Ahhh, back home.

Traveling is fun. I honestly believe that part of the fun, and part of the reason for going away in the first place is just for the act of coming back. You don’t really appreciate something until you don’t have it. Travel is probably more about coming back than anything else.

Kim wrote a lot about most of the things we did on our latest trek from Virginia to the Adirondacks, looking it full in the face. I’m going to look at the same trip, but from the corner of my eye, and see what else I can see.

This was my first trip to the Adirondacks in a few years, and the first ever with Kim. I was taking her back to see “the ancestral manse”, to borrow a line from Everett Ulysses McGill. Sometimes you go places where things have not seemed to change in the last 20 or 30 years, but the Adirondacks are a place where things have not changed for much, much longer than that.

The Adirondack park is the size of the state of Vermont. There is constant tension between preservation and “progress”, and this is one place where preservation usually wins. My parents moved to the Adirondacks when I was 8 or 9, so the natural world was an important part of growing up for me, and preserving pure, wild places in their natural state has always been an underlying assumption for me. I make my living in the technology and fad-obsessed electronic reality, but what really matters is something far more permanent.

Global warming, if it exists at all, is not caused by technology, it is caused by overpopulation and people who pride themselves in becoming less and less connected with the world around them. This is not something we can cure. It is a condition that people are born with, and fight to protect.

I’m not exactly a Greenpeace liberal wacko, but I do love the natural world, and despise irresponsible development. With the state of overpopulation, you can’t really avoid being irresponsible in other ways. Building cars that get 5 or 10 or even 100 miles per gallon more than current cars is not going to reverse the affects of overpopulation, only reducing population by 75% or more is going to allow us to get back in balance.

Anyway, not to get too preachy. Peak autumn colors came during our visit. Photos don’t really do it justice. It was gray and cloudy most of the time we were there, but the brilliant oranges and reds of the maples has a glow all its own.

The view from the house I grew up in was stunning, and again photos don’t capture it. The mountains and valleys and color and scale of things, even for the east can instill a sense of loyalty to this brand of beauty.

One one of our adventures we came across an injured coyote along side the road. His front leg was hurt, possibly hit by a car. We didn’t get a great shot of it, we were much closer to it than the picture suggests. This was taken between the towns of Lyon Mountain and Standish. The lines on the road suggest a level of civilization beyond the actual. There were a lot of turkey in the area too, so it wasn’t too surprising that we should see a coyote.

And then out where my parents live, there is always the danger of the neighbor’s cattle getting loose. Peaceful and road wary, they see if the grass really is greener over here and await the guy with the tractor and rope.

During the ride back to Virginia, we decided we wanted to stop in to Washington, DC to go to the Solar Decathalon, a competition to build self-contained housing units. Each team, mostly from universities, brought their entry onto the Mall in DC. You can see the route planned here by Google Maps. I’ve done this drive before, and I should have known, but the route through New Jersey and down I-95, at about 6 pm on a Friday afternoon before a holiday weekend (Columbus Day) has to be one of the most miserable experiences anyone can have. The entire Garden State Parkway was bumper to bumper. We got a little respite in northern Maryland, but Baltimore was little better. This scene just brought back the thoughts of overpopulation and irresponsible entitlement. Saying nothing of the physical scars interstates leave on the land and water, a trip down this stretch of road is a study in excess, arrogance, and what some people are willing to accept as “normal”. Spending a couple hours in bumper to bumper machinery through an open wound in the landscape and considering it “acceptable” shows not that there is something wrong with a lot of individuals, but that there is something wrong with us all. If we stopped reproducing altogether, in 30 years the situation would right itself.

Anyway, in DC, the Solar Decathalon was another juxtaposition of too many people trying to come up with an inadequate solution. It is undoubtedly in the right direction, it just doesn’t stand a chance of solving the problem by itself.

This structure was from a university in Spain. It was one of the most sophisticated looking units. All of the entries to the competition had to be small enough to transport and assemble , and robust enough to work and sustain the kind of traffic that being on The Mall in DC would produce. There were a lot of entries, and the lines to get into some of them were very long.

I only actually went into the entry by Rice University. To me, their entry was depressing. It seemed to convey the idea that in the future these students envisioned, we would all be living in 30′ x 12′ boxes with no windows, stacked on and next to one another in a row-house-meets-high-rise sort of metallic slum. There is a time and place for efficiency, but is it really appropriate to pack human beings together like that?

People looking to the future seem to think that planning for ultra-high density living is the best alternative available. I hope mankind gets  a lot smarter than we are now, and I hope I’m not around to see what will happen if we don’t.

