2017 Year In Review

It is the end of another year.  Time flies when you are not looking... Let’s be honest and say that 2017 was an interesting year.  It was filled with marches, tweeting, volunteering.  It was a year of change.  But passions helped to keep me grounded and things in perspective.  In that regard, it was an amazing year.  It began on an epic cruise ship through so many islands now wiped out by hurricanes, and concludes with my first trip to Central America snorkeling on the second largest coral reef in the world.  I took time planning trips to exotic locales and quick getaways around DC.  And while I still did not get to my final state, I did, truly, see some breath-taking views.

 

 Water and weather played a huge role in my 2017.  So many trips involved islands, coastlines, oceans, seas, rivers, bays and straits.  I was able to drip my toes in cold and warm waters – in the Pacific NW and the Caribbean.  I explored areas on both coasts and was able to see marine mammals, birds, aquatic life of all kinds in various environments I got to see the 2 different kinds of rainforest in one year, tropical and temperate, in the Pacific NW and Belize.  We got to small towns and big cities on the water.  And then there was the rain…oh the rain!

 

 

 

Year End Summary

• States/Territories Visited: VA, MD, WV, DE, NJ, NY, TN, FL, NV, CA, WA

• Countries: USA, Belize, Mexico, Canada (technically)

• Key Cities: Orlando, San Jose, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Las Vegas, Anaheim, Redding, Seattle, Nashville, Cancun, Reno, Denver, Fort Lauderdale, Belize City, New York
• Art Towns – St Michaels, Maryland; Friday Harbor, Washington

 

• (new) Parks & Park Units: Lassen Volcanic National Park; Whiskeytown National Recreation Area; Point Reyes National Seashore; Stones River National Battlefield; San Juan Island NHP; George Washington's Birthplace NM; Fredrick Douglass NHS; Belmont-Paul Women's Equality NM; Tulum National Park, Mexico; Blue Hole National Park, Belize; Lake Tahoe State Park, NV; McArthur Burney Falls Memorial State Park, CA; Swallow Falls State Park, MD; Lime Kiln State Park, WA

• Concerts:  Cher, Neil Diamond, Dianne Krall, 3 Cellos, Rod Stewart & Cyndi Lauper, Chicago, Guns & Roses, New Kids On the Block, Paula Abdul, Boyz II Men, Megan Hilty, Richard Marx & Rick Springfield, Queen, Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga

• Theater: War Paint, Puffs, The King & I, Bandstand, A Bronx Tale, Groundhog Day, In Transit, The Little Mermaid, Mamma Mia, Fun Home, Cagney, Midwestern Gothic, Mean Girls

• Aquariums: Cancun Aquarium

• Ghost Tours: Winchester Mystery House, Nashville

• Iconic or Plain Ole’ Amazing Sites: Chichen Itza, Tulum, Xunantunich, MesoAmerican Reef, Harry Potter World, Disney, Nashville's Parthenon,  Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Sun Dial Bridge, 500,000 plus people marching in DC for the Women's March, THE ECLIPSE

Finally Made It to Mexico

Groupon Travel is the most tempting thing out there.  I look at the listings and just itch to click. On the site, I see everything from opportunities stateside, the Caribbean, Central America, Europe and even dream trips on African Safaris, Australia... it's crazy.  And sometimes I think it's unrealistic... If you have ever been on Groupon, you know that some trips offer extraordinary discounts. Some of the deals seem almost too good to pass up.  And then there is that count down clock! It is all designed for temptation.  I wanted to test it out... but, I did not want to be completely at the mercy of the discount gods if it turned into a nightmare. I figured my best bet was somewhere outside where I could work around the system easily if it didn't work out - somewhere like the Caribbean or our neighbor to the South, Mexico.  I have never been to Mexico and a trip was long over due.  In Groupon, I did not want anything that included airfare because those deals scare me - I know I would be stuck in a middle seat, in the back of the plane, on some ridiculous low cost carrier that charges for air.  Instead, we found a "too good to be true" deal on an all inclusive hotel in Cancun for just under $200/night!  Not knowing what to expect, I did not want to stay too long, but wanted to be there long enough to take in a new area, so I settled on 4 nights.  Woohoo, my first trip to Cancun - only 25 years late for high school spring break!

So, excited for our trip, I researched options for tours and fun.  As enticing as sitting for days on a sugar white beach sounds, I did not think that was the best use of my money... I wanted to explore... I could sit on a beach at home.  Much to the chagrin of my boyfriend, I planned stuff everyday (all 3 full days there). Of course I wanted to relax too, so the days were not full days.  The activities picked gave us at least a half day at the hotel beach.  We were going to make the most of this trip. 

