Hughes Mountain

Don’t get excited, John and I did not make a trip to Colorado and climb a mountain, so maybe this posting will not be too interesting.   However, John and I did enjoy ourselves on this Ozark hill near Potosi, Missouri (about 60 miles from St. Louis) last week.  John had read about this property, owned by the Missouri Department of Conservation, in the book  “Geologic Wonders and Curiosities of Missouri” written by Thomas Beveridge.  John was intrigued by the fact that Missouri has one of four world-famous “scenic examples of igneous rock which has cooled to form giant polygonal columns”.  Hughes has one of the smaller examples of this phenomenon, and it has been christened the Devil’s Honeycomb.  It is a smaller group of columns than found in the other three sites. ( By the way, John and I have seen one of those others, Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming. The other two are Devil's Post Pile National Monument in California and Giant's Causeway in Ireland.) Once John learned that we have a site here in Missouri, he was ready to go.  Last Monday he mentioned making a trip down to southeast Missouri, and after we quickly glanced at the weather forecast for the week, we knew we had to go that day.  Unfortunately, by the time we got going it was well into the day, a fact which caused a bit of a problem later in the waning hours of the afternoon.

This hike up the mountain was similar to the one we made several weeks ago in Virginia.  The upward assent was about 400 feet, and the round trip total was about a mile and a half.  We encountered rocks and roots- also the wet leaves were slippery, so we had to constantly watch where we were placing our feet.  We kept reminding each other to be careful, the memory of John falling on our last hike was forefront in my mind. 

As we got closer to the top, John started pointing out to me the fact that the rocks had certain geometric shapes to them- a polygonal pattern meaning that they are four to 6 sided.  Like Elephant Rocks (another rocky scenic site in this part of Missouri) the mountain here is composed of granite rock.  They are salmon pink, but colored yellow by lichens.

The mountain top view was wonderful, especially now that the leaves are turning color. 

Once we reached the top of the mountain, we found ourselves on a very rocky surface bald with a 

few grassy areas and short shrubs.  We started wandering all over the surface at the top, looking for the columns which were described in the book.  What we found were shorter rows of rocks than what I expected, they were 3 to 4 feet maximum height, having 4-6 sides. 

We lost all track of time as we hiked all over the surface at the top.  The sun was getting lower in the sky and we realized that we had to climb down very soon.  However, there was no exit sign; we had to find the area where we had entered the top of the mountain.   We wandered around rather aimlessly for about 30 minutes.  For me, panic starting building as I realized that if either of us fell it would be a cold night on the mountain.  No other humans had been seen the whole time we were there.  John checked his phone, no service- we couldn't even call 911.  John studied the trail map a bit more closely, and with the sun's help we got our directional bearings.  We then saw a small trail sign pointing to the path which we needed to follow.  Whew, that was the first time that ever happened to us in our wanderings.  Hope we remember in the future to always pay attention to our surroundings.  Maybe the whole problem lies with memory issues????

Luray Caverns

According to a Luray Cavern brochure, this cave is the "largest and most popular in the East"  John and I were tempted to pass on seeing it, as we have toured quite a few caves over our lifetime. However, our son Dan seemed determined to go, and so we went just because most caverns have not failed to thrill us.  Luray Caverns were no different in their awe factor.  Seemed to me they were exactly as National Geographic once described them as "a fairy land in stone".
The caverns were discovered in 1878 by a tinsmith and local photographer.  Cold air rushing out of a limestone sinkhole atop a big hill blew out their candle.  They dug out the rock around the hole, took a rope and slid into a large cavernous room.  The cave is noted for such large rooms, because of that there are paved walkways easily traversed, no steep stairs which we are use to encountering in many caves.  In fact, a lady in our tour group managed well in her wheelchair.

Pictured above is Saracen's Tent, one of the most perfectly formed drapery structures in the world.  Just imagine making a grand entrance through that opening in the middle of those stalactites!

Above is the Wishing Well, a pond where people have tossed coins since 1954.  Once a year the coins are removed and deposited in a special bank account for various charitable organizations. In some of the other ponds in the cave there are beautiful reflections of the towering stone columns and shimmering crystalline stalactites hanging above.  It is very much a fairy land of delicate beauty!