The whole vacation was a study in the extremes of population density. Many people use the “sustainability” buzzword these days. The population growth rate is necessary to fulfill financial growth goals established by insatiable greed. More consumers, more labor. None of this is sustainable, starting with the number of people on Planet Earth. People talk about energy consumption and fish depletion and wrecking resources and the rape of the physical environment as if they are the problems that must be solved, but they are not the problems, they are just the symptoms of overpopulation. It would be political suicide for any politician to speak with common sense about sustainable population growth (which can only be negative). If we remove all of the natural processes that control human population, some synthetic means will at some point need to be implemented.

So, now I’m back home from vacation. Back to normal. Back to work. Less time to think about philosophical issues, and more about practical details of everyday life.

Lyons and Dogs

Yesterday, we took off in search of more fall scenery.  The destination was to be Lyon Mountain.   We drove and drove and saw lots of color.  We drove around the mountain and back again.  Along the way we saw lots of wildlife, a coyote, wild turkeys, and a few thrush.  Here are a few pictures from the day.

 

 

 

Then after the day’s travels we ended back at Matt’s parents place.  They have been great hosts, keeping us well fed and rested.  It has been a relaxing place to call home for a few days.

 

I know as much as they have enjoyed having us here, their dog, Mozart will be just as happy to see Zoe leave.  Mozart is a stately gentleman of a schnauzer, that has tolerated Zoe’s puppy playfulness gracefully.  He is less amused by her visit and ready to have order restored to his world.

 

 

 

 

 

NY Autumn

It is definitely autumn here in upstate NY.  As we progressed northward the color became more vibrant and more dramatic.  Yesterday we made the trip to Lake Placid.  It was a beautiful place in the world.  After a short walk with Zoe, Matt and I took off down the main street.  We found a cozy public garden beside the public library.  It was a wonderful place to sit for a moment and take in the beautiful fall scenery.  In this place the wildlife was abundant, ducks, squirrels and chipmunks ventured by looking for handouts.  They seemed pretty familiar with the process despite the sign forbidding the practice.

We drove past the impressive ski jumps.  Getting a sense of their scale.  And then on to the bobsled area.  The one thing that really stuck with me is the smallness of the area when it is part of the world stage.  I cannot imagine how the Olympic crowds negotiated through the area.  Matt says that his family just left town.  After being part of the Atlanta Olympic crowd, I can appreciate how much space it takes to host the events.

After the Olympic flashback, we went on a few different roads up through Keene, Wilmington and Jay.  In Jay, NY,  there was a gorgeous reconstructed covered bridge.  It was reconstructed in 2006 and turned into a pedestrian bridge.  Very nice attraction for the town.  It is the last bridge of this type structure, Howell truss, in the Adirondacks. 

After our drive through the mountains, we drove back to Saranac Lake for a very nice dinner with Matt’s parents at Nonna-Fina.  Great food.

Northbound

We are on the road again.  This time it is a driving trip to upstate New York.  We are taking in the sights and visiting Matt’s parents.  The one difference is this time, Zoe is along for the ride.

The first day was a full moon.  And while Matt gets annoyed when I blame anything out of the ordinary on the full moon, I believe it had alot to do with the events on our first day.

Almost first thing, we were confronted with this truck.  OK, it is in tow but it was a bit unnerving following it.

Then we made the turn onto route 15 off I-81.  For a moment I thought we had jumped states and ended up in some rural part of West Virginia.  But it was just a rough start to an otherwise beautiful drive up 15.  Nicely underused road except for one spot that we decided to have lunch.  Extreme views of the wide river and stunning vistas.  Beautiful places along this route.

Early evening we made it to Corning, NY to discover that our usual hotel was completely booked due to a marathon the next morning.  Which happened to coincide with our plans to visit the Corning Museum of Glass.  I had been looking forward to this since we started planning this trip.  So after a few stops and a few more full hotels and hotels that just wouldn’t take dogs.

Eventually we settled for a motel that was located mere feet from the on ramp – how convenient!  This was the kind of place that I didn’t want to take my shoes off and you are sure if the walls could talk there would be blue flashing lights involved.  My barefeet never touched the floor.  It was the kind of place that even after a shower I still felt dirty.  yuck!  Mercifully we survived the night, very little real sleep and Zoe in between us all night.

During our quest to find our hotel room, I notice a Panera and we headed straight for it the next morning. Bagels, Chi Tea and a real internet connection….. ahhh back to civilization.  It was a turning point.  The events of the previous day and night were behind us and it was a new day.  And we were laughing about it.