Days 2&3 - Art, Alpacas, Lavendar, Parks, Orcas & Yachts in the San Juan Islands - Art, Alpacas, Lavendar, Orcas and Yachts



Historical Society
Topographical Interactive Map
San Juan Island

(Continuing my San Juan Island Trip in July 2017)

We hit the ground running Monday, starting with an interview with  town/island leader, Barbara Marrett, over an amazing Breakfast. (Seriously, I am going to have to try and recreate the baked eggs in tomato we ate at  Cynthia’s Bistro).  We talked about island life, the tight knit community, and their ties to the orcas and the Salish Sea.  It's hard to deny the beauty of the area that just draws you in, and her story reflected that pull.  I have always been curious about small town island living and what brings people there, and she let us pepper her with questions about Friday Harbor's growth and laid back nature, the (sometimes) hassle of being cut off from the mainland, and her history that brought her to the island.

After our breakfast education we were handed off to another amazing town leader - the executive Director of the Whale Museum, Jenny Atkinson.  She spoke to us for hours about the orcas and other whales that visit the Sound. Adding to what we learned the evening before from Maya's Legacy (whale watching tour), we were getting a crash course in the local ecosystem.  She spoke passionately about the resident orca pod and how connected people on the island are to it. The reason the whale museum started naming the orca's was the fact that locals are able to identify so many since the people and orcas grow up together and these orcas are often found near the island coast line. Islanders are able to pinpoint births and deaths in the pod since they are such a regular site around the San Juans.  Sadly, they numbers have plummeted.  The Whale Museum  mission is education everyone they can on the majesty of these mammals. After our talk, we were given a tour of the museum, and next thing we knew we were well past noon and well past the schedule that Lesley had made for us to maximize our time.  So, after some purchases (I had to adopt a whale to support their mission), we headed out.

Before we left Friday Harbor and drove into the heart of the island, we wanted to stop by the Art Museum.  Although we had planned for the Art Museum on Monday before our ferry, we found out it would be closed... quick schedule tweak and we made it.  The museum is small!  Really 2 main rooms.  It was hosting an exhibit on native masks  - masks from private collectors.  Much of this stuff was never seen in public.  And it was glorious.  These pieces tell stories but the museum let them speak for themselves - you had to pull up piece information on your smart phone using your scanner!  It was a smart way to show these pieces.

 

The BIG Event of the Year - I Was There

I planned this trip to Nashville over a year ago.  The Washington Post published an article asking "where will you be?" and it left me wondering "where."  So, I started researching over a year ago for this one day - August 21st. 

Nashville from the Cumberland River

After talking it over with my boyfriend, we started looking out west in Wyoming and quickly found out that even a year in advance, we were too late to the party.  Rooms were booked in the path of totality.  This was beyond frustrating - I wanted to be ahead of the curve and instead I was playing catch up.  So, out came that Washington Post map and we looked at areas all over the west.  With the path cutting from Oregon to South Caroline, we had options - or so we thought.  Everywhere we looked was booked.  So, we gave up on our western wishes and started looking at alternatives.  We already knew that Charleston would be out as a option since we visited last year AND the summer weather runs a higher risk of storms.  In the center of the country, a few mid-western cities had options - St Louis, Kansas City, Nashville... I had been to all of them but John had not.   Nashville seemed like the best option.  He really wanted to visit and my last trip there was over 10 years ago. It was the biggest major city on the path.  When I found a room with a decent rate in the burbs of Nashville, and I locked that in immediately.  With rooms booking around $700-$800/night, finding something under $150 was a treasure.  Decision made!

 

Months in advance, I purchased our solar goggles (not paper glasses) and I started shopping for camera necessities.  I honestly had no idea what I was getting myself into trying to photograph this event.  I am much more of a nature photographer and this was beyond my area of knowledge... so out came the books, the research and lots of questioning others.... I ended up "wishing" for telephoto lenses for my mirrorless camera (wishes not granted), purchasing a fancy tall tripod and some new filters for the telephoto in my possession.  I was not going to wait until the last minute.

The Hermitage

I also wanted to plan the trip for fun outside of the main event.  Price gouging was already underway a year in advance.  This meant we needed to lock things down, but after looking at the airline prices, and fuming over the prices (of over $700/person), we decided to drive to Nashville.  This would give us more flexibility and add to our mobility in the city.

Flash forward a year, with an ambitious itinerary laid out, we left for Tennessee on a Friday afternoon, well ahead of the crowds... or so we thought. After a night in Knoxville, we arrived at the Hermitage to insane crowds.  People were parking in the grass fields.  As the afternoon temperatures soared, the line to view Andrew Jackson's house kept growing.  It was here, that we heard for the first time that Nashville was unprepared for the crowds of the weekend.  We waited for over 1.5 hours to walk through the home; afterwards, I walked some of the grounds, before we both retreated to the air conditioned museum.  But these lines meant that our plan to visit Belle Meade had to be scrapped.  We had enough time to make it to Brentwood, check into the hotel, change and head into the city for our dinner cruise. 