In the cavern there is the world's largest musical instrument, the" Great Stalacpipe Organ".  It makes concert-quality music from the surrounding formations which cover more than 3 acres.  The day we were in the caverns there was no organist to play it, but our tour guide did turn on a recording of a hymn played on the instrument.  We were sure the real thing might have sounded better!
We drove back to D.C. that afternoon, and the next day John and I took a southerly route back home.  We wanted to take the scenic by-way along the New River in West Virginia.  It made our return trip a bit longer, but was well worth it!

Shenandoah National Park

What little time we had on our trip out east, John and I spent most of it in this park.  The national park has been know for its Skyline Drive, 105 miles along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains.  According to the park brochure along this drive are 75 overlooks, offering many impressive views of the Shenandoah Valley.  We did not traverse by car the entire drive, but spent some time on it taking time to stop and enjoy the fantastic sights spread out below us.

In the view of the Shenandoah Valley above the two white splotches in the midst of the picture above
is mist arising from the valley.  On our second day the view over the valley was hazy with patches of mist arising from it.  Most of the trees were still green yet, and had not yet slipped into their fall colors.

 

On the first day in the park we were anxious to hike on one of its many trails, so we chose Stony Man.  Our trail guide described him as appearing to be "reclining on the slope of the Blue ridge, gazing over the Shenandoah Valley to the west".  It is the second highest peak in Shenandoah National Park.  Viewed from the north the mountain resembles the face of a bearded man.   Pictured below is our group at the summit of Stony Man, which gives you another view of the rocky peak of the  mountain.

The hike is  a 11/2 mile round trip, the path is well cleared but still strewn with small rocks.  On our walk down the mountain John just happened to look up and did not see a rock at his feet, falling flat on his face and breaking his glasses.  Once we cleaned up his scrapes, however, he was good to go- with no broken bones fortunately.

Except for that one mishap, we had a wonderful walk on Stony Man; with a park booklet in hand we were able to take notice of some of its more interesting features.  Pictured above is yellow birch that is determined to split a large slab of rock in two with its roots.  At one time oaks and chestnut trees were the primary trees in this forest.  About in the 1930s an Asian fungus decimated the American chestnut trees, now it is the oak which dominates the forest.  Also tall evergreens add to the forest canopy.  We did see some chestnuts, mostly as logs lying alongside our trail.  They do not decay and still can be found, serving as a host for various bugs and other small creatures.

There was a trail marker near the rocky site pictured above.  In the rocks seen along the trail is the presence of various minerals, old scattered copper mining sites can be found on Stony Man.  In the 1800s nuggets of  native copper were found on the forest floor.After our day on the mountain we still had some time the next day to visit Luray Caverns which are located in the Shenandoah Valley region.

A Trip East

John and I have had a busy fall season so far.  Two weeks ago we took a cabin at Meramec State Park, joining our daughter and her family who were tenting there.  This past week-end we took a road trip to Washington D.C. to visit our son Dan and his wife.  On highway 68, across the northern top of Maryland, we saw the brilliance of reds and yellows in the fall colors.  Seemed a bit early for them to appear, but we were driving in mountainous areas.

A day after arriving in D.C. we drove with our son Dan and Amanda to the Shenandoah Valley where we rented a cabin belonging to the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club.  The first day we hiked around the immediate area and saw the usual remnants of old farm sites, which included low stone walls as well as home fireplaces.

Our cabin had an interesting feature, a bridge to nowhere in particular.  The family who built their vacation home here, in the 1970s,  liked the artist Monet.  The lady of the house had a bridge reconstructed in her yard, similar to the one found in some of Monet's paintings.

According to a journal in the cabin, written by past visitors to the home, a black bear had been spotted in the yard in July.  All we saw of wild life were some wild turkeys- our son and his wife did see a pileated woodpecker while sitting on the porch.  And we hear many birds chattering in the trees, that alone was quite pleasant during our stay!  One last picture here is that of Virginia Creeper, whose leaves are now turning red.

A Day n St.Louis- the Art Museum and a Piazza

The St.Louis Art Museum currently has a wonderful exhibit on Paul Gauguin (French post-impressionist artist who lived from 1848-1903).  The exhibit is titled The Art of Invention"- very true for this artist as he become known for his writing, ceramics, printmaking, wood engraving and woodcuts.  It seemed that over his lifetime he was always creatively reinventing himself!