The Corning Museum of Glass was fantastic for a glass nerd like me.  Matt enjoyed it as well.  We soaked in every bit, while Zoe chilled out and slept in the car.  It was an overcast day in the low 60’s so she was in a very comfortable place.

The building is of course mostly glass but quite beautiful.  It is a campus of several buildings.

It follows nicely in the several blocks it occupies.  Inside you are greeted by the first big piece by Dale Chihuly.

You have probably seen something by him as he is very popular.  His style is

very distinctive.  Upon closer inspection, I noticed that it is constructed much like a Southern bottle tree – almost exactly!  Now I understand.

The Corning staff was very friendly (yes even for Yankees, there I said it).

One of the security guards was nice enough to point out some hard to see details in one of the pieces.  We saw all kinds of glass through the ages and different processes.

I even got the chance to turn some big glass in the kiln …. OK not really.

We then headed north to Rochester.  Matt needed to check out old haunts.  It has been 28 years since I visited so not much was familiar to me.  We did drive through/around RIT.  I did consider going there for college and Matt did attend there.  It has changed a bit and grown outward.

Then we got lucky.  We found a magnificent Hampton Inn that gladly accepted dogs.  All three of us had a great night and are now feeling refreshed and ready to take on the Adirondacks.

Tonight we end up at Matt’s parents.  We are hopeful that Zoe and Mozart become friends.  I am looking forward to seeing them and the fall foliage.

Zoe update….

I thought I would take a moment from out behind the camera for a Zoe update……

Zoe is very quickly turning into a great dog.  She seems to grow daily from the time I leave in the mornings to when I return in the evenings.  Matt thinks I am a little crazy but I know I can see a difference.  Her head is getting bigger (in a good way), her legs much longer and her belly is definitely getting bigger.  She is growing into her big ears.

She is still afraid of most everything, dog brush, running water, other dogs, some people, loud cars, sunroof ….. but at least tolerating visits to Max and almost glad to see him.  At least until he tries to play with her and she realizes just how big he is.

We are all beginning to settle into a schedule which for dog is good, but for Matt is painful.  I have the morning shift.  Up at 6am. Out, food, play hard and out again.  Check to see if Matt is awake then play some more.  It is an odd time of the year as daylight is getting later and later.  Zoe doesn’t seem to mind so everything else will just work itself out.

Once all the morning activities are over and I am off to work she turns into Matt’s dog.  She is a lucky girl to have two of us to dote over her.  As Matt’s dog I can only imagine what her day is like from what I observe on the weekends.  Mostly sleeping, with a few intermittent bouts of play is my guess.  Matt wants her so very much to catch a Frisbee.  I am confident that one day she will.  I think he is a little disappointed that she didn’t come programmed for that talent.

So I think the routine of sleep, play, eat, poop, sleep, play….. continues throughout the day.  When I get home around 6pm it is usually the end of some big nap.  Evenings are a grab bag but always lots of fun.  I think Matt is happy to have the reinforcement by the time I get home.  But once my bedtime rolls around he is on duty for the night shift.  The two of them fearlessly venture into the dark yard to patrol and get whatever needs to be done, done.

As her socialization continues, we have ventured off to the Highland Park – Dog Park.  I am very pleased at how it is used by so many and know that it has helped many Roanoke dogs.  Our little Zoe is no different; she so needs this social interaction.  Each time she is a little more confident and hopefully with regular visits and good experiences she will blossom.

This holiday weekend we started off with a quick trip to Staunton.  On our way home we decided to take the Blue Ridge Parkway instead of our usual slog down I-81.  Waynesboro to Roanoke took a bit longer than anticipated at 45 miles an hour.  It was a long but relaxing ride.  I had forgotten just how beautiful that part of the Parkway was.  It was a glorious day to see it all again.  The air was warm but clean and the sunshine was bright.  Depending on our elevation the temperature ranged from 72 – 84 degrees.   For a late summer day in September the air was surprisingly not too hazy. Our weather this summer has been exceptional.

Our little traveler was a bit reluctant but after a few rest stops walks, her very own doggie picnic and a big nap on Matt’s lap she seemed to not mind it too much.  As time passes, she will understand that travel is a fun and exciting part of life. Now if I can just get Matt out of the back seat, we will be in business.