Day 1 - Bucket List Trip - San Juan Islands

We landed in Friday Harbor on Sunday morning.  Immediately, we left the ferry and made our way to the first of many interviews my friend would be conducting while on the island.  Instead of sitting at the table quietly, she lets me flex my skills and ask questions.  When she plans these trips, she fills our time with stuff I love (and she loves too), so these interviews are great ways to learn more from experts first-hand.  This trip, the interview queue was filled with goodies – the historical society, the Whale Museum, a local town councilman, a kayak guide and a whale watching tour captain. 

 

After some breakfast and the first interview, we headed to the “American Camp” side of the island.  American Camp is actually what it sounds like – a place where troops  stayed and trained.  American camp was on the southern tip of the island – some of the most inhospitable land on the rock.  Meanwhile, the English camp set up a community on the north western side of the island.  Why?  They were waiting out a conflict (almost war) over a pig! Yep – you read that correctly too.  When the maps were drawn during westward expansion, the San Juan archipelago was never taken into consideration.  England considered it part of Canada since Vancouver Island is right there and the official border line dipped around its southern point, but the growing United States viewed it as their territory… so residents from both sides lived there.  A whole whopping 35 of them.  And then came a fight about a pig eating in someone’s garden.  An American shot an English pig.  We almost went to war!   A compromise was reached where the fighting would wait, troops would occupy the island for both sides until a resolution could occur.  So 200 troops from each side came to the island.  The British claimed a protected inlet that afforded them easy access to calm waters, wood, and deep soil.  They built a community so rich that people did not want to leave; their traditions, such as the holiday balls continue today.  Conversely, the American side was exposed, pest ridden and the conditions were miserable.  Obviously, the United States ended up with the islands, but the British won over the local’s hearts.  Today, you can see Canada wave that British flag from someone’s front door (not really, but it’s a short ferry ride to Victoria).

Back to the National Park visit (really the National Historical Park)….



South Beach

Cattle Point

I was still seriously sick.  Miserable was more like it.  I had all the symptoms Nyquil was famous for… sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching… but I was not resting.  I wanted to see stuff.  Lesley had been working on this trip for months.  I wanted to rally.  So we started slowly, with walks along gorgeous Cattle Point and  South Beach, and holy moly, even in this protected area are there so many logs of driftwood.  We walked some of the beach looking at some awesome forts people made from the wood before we headed over to the lagoon area.  I had a bright idea that I could do some walking.

The plan was to walk the trail to Jakles Lagoon - it was a mile in and a mile out.  Being that I felt awful, I thought that was a good way to get my feet moving and not completely pass out.  So off we went, and we walked... and walked some more.  We laughed as a bald eagle soared over our heads, and I hacked by part of my lungs every time we walked up the slightest hill.   And we walked much more than a mile.  When we finally saw a trail marker sign for Third lagoon, we knew we missed a turn somewhere.  But that misstep turned into a glorious hike (if not for my incessant hacking).  We walked through temperate rainforest, and then out to the burnt exposed fields of the southern edges, and back into the forest to see lagoons filled with logs.   What was supposed to be a 2 mile easy walk turned into a 4 mile hike.  I was sweaty and thirsty and in desperate need of a shower... but before we could head to  our tiny (miniscule) hotel room, we had to hit up the National Park visitor's center, so I could get postcards, magnets, and check out the park museum (it was there we watched the informative park video about the war over a pig).

After getting cleaned up (and making sure we were presentable again), we went back to the docks for an amazing evening with Maya's Legacy.  We were going Whale Watching on a small tour - there were only 14 of us, and this boat was the best thing I had ever ridden for whale watching.  Small, fast, smooth and LOTS OF WINDOWS and SPACE.  If you have ever been shoveled out of the way on a tour so someone can get to the bow of the boat to see, you know what I am talking about.  Well, Maya's took care of all that.  Space on the bow and stern, and the cabin's windows all raise up.  You have a 360 degree view all the time.  Anyway, this boat was built for speed, and good thing too because the crew got word that the orcas were in Canadian waters about 45 minutes away. 

Off we went through some of the most beautiful scenery you can dream up for the Pacific NW.  And then, there they were... 5 orcas... a family... hunting!  We saw a mom, a few of her children ranging in age and a visiting male, and he was massive.  We watched for almost a half an hour.  Our guides we fantastic!  They were full of information - talking about natural behaviors we witnessed, talking about the familial bonds, their relationship within the great community.  We learned about the resident pod of orcas versus the transient pod (that we were witnessing).  We talked of food and the greater ecosystem.  Our captain, who serves as President of the Pacific Whale Watch Association, spoke to us about the deeply declining salmon stocks, and how undamming Pacific NW dams could help the resident pod.  Heck - I even learned a few things I didn't know about these majestic animals.  The crew has so much respect for them, and this was evidenced by them never calling them killer whales (so much wrong with that term - they are not whales, they are related to dolphins... but I digress)

After several hours of eco-bliss, we were back on land and starved.  Luckily one lone sports bar was open to feed us because we had not eaten since breakfast when we docked, otherwise it was going to be a granola night.  We chowed down on BLTs and nachos, lots of water and looked over our pictures.  It was an amazing first day.  We headed back to our tinny tiny room and crashed hard.  We had another big day ahead of us. 

