was taken?
There's a wind farm either in north Illinois or south Wisconsin. I can't remember!
The adventure has returned!!
Summer must be here, this blog is active again.
I'm in Madison for a conference this week, took some pics on the way up that I'll post here later. I'm driving back over the weekend, picking up Rich and the boys, and we're headed out for a couple of weeks in North Carolina.
Enjoy the ride with us!
I'm in Madison for a conference this week, took some pics on the way up that I'll post here later. I'm driving back over the weekend, picking up Rich and the boys, and we're headed out for a couple of weeks in North Carolina.
Enjoy the ride with us!
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