Zoe

Zoe is the newest addition to our household. We have had her now for 2 weeks. She was a pound puppy, half miniature schnauzer and half ??? maybe german shepherd. Which brings up the question of how big she’s gonna get. We’re not sure. She still has big paws, and she’s got the bouncing gait of a large and lanky dog, not of the squat schnauzer. She’s only 20 lbs now. I can see her possibly doubling that, but probably not any more than 35 lbs.

She is having many new experiences every day. When I first picked her up, we had to climb some stairs, but she had never seen stairs, so that was new. When I got her home, she saw her own reflection in the window and barked at that for a while. Kim’s mom’s huge dog Max was so terrifying to Zoe at first that she just peed right where she stood.

She prefers people over dogs, and is very sweet to everyone. Maybe a little unsure about kids at this point. Several people have commented on how docile she is for a pup. She learns very quickly, recognizing her name, and following sit, down, fetch, no and come pretty consistently. Potty training is going very well for her age, which is about 20 weeks.

She loves to play fetch, and has a few favorite toys, like her rubber chew bone. Those things are great. I’ve given them to friends dogs, and even the most destructive dogs love this thing.

Zoe is a frisbee champ in the making. We’re still working on catch, but she loves to chase and retrieve the ball and the frisbee. We got her a soft cloth frisbee, and she just loves it.

Today was the first day at the dog park, and Zoe just terrorized the small dogs. Well, not really terrorized. She was big and tough and barked at all the dogs through the fence, but when we took her inside, she tried to make friends.

Kim wasn’t ready for the big dog area with the huge doberman. I think Zoe would have dealt with it, but Kim will have to work up to that. That thing was huge and beautiful, and ran with such ease and grace. But at the same time it was a little scary looking. It was bigger (taller) than a full grown lab.

I think Zoe is going to be largely an indoor dog. She likes running around and games in big outdoor spaces, but she also likes to lounge around inside, and is always happy to go back in when the business outside is done.

I work from home, so I take care of her most of the time. She has been rearranging my schedule, so that I get up earlier and go to be a lot earlier too. We are trying out putting her in a crate at night, and so far she doesn’t seem to mind it. She was living in a crate at the kennel, but I think she recognizes that her situation is much better now than previously.

Every morning she goes through a wild dog stage, just after going outside for the first time. She just runs like crazy through the house, generally squeeking a little toy for about 10 minutes. She can’t jump up on my bed yet, but she can reach my elbow to announce with her cold wet nose that she is up and available for fun. She is very playful until about 9:30 am, when she starts a nap that goes until noon.

She rides in the car very well. I have a Subaru wagon, and she rides in the back and either takes in the sights or takes a nap. Riding in the 350Z convertible is a different story. She isn’t keen on any kind of machinery, but something where the roof moves and goes away is just too much for her to handle. She crawls down on the floor and stays there.

Anyway, Zoe is a great dog, and a lot of fun to have around the house. I’m reading Tamar Geller’s book on training. Her website seems a bit clownish, but her books are a bit less silly, and relates some really tragic parts of how her own story affects how she sees things through the dog’s eyes.

All the pictures here are from Kim, who with her new birthday camera is really having a great time.

FiddleFest

Roanoke’s FiddleFest is a bluegrass event held at Hollins University every year about this time. The weather is always hot, and it is always threatened by afternoon storms.

Kim’s firm, AECOM (formerly HSMM), is a sponsor of the event. We’ve been  to 4 of these events, seeing groups that range from local talent to Rhonda Vincent and Ralph Stanley.

Kim got a nice digital slr camera for her birthday this year, and so we thought we’d team up. She took (several hundred!!) photos during the shows, and I agreed to write it up.

When we arrived, the main stage was empty, and judging by the weather, we figured it had been moved inside due to the heat and humidity. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a bluegrass festival where the weather was comfortable. It’s always hot. Seeing bluegrass inside just doesn’t seem right, but that’s what the festival folks had decided to do this time. It wasn’t more than maybe 90 deg, but the humidity was very high.

For the afternoon concerts, we were in this small auditorium. It might have held 300 people max. It was a great place to hear acoustic music, and they almost didn’t need amplification, but they used a little anyway. Here you can see the back of my head as I sit on the floor behind a short wall in the back of the room. Right behind me was the fire marshall nazi enforcer. She later kicked Kim and I out of a standing room only spot because it was labelled for handicapped, and rolled in someone in a wheelchair. Competition for spots was tight, and the room was air conditioned, but had that feverish radiated heat of a room with too many people packed too close together.

But we endured. We were there to hear bluegrass, and we were gonna do that regardless of the adversity.