History, High School and Victorian Bathhouses



On the hiking trail in
Hot Springs National Park

Did you know that this year marked the centennial of the National Park Service?  Do you know how many national parks there are?[i]  How about total elements in the Park Service?[ii]  I do, and I am on a mission.  If you have read any of my musings, you know that I LOVE getting outside and enjoying these bits of natural treasure.  I wanted to make sure I celebrated the Park’s Birthday by visiting a few new places… I wanted to up my park number a bit.    At the same time, my boyfriend wanted to join me on one of my park visits.  He was new to this type of trip-quest.  He wanted to see what I saw and enjoy the beauty and the history, yet he is not a hiker.  (Heck, I have not got out enough the last few years).  So looking over the list of parks, I decided the perfect spot was Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas. 

I have been to Arkansas only one time before, and it was a side trip off a trip in Texas.  On that Arkansas visit, I focused on the southwest quadrant of the state – visiting Hope (Clinton’s birthplace) and the Crater of Diamonds State Park in Murfreesboro.   I wasn’t that far from Hot Springs the first time, but I just ran out of time.   That heat while in the park, in June, was awful and wiped me out.  But I also was gobsmacked, Arkansas was beautiful.  It was nothing like I pictured in my head as a flat dead brown land– instead I saw beautiful waterways, rolling hills and plenty of green.  So a special trip to Hot Springs in late autumn sounded like a good plan.



To get there, we flew to into Little Rock.  For a three day trip, I planned to spend 1 full day in the capital city and a day and a half in the resort town.  We had a plan, and we needed one if we were going to fit all of it in.  I fully admit that I have in intense pace when I am power touring, and that is not for everyone.  I have gone easy on prior trips with my partner, but he was warned that we had a mission.  So, from the moment we stepped off the plane until the moment we got back to the airport, we were cooking.  It was funny (for me).  I think he is still tired from the experience!

Walls of plates at the Flying Saucer

Our first stop, once we got off the plane, was the Flying Saucer for a late meal and relaxation.  This place came highly recommended from some plane seat neighbors, who told me it was an eclectic “must- see” locale that was casual, open late and in a great area of the city that we could not miss.  So, we headed straight to the UFO pub for some grub.  Immediately upon entering, you notice that the walls are lined with plates – those cheesy decorative plates.  And they are from all over the place.  We were seated in front of a HUGE big screen television showing the game, and I could not stop scanning the walls looking at all the places the plates illustrated.   Mixed in, and on the ceiling, were color ringed plates with names – and this was where their “wall of fame” was enshrined.  The Flying Saucer is known in Little Rock for its beer list - Over 200 kinds.  And if you register, and finish the list (NOT in one setting, but many), you are immortalized on a plate.  So, as we chowed down on loaded tots and an arugula and prosciutto pizza, I read crazy plate sayings.  This place is a trip.  And it has spunk – it was that perfect casual meal in a place with character. 

Junction Bridge

After food and drinks, we headed to the waterfront to walk over Junction Bridge, mosey down some pathways and settle our food.  We were lucky it was a gorgeous evening.   For once (in a blue moon) the weather cooperated with me and the sky was clear.  So we were able to walk across the river to take in our first real views on downtown Little Rock.   Thanks to historical preservationists and green space planners, efforts to keep bridges over the River standing and make them pedestrian accessible, have been a huge hit. This area was one spot everyone told us to visit when hearing about our weekend adventure in Arkansas.  The three bridges over the Arkansas River are one of the most iconic views in the city.  Postcards are littered with these views...Especially at night when their colors play on the waters.  Wandering the pathways to look at the sculpture art by the river was another story.  We did not see much outside of the pavilion and one of the main things I left on the table in Little Rock was finding the “Little Rock” that the city was named for… it was down that path somewhere. 

Little Rock Skyline
from the Clinton Library

The next day began our power tour of Little Rock.  We needed clockwork precision to make this all work.  I wanted to fit in 3 museums, a park, a distillery and a damn bridge before we headed to Hot Springs that evening.  I am a bit ambitious, I admit. 