Pictured above is a wood carving Gauguin did of Eve with the serpent, a Biblical story of the first sin.  He created this with oak wood and paint.  There was a fair number of his wood art displayed in this exhibit, as well as a variety of other objects which he collected over his lifetime. While living and painting in Tahiti he became interested in the Maori culture and collected items pertaining to that tribe of people, which  included in the exhibit.

Gauguin seemed to be a restless soul, he did not want to paint urbanized Europe, and instead wanted to find more uncivilized places where he could find luminous vivid colors- which he certainly found in the lush tropical foliage of Tahiti.    He left his five children and wife in Denmark, traveled off to paint and find an alternative life style on that island.  He first spent two years there, returning later and spending 6 more years on Tahiti.   The painting above is titled "Landscape from Tahiti"   Over all, this was a very fascinating exhibit about an unusual, talented off-beat painter.  We enjoyed it a lot.

After spending our morning at the art museum we headed for lunch in the historic Italian Hill area of St.Louis.  A few of our favorite restaurants are located here.  After eating we walked a couple of blocks, past St.Ambrose church- a large Catholic church important to this community and built by the first Italian immigrants to St.Louis.  Piazza Imo, pictured above, is across the street from the church.  It has massive ornamental gates, benches, chessboards, as well as the marble fountain and granite walkways- very European in flavor.  It was paid for by private donors, and just dedicated this past summer.  It is a wonderful addition to the historic hill area!

Nauvoo, Illinois

Many, if not all of you, know all about the Mormon faith.  It is not a religion that John or I subscribe to, but the history of Mormonism in the 1840s is what the town of Nauvoo is all about.  Visitor center, both in town and in the historic area provide plenty of information about Mormons, their faith and history.  Behind the Historic Nauvoo Visitor Center we toured a beautiful garden with statues of women at various stages in their life;  involved in activities ranging from courting, child rearing to the pursuit of the arts.

Speaking of the arts, it was interesting to see a closeup of a piece of the old temple in the visitor's center.  In the new temple, at the top, are sun moon and star stones.  They were modeled after the originals by craftsmen.  In the limestone stone pictured below is the sun shining through the clouds with trumpets surrounding it, a depiction of judgment day.

We toured the historic village of Nauvoo which has homes and buildings dating from the 1840s.  Joseph Smith and his followers came to the Indian village of Quashquema in 1839.  They renamed the village Nauvoo (beautiful city).  A successful missionary effort brought in large members from United States, Canada and England.  Nauvoo became one of the largest cities in Illinois.  The church immediately started erecting their temple, as well as other buildings and homes.

Pictured above is the Cultural Hall, which in 1840 was the Masonic Building that headquartered the Nauvoo Legion, police force, and community theater.  Inside we saw a small auditorium with a stage, and on the third floor is a ballroom with original flooring.

Also on our walking tour of the historic area we saw the Browning Home and gun shop.  Browning was the creator of the repeating rifle.

It would have taken John and I at least a good two days to tour this entire historic village.  The tour guides were quite friendly and anxious to share with us tons of information, but we were tired and hot- ready to call it a day.  We did stop to see the Smith homestead (pictured above) and family cemetery on our way out of the village.  Joseph Smith and his brother were assassinated in 1844.  Mainstream America was fearful of the Mormons and their beliefs.  In 1845 more than 200 Mormon farm buildings and homes were burned.  In 1846 many, but not all, of this religious group headed out for the Salt Lake Valley of Utah led by Brigham Young.

A Car Trip Along the Mississippi River

Our goal on this two day road trip was to visit the town of Nauvoo, Illinois.  We took highway 61 north which follows the Mississippi River, and and on that road trip saw the damage left by the river when it overflowed its banks this past spring.  Many small towns in America are struggling to survive because of people leaving rural areas and looking for improved opportunities in the big cities.  Now the overflowing river has increased the problems for the river cities.  We have visited Clarksville, Mo. in the past to watch eagle activity around the river in January.  We always found stores and places to eat on the main street of town, a street located parallel to the river.  In recent months flooding on the river came up to those doors and higher- many of the places are now shuttered and some closed.

Around Quincy, Illinois we were in need of a break to get out and stretch our legs.  We saw signs for a stone bridge and decided to use that for our stop.  The signs directed us into South Park (apparently the second largest park in Quincy) where we found the bridge.  It was a peaceful walk down a woodland trail, along Curtis Creek to the bridge- but yuck, the smell in this area was bad.  We got out of there quickly. John and I explored the park a bit more to get information on the bridge. We found some interpretive signs and learned the the bridge was  built in the 1890s by Quincy architect George Wood.  He also designed the band pavilion in the park.