Sandy Ridge was the first group we saw. These guys are what you expect from an experienced bluegrass quartet. Each was master of his axe, and they harmonized beautifully. This is really the staple of why we come to Fiddle Fest. We know we’re gonna hear groups like this that you may not hear on XM, but are still well worth hearing.

Herschel Sizemore played mandolin with Sandy Ridge for a couple of tunes. Herschel came back in the evening with a pickup band and played a bigger set on the main stage. It’s always good to see people who have been around the bluegrass scene for a long time live.

The setting was very casual, as is always the case at bluegrass events. In the padded seats and air conditioning it almost took on the feeling of a more high-brow anthropological study where you examine the customs of inhabitants of appalachia as if they are some unknown species. It seemed a little academic, but it also seemed to have attracted a younger than usual bluegrass crowd. In our mid-40s, Kim and I are accustomed to being the youngest folks at some bluegrass events. (Lots of retirees in RVs)

Notice the reflective window behind the musicians. This gave an eerie feeling of the audience actually being part of the performance in an unusual way. The stage was small, and with the reflection, the musicians were surrounded on both sides by the audience, so we got to see ourselves as the performers would see us.

The next band was Mountain Heart. Kim and I have seen these guys before at some festival, I’ve got a couple of their CDs. The band seems to have gone through a transition since we have seen them, but we thoroughly enjoyed the new incarnation, if that’s what it is. It seems the old band may have been more forgettable, since Kim didn’t seem to remember them. She got them mixed up with Blue Highway, which was a band I knew from festivals in California. They have similar styles, but are distinctly different bands.

Mountain Heart had a couple of distinguishing marks that made this performance memorable. The most obvious was a 6 member line up, with 2 guitars. The second was Barry Abernathy.  Somehow he played the banjo as well as any other great banjo player, but does it with no fingers on his left hand. That’s how being unremarkable is so remarkable, if that makes any sense.

The final distinguishing mark on this performance of Mountain Heart was that they were joined by Tony Rice on guitar and Terry Baucom on banjo. So that’s 3 guitars, and 2 banjos for those of you keeping score. Tony Rice is of course mesmerizing when he gets out on one of his flat picking solos. Mountain Heart was eager to point out that Tony is single handedly responsible for the state of flat picking style in bluegrass today. Yes, he’s that big a deal. When he cuts loose, you know that there is not another talent quite like him.

Kim and I have only seen Tony one other time, when he was touring with Alison Krauss. Alison is  a great entertainer, but if you go to her concerts to hear bluegrass, you come to appreciate Dan Tyminski, and other people she tours with, like Tony Rice. In our minds, after seeing that concert, Dan’s voice and Tony’s guitar far outshone anything Alison brought. But that’s because we were there for the bluegrass.

After listening to Tony, on the drive home Kim and I agreed that the last time we felt that psychadelic mesmerizing pulsatinging flow of fast notes streaming out of a guitar was when listening to Larry Keel last year on  July 4 at Snowshoe, WV. We agreed that Larry probably modeled himself after Tony at least in part, but Larry takes it further out on the fringe, where long jamming bluegrass guitar solos fuse into a mesmerizing miasma of music. Larry is from Natural Bridge, VA, a local to be sure, and quite a bit younger than Tony, but having built quite a name for himself already.

Terry Baucom was a name I have to admit I wasn’t familiar with, but he has played with many big names, including IIIrd Tyme Out, Doyle Lawson, Ricky Skaggs, Lou Reid, Dale Ann Bradley, Boone Creek, and others. He’s got that strong driving 3-finger banjo style that is what drew me to bluegrass in the first place. It was in some ways unfortunate that he was on stage with Tony Rice, because we didn’t get to hear Terry really cut loose. While Terry is an important figure and a phenomenal player, Tony Rice casts a long shadow in any company.

After Tony and Terry left the room, a lot of space in the small auditorium opened up. I can understand coming to a festival especially to see Tony Rice, but I can’t understand leaving and missing all the great talent that followed.

Anyway, the next band was Junior Sisk and Rambler’s Choice. Junior is clearly in command of a great bluegrass tradition. Sometimes when you see bigger name bands like Mountain Heart, the music is great, but it strays from the strict bluegrass theme. Junior put the audience back on the straight bluegrass track. He played some of my favorites.