Art Deco in abundance at
Little Rock Central

To meet our goals, we made sure we were at the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site the moment it opened.  You can’t come to Little Rock without seeing this bit of civil rights history.  We arrived before it opened and I was able to beg our way into the first tour of the day. (Note for future visitors, make a reservation)  The fantastic ranger walked us through the history of the Little Rock Nine – beyond anything we learned in our few paragraphs in a school text book.  Sitting in the visitor center, we spoke as a group discussing the doctrine of “separate but equal” and what it meant here; uncovering nasty truths of

This HS remains state of the art

how city and state leaders conspired to ensure that students would not integrate even after the Brown vs Board of Education ruling (ruling that separate was not equal), and then hearing the accounts of everything these children and their families endured just so they could attend the best public high school in the city.  Did you know that city leaders actually shut school down for a year?  No, neither did I.  They fail to mention that in the textbooks.  And just when you thought the city had reached a low, we walked through the Little Rock 10 (yep, it started as 10)’s walk to school.  The experience was enough to make you cry, feel disgusted  and be fighting mad at the same time.  You can’t visit this place without being inspired by the bravery of these students.  I am in awe – pure awe.  It touched me deeply. 

Caves, Trails, History and Muscle Cars

I am back from Kentucky... it was a trip of national parks full of caves and history, some interesting oddities and the National Corvette Museum.  Science, History, and America's Great Sports Car, its an eclectic mix for sure.  I can't say I got bored.  It was a feast for the mind; geology lessons were everywhere (even in the Corvette Museum) and Lincoln's past was part of the area's identity.  It was a feast for the eyes; the topography is gorgeous, filled with rolling green lush mountains and interesting rock formations.  And it was a challenge for the ears; cave sounds are faint, but present and walks through the woods were filled with wind blown leaves and scurrying creatures busying themselves for the cold months ahead.  Not once did I lack for something to see or do. 

I have wanted to return to Kentucky for at least 10 years... it is such a pretty area.  As I make my way through the National Parks, Cave Country was a necessity.  Mammoth Caves is a behemoth ... its gigantic and its still being explored.  Already, it stands (expands) as the largest cave system in the world.  There are over 400 miles of explored cave in the park; the park service estimates that over 600 miles still exist unexplored (by man) still to come.  While you do not need to be a spelunker to see the caves today, you can sign up and help map new areas with special outings in the park service (experienced spelunkers only - this is not the cave to get your feet wet, literally).    Me?  I am not a cave crawler... now, I have bobbled my way through some caves through the years, but those were always pre-explored trails... maybe one day before my old dancer knees completely go out I will have to get down and grimy.  For now, I hike!  And hike I did!

I came here for the Caves and I was going to see them.  So, I signed up for the longest hike they offered through the system - a 4 mile trek that the parks called extremely strenuous!  Yikes! And only 4 miles - how was that a possible designation?  I have been on hikes that that parks called strenuous before and survived them all (some better than others), but "extremely strenuous"?  What was that?  And earlier this year, I was on a hike in Cornado that was painful, and yet that was marked moderate (realized much later that I was at elevation - oops).  I worked myself up about this hike.  And once I arrived to sign in, I had a ranger suggest that I sign up for another limited opportunity at Great Oynx Cave (within the park).  "I was here for the caves"... I kept repeating that mantra in my head as the pre-cave lecture told us over and over again that we could die in the cave.  Again, just what as I doing?  The ranger spoke of over 700 stairs and steep incline, of tight passages and no way out after mile 1.  AGHHHH.  And then we got in there and going... and it was fine.  I was fine.  It was not a killer trail.  It was just one NOT for people that do not get outside.  It was not for people that do not move.  It was not for people with claustrophobia.  Yes, there were lots of stairs and plenty of switchbacks, but we rested after each steep assent.  No big deal... but I could see how it would be, because if you got hurt or overestimated your abilities, it would take you hours to get help.  And that is a YIKES!

Gypsum Flowers

Cave Cricket!

Inside the cave, I will be honest, is not the prettiest cave system you have seen.  This is not famous for its formations (there are some)... it is famous for its size.  We stood in one cavern that was over 900 feet tall.  We saw a few great formations... but for me, the coolest cave feature was the gypsum formations.  Sadly, the overwhelming majority of them had been poached from the cave walls well before the site became a national park, but there were a few around to see.  Many formations looked like delicate flowers, some more like spindly flowers and there was one room with a popcorn ceiling full of the element.  You would think museums all over would have specimens of this cool formation - NOPE!  Gypsum is highly sensitive.  The cave environment is stagnant... once outside, changes in temperature and humidity could lead to them to "melt".  Just leave the cool stuff in the cave people!  And that goes for the amazing cave creatures that evolved to live in this completely dark environment.  On our tour, we learned we could not go down to the river since there were species unique to the cave (i.e. the only ones anywhere); eyeless shrimp and fish that were also translucent.  On the trails, we saw some cave crickets that looks like something out of a scifi movie when then mated with daddy-long-legs, and some spiders.  No bats!  The bat population at Mammoth has been decimated from White Nose Fungus... Don't carry those spores around people - wash your shoes.  And the park made sure we did after each cave entry - walking us down a Woolite filled pathway.  White Nose is nasty; it suffocated the bats, covering their airways with a fungus. And while there are reports on successful ways to cure infected bats, the question remains in just "how to administer to them" in the wild; you could take at more than the fungus.  It's a sad conundrum. 