 

 During most of our drive along the Mississippi we always saw the height of the Mississippi River located up to its banks, except for the area coming into the town of Nauvoo.  Here water lilies were blooming with large swaths growing in shallow areas along the banks of the river.  We got out to view them and detected a faint floral smell which was quite pleasant,  Not sure if it was the flowers or something else we were smelling!

The large Mormon temple overlooks the river in Nauvoo.  The current temple was dedicated in 2002.  The first temple was built under the direction of Joseph Smith in 1841.  Conditions in Nauvoo became unsettled after Joseph and his brother were assassinated in 1844.  The temple was hurriedly dedicated in 1846,  and an arsonist burned that first temple in 1848.  Pictured below is a statue of Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum.  More on the town of Navoo in my next posting.

Cosmic Caverns

One thing we have learned about Missouri is that it has plenty of caves to explore and there were a few very close to us, however we found one just over the border in Arkansas which suited us because of the entrance fee and formations to be seen.  It was also a good choice as it was doable for our little ones- a third of a mile long, but with very many stairs to climb.  The children were okay with that until the very end when they started to complain.  Our tour group had many children but the guide was a retired school teacher and knew just how to keep their attention.

Cosmic cave has some unique features.  It is one of the warmest caves in the Ozarks, keeping a constant temperature of 64 degrees F.  Bats love this cave for its warmth during the winter months.  We were assured that currently they are out of the cave, raising their babies and foraging for food.   It is also a very wet cave, heavy rains in the outside area immediately flood the cave.  The cave has been mined for cave onyx, that gem can be seen above.  The cave formations are translucent and quite pristine except in one location.

When cave tour guides have warn us not to touch the stalactites and stalagmite I always wondered what would happen if I did.  The blackened formation pictured above is what happens, and that piece
of the cave will no longer grow.  This was one place on the tour which we could touch.

This cave is famous for its helictites, one of which can be seen above.  In the upper spot-lit yellow area look at the twiggy- looking formation hanging down, like 3xes in a row.  That is a helictite.  I have been on quite a few cave tours in the past, and that was a new formation for me.

The cave was discovered in 1845, and has had 14 owners, the current owner has had it since 1980.  He has dynamited and explored parts of it over the years.  Two bottomless lakes have been found, but not explored.  One last formation I have here to show you is what looks like poached eggs.  We had seen on the tour stalactites which looked like bacon,  and here we found the rest of our breakfast!

And for lunch you may need a soda straw.  This cave has plenty of them!

Needless to say, it was a beautiful cave to tour, muddy to walk through and drips of water were frequently coming down, but well worth that discomfort!

Summer Vacation

I know, we are retired, so why do John and I need a summer vacation?   Well, we do still have the travel bug, so it is necessary for us to get out once and a while and hit the road.  Our daughter and her family had a small window of time between their son’s various summer camps to get away for a week, so we chose to join them on the first week in July at Table Rock Lake.  When we embarked on planning for this vacation at the beginning of this year we failed to take into account that many vacation rentals had already been booked.  We did find one available condo in Kimberling city, which is part of the Branson metropolitan area.  I was quite concerned as to whether we would find enough to do with our young grandchildren at a fishing resort, but it turned out to be a good week with them!

We found a scenic train at the Branson train station (actually an elderly Amtrak train from the 1950s) which took us out over the rolling Ozark hillsides two hours out and back.  Our 5 year- old grandson and 2 year- old granddaughter enjoyed that a lot- the dome and snack cars were their two favorite sections of the train.

Moonshine Beach is located on Table Rock Lake.  Nathan and Clarissa had been asking to go back to the beach in Florida, so this beach satisfied that desire.  Another day we went blueberry picking at Persimmon Hill farms- the cinnamon buns with blueberries at their bakery are quite delicious.  All five of us dove into one bun with our forks and it disappeared very quickly. 
And just because we were in a small town did not mean we missed fire works either.  On July 3 fireworks were shot over the lake, we had seats on a grassy hill near our condo- did not even have to take our car out for that.  Our two grandchildren also had fun trying out their fishing poles- patience is not a strong suit for children at this age! 

  We also toured Cosmic Cave with the children, that experience will be in my next posting.