Many of his band were local-ish musicians, from south central VA and NC. It turned out that his mandolin player for this gig was a favorite fellow from the Deer Creek Boys we saw at the same event in Snowshoe where we saw Larry Keel. “Sweet Potato” played the bass for Deer Creek and mandolin for Junior, but he laid down a nice 9 pound hammer for Junior. Here is a link to Sweet Potato at Snowshoe doing Jimmy Martin Sunny Side of the Mountain…

Blue Moon Rising was the final band in the cramped but wonderful sounding small auditorium. These guys were also worth the extra time. We actually got to sit in padded seats for their performance. The guys were all from Kentucky. We found two parts of this group to be memorable. Justin Jenkins was the young banjo player, getting married in a couple of weeks, and with a banjo album coming out shortly. Great banjo player.

The other bright spot here was Keith Garrett’s vocals. Blue Moon got very bluesy here and there. They weren’t just straight up bluegrass, but they were well worth listening to.

Overall, the bands were great. I really enjoyed the music. But I have to say that the venue would have been fantastic if there had been about 100 fewer people there. The fire marshal nazi enforcer woman was trying to kick out festival volunteers to allow paying customers to get into the room and have a seat. Many people including performers were sitting outside in the lobby, where you could still hear the music with the auditorium doors open.

After a little mexican food for dinner, the evening concert was back outside, where I think bluegrass belongs. The sun was tilting lower, and the occasional cool breeze would waft across the crowd. A good turnout for the event was a good thing to see. We had been disappointed to see the Salem bluegrass festival last only two years, but this is the fourth Fiddle Fest for us.

As the sun was setting, the sky kept teasing us with hints of rain, but we all stayed dry.

They went back through the lineup of the earlier afternoon concerts, so we got to hear Paul Williams and the Victory trio. We had just heard Paul at a festival in Louisa county a few weeks ago. Such a strong voice. I don’t think the audio folks really count on his voice being so strong. I will always associate Paul Williams with the image of an axe splitting my head open from ear to ear. Paul brings back the old gospel quartet style with a bluegrass instrumentation.

The ladies who sat in front of us entered in the fellow in the raffle drawing, and of course he won. One of the things he won was a Fiddle Fest bumper sticker. One of the ladies was a big trouble maker, and spotting me easily as another big troublemaker, she enlisted me to put the bumper sticker on the back of the wheel chair. Mean? Having fun at the expense of the handicapped? Maybe.

Anyway.

Mountain Heart played another set with their two guests. Of the whole day, the only musical criticism I would give would be aimed at these guys. No one doubts that they are fantastic musicians, but Kim and I lost track of the broken strings on the stage. Tony Rice played the pants off of his instrument, and never broke a string.

It’s acoustic music. I get the fact that if you want to “turn it to 11″, you have to press harder, but I don’t think the additional intensity was necessary, and sometimes it just detracted from the music. In rock and roll, you add distortion. In acoustic music, you just have to apply some edge. I thought the guitars and mandolin especially went for that extra edge a little too frequently. And frequently they were breaking strings. You can be an amazing musician without beating the daylights out of your instrument or making it sound harsh. Tony was superb, and never made his Martin sound ungentlemanly, nor did he break any strings. C’mon, guys, this is not Aerosmith. Intensity is cool, but there is a limit to how intense you can make acoustic music before it becomes something less.

Anyway. Great music, great festival. Rethink the inside option next year. Being able to see the band would be an advantage, even at the expense of the air conditioning.

Laurel Bed Lake

There is a lake in western Virginia called Laurel Bed Lake. Kim’s step dad Fish wanted to check it out, so I juggled my schedule a little and we did a road trip. Laurel Bed is one of those places that reminds me of being back in the Adirondaks. Well, almost. Laurel Bed is well outside of a small town called Saltville, which is well outside of a less small town called Chilhowie. Clinch Mt game preserve, you know, Ralph Stanley’s neck of the woods.

Fish is a guy you have heard about from time to time if you’ve read my posts here or on my other blog. Here he is in action after a bit of a rain shower in his frog togs in one of the coves where we parked and fished for a while.

There is a lot to love about the Laurel Bed area. The road to get back up in there is all switch backs, with some available primative camping. The road follows the Tumbling Creek, which would be my home if I could somehow live without money.

Tumbling Creek is a pay stream full of brookies and rainbows and waterfalls. Pictures do not do it justice. If you’re any kind of a trout fisherman, this is the kind of place you dream about. A big gorge with big rocks and a lot of waterfalls and pools.

Anyway, Fish and I were not there for the trout. They would have to wait for my next trip up there. We were there for the bass and panfish.

This is Fish’s rig. We’re pushing it with my little electric motor since we lost Fish’s gas motor on a big rock in the James river. This was July 2, and we were the only people on the lake. The temp is low 70s if that, but the water is much warmer than expected. Our second day on the lake was overcast, and had a 10% chance of rain, so it only rained on us about 10% of the time.