I needed clean shoes for the rest of my trip... because although White Nose is present in Mammoth Cave - it is not in other locations, so you have to be diligent.  After my day hiking above and below ground at Mammoth, I was faced with the wrath of Mother Nature... she rained out my evening Ranger talk... and she wasn't done because her storms the night before did not die down; I woke up looking at a massive thunderstorm.  Ugh - it always rains on my trips, without fail.  I had planned my history excursion to go according to Lincoln's timeline... but "best laid plans."  A quick look on my weather apps told me I had a half day window to get up to Indiana and explore Lincoln's birthplace ... and off I went to see the place Lincoln grew up in. 

Heading Off To Visit Another Park - Kentucky is Calling!

There are 59 National Parks (as of this moment), and well over 500 units in the park system (including monuments, historic sites, sea/lakeshores, recreation areas, battlefields, etc).  I have visited 37 parks, about 155 units in total.  After this weekend, those numbers will tick up slightly.  I am off to visit Mammoth Caves in Kentucky, along with Lincoln's Birthplace and Boyhood homes in Kentucky and Indiana. 


The caves have been on my list for quite a while.  I started reading up on them before my first and only trip to Kentucky in the early 00's. I did not know much about Kentucky, so out came the maps to study up ...  With that trip, I was in Moorehead for work and wanted to explore the area.  Mammoth was too far away for a weekend journey, so I used my time to explore eastern Kentucky. And explore it, I did!   I traveled down the Daniel Boone National Forest in late autumn, hiking some trails while enjoying the rolling topography; I took in the colors, the geological features (stone arches) and soaked in the views.   The end of the trails brought me to  Southeaster Kentucky.  I ended up at Cumberland Gap and Cumberland State Park for one of the most spectacular natural phenomenon I have ever witnessed, moonbows!  Think rainbows but at night using the light of the full moon.  Cumberland Falls is the only place in North America you can see a moonbow and one of only 2 places in the world to see one consistently.  Of course you need perfect full moon conditions to see one - and I got that and more.  That night, I got a perfect moonbow, followed by a lunar eclipse with a meteor shower, followed by the return of the full moon for a double moonbow. I saw bows in basic colors to a white halo glow.  It was glorious.  You can't make this stuff up... and as I stood in the falls mists, on that cold late autumn evening, I knew I was gonna get seriously sick (and I did), and it didn't matter because the stars aligned for one memorable shows of nature. I still recall this lunar opportunity with awe.   I ended my journey  with something completely different, by traveling back to Lexington (where I started), celebrating horses and their power.  I was able to pay respects to Secretariat.


So while my travels through eastern Kentucky was thorough, Mammoth Caves has always been out there calling me to return.  I have visited the other cave systems in the park system, including Carlsbad, Wind Cave, Jewel Cave, but this one is the longest system in the world (over 400 miles explored). It was unique and I needed to go.


I finally bit the bullet! 


I have a 4 hour cave tour scheduled and a plan to visit the area.  Calgon, take me away... Actually the National Parks are taking me away (and I need it). I need to recharge.  I am  looking forward to seeing what Mammoth Caves and the surrounding area has to offer... and I will report back! I am ready to learn something new and my camera is packed.  See you on the flip side.

As American as Baseball and Apple Pie

Cooperstown has been on my bucket list for years.  I always thought it would be a cool place to take my brother.  I thought it was the perfect idea.  I looked into it ... a lot.  But my brother was more into ice hockey than anything else, so this trip was just hanging out there.  And there it sat, as a place on a list of "Weekend Trip Ideas."  I revisited that list every so often and kept putting it off.  It wasn't really a trip I thought I would enjoy on my own and it wasn't one for a "quick get away".  Cooperstown is roughly 6 1/2 hours from DC, which meant I needed at least 4 days to do this trip and see all that there was to see.  Because, once you look into it, Cooperstown is more than the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Finally, this summer, the stars aligned and I was able to finally see this bit of sports history (and so much more).

Honestly though, who are you kidding, you know you are going to Cooperstown for the Hall of Fame.  This is the place that chronicles our national pastime.  It preserves over 200 years of baseball history.  I have heard great things about the museum, and like everyone else, got a glimpse of it from the best sports movie of all time, A League of Their Own (and I say that only slightly as an exaggeration - this movie is a perfect classic). I wanted to visit to see that exhibit itself.  I love baseball, so I was looking forward to seeing some baseball history.   I expected the museum to be filled with facts, figures and tons of baseball stats.  In short, I expected it to be a gigantic baseball card.  And, I could not have been more wrong. 

Babe Ruth

 It was a tribute "For the Love of the Game." We spent an entire day exploring, learning, laughing and playing. It is just an amazing place clearly built with love, respect and admiration of the game and for its place in our culture.  There was deep baseball history, looking back to the storied baseball clubs in New York.  You could learn of the evolutions of rules.  You saw how baseball moved from recreation to sport and understood its place in American History.  It did not shy away from the ugly; there was whole sections on the racial divide (we learned that baseball was integrated before it was segregated). Those that have transcended time had their own sections - Ruth and Aaron!  The Women in Baseball section honored not just those that played in the Women's League, AAGPBL, but notes accomplishments of women breaking barriers on the field in softball and baseball, and in management (and yes, you can see a Rockford Peach and Racine Bell's uniform).  And Latin America's passion for the game was celebrated  in "Viva Baseball." 



Mike Piazza 2016 inductee
Let's Go METS!

Throughout the museum there were interactive opportunities to keep tech-addicted fingers busy... touch screen monitors hosted quizzes and took surveys, wall-sized monitors played many baseball highlights and in one room you could sit and watch "Who's on First" in totality.  There was section that spoke to kids directly, "The Sandlot", that quizzed you of the importance of exercise, commitment, ethics and staying drug free.  If you needed to step back and relax, the theatre was a great place to watch movie clips, and the "Scribes and Mikemen" section celebrated the legacy of our announcers.  And because baseball transcends sports, there was a fine art section showing how baseball has soaked its way into all that represents us. 

Inside the museum, on the first floor are the hallowed halls of the Hall of Fame.  After meandering our way through 3 floors of baseball storytelling, this was honestly a let down.  After all, how much dolling up can you do to a sectioned atrium with alcoves of bronze plaques.  To find the greats you wanted to see you could meander around the decades (of induction, not play time), or consult the wall charts. 

This does not look like
Ken Griffey Jr!

The plaques capture the likeness of the inductee (or tried to - see poor Ken Griffey Jr) and provide a brief bio for why they were worthy.  What I learned quickly is that the museum and the hall are two very distinct places.  You find Pete Rose all over the museum, but he is still not in the hall of fame; likewise Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa are given rightful credit for saving baseball post-strike for their electric home run competition, but they will never be in the Hall.  For all the talk baseball does of reaching across the gender divide, and for near universal recognition that Dottie Schroeder has of being one of the best, the Hall only lists one female (an executive) on its walls. Baseball has struggled with how to reconcile rule breakers and gender barriers.  In my eyes, the 2 portions of the facility need to have a reckoning...

 

There is more to Cooperstown and the surrounding area than just the Hall of Fame.  If you can force yourself to leave the building, you can walk 2 blocks to one of the most pristine lakes in the entire country, Lake Otsego.  A glacial lake, it is surrounded my mountains and dense, thick forest.  There are only a few public access points for the lake, but you need to find one and get out there.  You can take the Glimmerglass Queen out on the water for a 1 hour easy ride out to about the middle of the lake; stay outside, because not only are the views simply spectacular and the air fresh, but the boat is not air-conditioned.  You can also take some kayaks (our choice), canoes, or paddle boards out, giving you a more personal connection to the water.  Here you can look at the water at eye level, catch some fish jumping out of the water at random moments (no carp in this lake), or some birds soaring around.  We were only out on the kayaks for an hour, I could have done that for much longer...

sadly we were only able to get on the water for a short while because mother nature continues her vacation torture plan - such extreme storms settled over the area for our trip, its a wonder we got on the water at all.  While on the Glimmerglass Queen, we were soaked as a storm barreling down the lake overtook us on the return (and we walked blocks to our car in it); driving around we were constantly rerouted for downed/lightening struck trees.  It was unfortunate since we both wanted me water time... alas, we promise another time.  Maybe I can bribe Mother Nature?!?!?

Canada's First Capital - Kinsgton

After our quick tour of Ottawa, the Canadian Capital, we headed to Kingston, the first Capital of Canada (named so in 1841).  It's a small, quaint city on the water, and the water remains important to the city's identity - it is the gateway to 1000 Isles National Park.

One of the first things you notice about Kingston once you get into its heart is that City Hall looks like a state house.  There is good reason for that. Due to a fire that burnt the city to the ground in the mid-1800's, city leaders called for the city to be reconstructed using non-flammable materials - namely, limestone.  City Hall's design was a large completion for a stately look.  Canada moved it's capital to Ottawa before the new building could ever be used as the state house (until the fire on Parliament Hill resulted in a temporary move back to Kingston). 