Much of the lake was pretty shallow. We had heard that the lake was stuffed with rock bass (redeye), but we were having some difficulty proving that. I fished with a combination of lures (shad rap, rooster tails, assorted plugs) with no success, and then shifted to a good old bobber and worm. Most of the fish were so small that they could only toy with even half a crawler, but fishing in a cove around some tree stumps, this 18″ 3 pounder (small mouth) took the bobber down decisively.

This was the only fish of any consequence we caught, but we learned about a great area, and I will be back for the brookies!

One of the highlights of the trip was definitely seeing the bear swim across the lake.

As soon as we spotted it, we tried to get closer to it to get a good picture, but bears can swim almost as fast as an electric trolling motor! We were about 50 feet from him when he climbed out of the water and ran off into the woods.

Last Day at Disney (Friday)

As our week long Disney trip drew to its close, we were both glad to have had the experience and also glad to be done.  For me it was wonderful to remember how to be a kid again.  I never thought I would have so much fun.  By the end of the week I was singing and dancing through my days.

Friday was our Magic Kingdom day.  Both Matt and I had been there when we were young children so this was a revisit to childhood.  It was great.  We opted to go in a little later because we wanted to stay in the park to see the fireworks.

Main Street was in its usual busy state.  After a stop to admire the iconic castle it was off to tomorrowland for a space mountain fast pass.  When I was a kid I chickened out of riding space mountain.  Not this time – I was determined to see this through.  We had a bunch of time to kill before our 2:30 time so we went to see Laugh Floor.  That was a well done comedic interactive show featuring the Monsters Inc characters.

Since we had more time to kill we thought it would be a good idea to revisit It’s A Small World.  While I know this is a staple of Disney, I think it is time to revamp the ride.  It was slow, crowded and somewhat annoying.  Not as great as I remember or maybe it is just the other stuff is better.  At least we passed the time to the fast pass time.

So back to Space Mountain, we breezed past the long lines of standby riders.  The beginning of the ride is way back in the building.  Glimpses of the glow in the dark coaster cars only give us a guess at the ride.  The cars are single seat three in a car and two cars hooked together.

It was a good ride, but this one too has been surpassed by newer coasters throughout the other parks.  It was hurky jerky and reminded me of the old Mouse Trap ride at Lakeside Amusement Park back in the late 70’s.  I am glad that I can now add it to my list of conquered coasters.

We utilized the WDW railroad to move us to the other side of the park.  What a great civilized way to get across the Magic Kingdom.  It is so much nicer than fighting the masses.  It was relaxing and tranquil.

Once in fronterland, we grabbed a fast pass for Briar Patch – Log Fume Ride.  Then from there we enjoyed the Country Bear Jamboree, Liberty Belle Paddle Boat, Swiss Family Robinson Tree House, Pirates of the Caribbean, and a few other things along the way.  Oh yes, another overpriced and uninspired meal. 

Then to the Briar Patch and Splash Mountain, a surprisingly fun ride.  Cartoonish but very well done.  I still maintain, it doesn’t matter much what the theme is but just work within the theme.  This ride is executed very well.  A few surprise drops and very wet right off the bat.  We were both drenched.  And then came the really big drop, the 5 story one.  whoo wee!  That was fun.  All set within the Br’er Rabbit, Br’er Fox and Br’er Bear – song of the south story.  Nicely done.  This was a great surprise.

As we exited the ride we realized that it was sunset and we were wet.  yuck but hey we were at Disney so who cares.  We wondered around a bit and found a great spot for the fireworks show Wishes.  I had seen the show earlier in the week and was blown away.   I was anxious to see how Matt reacted.  He was just as amazed as I was and for me the second time was just as good.  I can’t say enough wonderful things about this extremely well choreographed show.  The words and songs are moving and reminded me about hope and wishes.  The fireworks complimented the theme perfectly.  Now I am only going to expect more from the next fireworks show I see.

After Wishes, instead of joining the mass of crowds to leave the park we snuck in a few more rides.  Glad we didn’t miss the Buzz Light Year ride – shootn’ up the evil zorg.  Another surprise ride with a fun interactive twist. 

My advice, soak up as much as you can and enjoy laughing and being a kid again.  We did!