Today, City Hall is one of finest 19th century buildings in Canada and a nationally designated heritage site. Kingston, itself, is nicknamed "Limestone City" since the rebuild resulted in a central business district filled with grand heritage limestone architecture. 

There were plenty of grand buildings to take in since Kingston is also named the Education City; home to 3 major universities, including the first diploma granting University, Queens University and the Royal Military College.  We took several loops around town in the Hop On/Hop Off trolley, as we toured, giving us good looks at the schools, the city and its notable architecture.  We even got off at Queens to tour the Geology Museum and its impressive collection of minerals located in the halls of one of the campus buildings, and the student art museum.  I think I drove my friend crazy talking about the connection between my alma mater and this school, but I just could not help it... Rutgers University was originally Queens College, and was one of the first colleges in the colonies.  It is older than the country itself.  And here we were, walking around Queens University, that boosted a similar story of being founded before Canada itself.  I did leave with one question about the campus though... what did the clocktower's clock have no hands?  No one could tell us! 

On our tour of Kingston, we stopped by Bellevue House, National Historic Site, the home of Canada's first Prime Minister (and Kingston's famous son) Sir John Alexander MacDonald.  Here we watched a historical introduction and then were granted access to the visitor center, the gardens and the home.  We learned that Sir John moved here thinking the air would be good for his very sick wife, whom on many occasions could not gather energy to leave her bed on the first floor (she had consumption). And then we learned that they had had children in the home.  Hmmmm.... that raised our brows.  We had more fun with the costumed guides were scattered throughout all shaking their butter containers - apparently that is easier then churning it and it only takes several thousand rattles of cream to whip it into a spread... these girls were sure to have amazing shoulders and bi/triceps at the end of the summer.  They let us try some home whipped butter on a cracker in the kitchen. Yum.  Thanks ladies.  And if that was not old school enough, we tried our hands at hand dipping candles in the basement.  I have not tested this skill  since I visited Waterloo Village in NJ, and I must be rusty because our candles came out looking phallic and pathetic.  This was a time consuming procedure - dip in wax and then then in water using twine.  I don't remember that in Waterloo... maybe NJ knew a trick. We left the dipping to the kids and continued on our Kingston tour.

Easily the highlight of the trip to Kingston was the sunset boat tour through 1000 Islands National Park.  This was an incredibly fun and beautiful evening with my friend as we wined and dined aboard this vessel sailing up the Lawrence river from it's mouth in Lake Ontario.  The food was a pleasant surprise - they make it on the boat.  I was ready for rubbery steak and chicken, but we were instead greeted with a menu of choices including seafood, pork, steak, chicken and a veggie dish.  And because we know how to maximize our experiences - we ordered 2 different meals and shared tastes.   Likewise with the desserts... that carrot cake cheesecake needed to be tested afterall!

The boat ride included entertainment, as in a crazy musician that "morphed" into any artist he needed to be.  Armed with outfits, wigs and dolls, he kept us laughing.  And because I don't shy away from zaniness, he picked on me, as the only one on the boat from the United States.  It had become a theme of "what is up with Trump"... and you have to laugh because there is no other way around it.  The night only grew more grand as golden hour hit and we were treated to stunning views inside and outside the boat.  The crew gave us time between courses to top side and soak it all in.  My friend and I marveled at the homes built on the tiny islands; the only way in and out would be a boat.  Now, my non-Canadian butt might enjoy this in the summer months, but I know what happens a few months from now... it gets COLD.  And not just DC cold... nope, Canadian cold.  And living on the water, in a home, surrounded by ice just does not sound that amazing.  So, sure, you could make that a summer retreat... where you have to travel by boat to get to your home island... but me, I like the looks of the area without the homes.  Just the small islands dotting the landscape.  To limit the numbers of homes taking over the islands not protected by park status (only 40:1750), there are requirements for the island - including at least one tree.  So, a tree needs to live on it so you can cut it down to build a home?  I didn't get it... but I did appreciate the scenery.  And if you have Canadian anti-freeze in your blood, it makes plenty of sense to want to live there.  It was beautiful!

Before we left the beauty of Kingston, we did one more round on the trolley and headed past the Royal Military College to Fort Henry National Historic Site.  Here we got to experience 1860's British military life at the fort and take in the sweeping views of the city.  Our tour guide walked us through the structure, showcases the dichotomy between officers and the enlisted lower ranks.  From dining experiences, to housing, family accommodations to responsibilities, these guides, in full dress and in character talked of life at the fort.  While it was never used in battle, it was fully operational.  They needed to protect themselves from those pesky colonists to the south.  In fact, I heard a lot about the war of 1812, and how they beat back the invaders... I learned more Canadian history in my one week trip through its capital cities then I ever have before.  It was educational.  It was beautiful.  AND I am going to do it again.  It's a big country and someone has to see it!