Disney – Matt’s Epcot Day (Thursday)

As Matt and I are making our way home, I want to bring you up to speed on our final days at Disney.  On Thursday Matt was able to finally join in on the fun.  We went to Epcot for the day and I don’t think he was disappointed.  First we headed over to Soarin to grab our fast pass.  Since we had a little time to kill, we headed for a few other rides and shows, one was the Disney’s Lion King themed The Circle of Life: An Environmental Fable.  It seems completely hypocritical to me that Disney would tell a story so blatantly similar to their own story of real estate development and then call it bad.  No one has dumped more concrete and asphalt into the Florida swamp than Disney.  Now really! 

OK off my soapbox.  That is a post for a different time and blog. We made it back to Soarin’ – what a fun ride this is.  It is gentle and yet extremely exhilarating.  The hanging chairs tilt and move in coordination with the super sized screen.  This time I tried to notice the smells – the pine forest and the orange groves.  This is a great ride for the meek as it really doesn’t go anywhere.  It feels like you do but you are only lifted off the floor a few feet and put back exactly where you start.  Everyone talks about this ride.  Grab your fast pass early in the day as this one really fills up. 

One side note, the restaurant adjacent to Soarin’ on the first level is called Seasons.  This is surprisingly one of my favorite walk up counter service restaurants in the park.  I had a chicken Caesar salad twice there and both times it was outstanding.  I think I like it because it has several stations for different types of foods and the lines are somewhat short.

After the Land Pavilion we went over to the Seas Building.  Rode the clam shell, cute kids ride and walked through the aquarium.  Then we went to the interactive show with Crush.  That was fun.  I recommend that one.  We couldn’t stop saying DUUUUDE all day.

Then it was across Epcot to Mission Space and Test Track.  I had been on both of these earlier in the week and knew Matt was going to enjoy them.  Grabbed the fast pass for mission space and then went over to Test Track.  I still think the single rider line is the way to go on this one.  If you aren’t set on sitting in the same row or car even as your companion, give it a try.  You will be on the ride in no time at all.  Matt wished the ride had lasted longer – it was a fun one.

Mission Space time rolled around pretty quickly and off we went.  I rode this one a few days prior and did the green mission, the less intense one.  So for this one Matt agreed that we should go for it and do the orange one.  WOW – there is a big difference.  There is a centrifuge creating the g force pressures.  That blast off is wild!  I couldn’t lift my legs and the pressure on my chest was intense.  I think my head is still swimmy from it.  Then it was into deep sleep and then the landing on Mars.  Quite the adventure, even if the ride does leave you stranded on Mars!  Everyone on the team did an excellent job and we made it to our landing AOK, at least I thought so anyway.  After the ride was over I noticed Matt wasn’t doing too well.  He was sweaty and about to lose it.  I am happy to report that he maintained himself and all projectiles, but he was struggling for quite a while.  We sipped a soda and had a nice sit in the shade while he recovered.  I think the pictures will speak for themselves.  I was fine, ready for the next thrill.  Bring it on.

So for something on the milder side we ventured into the International Showcase.  Mexico, Norway, China, Italy, Morocco, Japan, and France, it was all fun.  Matt is great to travel with cause he gets me to do the things I would normally by pass.  China was a treat – beautiful gardens, 360 degree theater of the county’s beautiful scenery, and interesting museum type displays.  Thanks to the two very nice people that were generous enough to snap these pictures of us – here and at Mission Space.  It is nice to have some shots of both of us that aren’t at arm’s length.  Kindness of strangers strikes again.

After all the countries Matt finally understood why I was so exhausted every afternoon and we headed back to the room to rest a bit and freshen up for dinner.  He fell asleep on the boat ride to the Dolphin.

After a brief rest, we went over to the boardwalk for dinner.  It was OK but like most everything in Disney waaay overpriced for the meal.  I was floored by the food prices throughout the parks and at the hotel. 

Then it was back into Epcot for one last ride – the Spaceship Earth.  The iconic Buckminster Fuller’s sphere housrs this revamped ride.  It is a great journey through time.  We walked right in with no wait just before the fireworks show at 9pm.

On the way back to the lake for the show, I tried to stop at a bathroom.  for only the second time during Disney, I couldn’t find a bathroom.  When I did find it the line was so long and only two stalls – seriously.  This is the bathroom between ohCanada and the end of the bridge to the spaceship earth sphere.  Try to avoid this one – most other facilities are completely adequate.

The fireworks show was OK; however, I strongly recommend Magic Kingdom’s Wishes more though.  I think I had been spoiled by the latter one. 

We really enjoyed the boat ride home.  Those are a nice gentle way of getting back to the hotel.  Walking would have been quicker but at that time of the night after a full day, it was just nice to sit and get dropped off.