Idaho Botanical Garden

It was a bright, sunny and hot afternoon when we walked from the prison over to the gardens.  No shade to walk under anywhere.  Part of that walk was over the Outlaw Field.  Now that field is used for concerts,  back in the day it was used by the Outlaw prison team for baseball games.  The entrance to the garden did not look like much and we were at first hesitant to put out the money for the entrance fee.  The guard at the gate reassured us it would be worth our while.

Several days ago, at Twin Falls, I saw this beautiful flowering plant.  Has purple spikes on it with blue flowers on them.  Bees and butterflies love this bush.  No one could tell me its name.  Found the same plant at the gardens, and it had a label on it - blue flame sage.  What a beautiful name for such a  pretty flower!  Figured if nothing else I gained that from the garden.  However, the garden does have a lot more to offer.  It has English and Meditative Gardens.  As the prison and  gardens are surrounded by dessert, we were surprised to see such lush green areas

 

The sea holly bush in the English Garden, native to eastern Europe, is quite beautiful, fully in bloom now.

A section of the garden is devoted to the plants Lewis and Clarke found in their travels to the northwest, and are native to Idaho.  That was interesting.  Here I found the syringa bush, state flower of Idaho.  Unfortunately it is not in bloom now, so did not get a picture of it.  But I did get a picture of the creeping hummingbird trumpet flower which is fully in bloom now.

 In our travels we have discovered that many botanical gardens have their own unique features.  For the Idaho Botanical Garden it is their Firewise section of the garden.  If you live in this area the landscaping around your house should have three zones.  The first zone should be 0-30 feet plus from your house, and should have only firewise plants.  These plants have high moisture content, high soap or salt content, be low growing and non-resinous.   In zone 2 the plant density should be reduced, and have only the plants from zone 1.    That area should be 30 to 100 feet from the house.

Zone  2 is pictured above,  and pictured below are some of those plants, including the soapwort.  John did a bit of research and learned that the soap is in the bulb, a lather can be worked up with some rubbing.  Besides the soapwort, there are a variety of plants with that chemical in them.

Soapwort is the purple plant on the left side of the picture.  Next to it is the Arizona Sun Blanket which is non-resinous.  Both can be in zones one and two.  Zone three, 100-200 feet, from the house, can be most plants and trees, but they should be kept pruned and thinned out.
And finally, please note the hill off in the distance.  It has a cross on its top and at the base was a cemetery for the prison.  I walked near it, could see a few headstones- just did not last long out there because of the burning rays of the sun.

Old Idaho State Pennitentiary - Part Two

I did say I was going to be more upbeat in this posting, so how about a rose garden?   The prisoners worked on the grounds as well as a rose garden.  Notice the hills which surround the prison.

 

The seed company Jackson and Perkins first tested the Tropicana Rose here.  Through the years different small industries were tried to keep the men convicts from getting too bored.

During the 1930s the building pictured above was a shirt factory.  However, that was the Depression years and lawmakers believed that the common goods produced by convicts should not compete with those of "honest" citizens..  It later became a license plate factory.  During WW11 the prison inmates washed clothes for the local military bases.  The old laundry can still be seen on the tour.

Some of the older buildings in this prison are still standing, as the dining hall.  It was burned during a 1973 prison riot.  Riots happened over the years of this prison's existence.  A governor's committee cited that the heat, poor living conditions and staff problems caused a riot in 1971.  The hospital was burned down then.  Pictured below is what was left of the dining hall after it burned.

Over the years new buildings were always being built- to replace those burnt during riots or just because of overcrowding.  Pictured below is a cell block built in the 1950s.

We were allowed to tour this particular building.  It housed 320 inmates in 4 man cells.  Several cells were set up to look as they might have looked back in the day.  Home sweet home.

The Idaho Botanical Garden lies on a tract of land which use to belong to the prison.  From the prison we did not have to walk very far to get to it.  More on that garden in my next posting.

Old Idaho State Penitenitary

Not sure how I am going to bridge the gap between this posting and the previous one, except to say that back in the late 1800s there were few fool proof ways of convicting someone of a crime and human rights were not always considered.   In 1898 a Chinese gentleman, Yee Wee, was accused of murdering someone, and he denied doing the deed.  His translator said he gave an admission of guilt and Wee was sentenced to hang.  The Governor twice delayed his hanging.  In 1906 someone reviewed the court documents again and said there was no admission of guilt.  I am sure there is more to the story than that, but Wee was pardoned.

Pictured above is the prison, built in 1870 and home to a total of 13,000 convicts until 1973.  Women incarcerated here numbered 215. The jail could incarcerate a maximum of 603 people at a time.  A 10 year-old child spent one year here for murder, and a 11 year-old boy did three years for shooting his mom.  The most common crime by prisoners over the years was theft.

On entering the prison the convict was first processed in the warden's office.  Pictured above is the 1920s kodak view camera and a board to measure height.  In 1882 the Bertillon System was initiated, which included a front profile, as well as 11 body measurements.  Another method used by law enforcement was a sketch of the body with the location of all body markings.  Which brings me to the subject of tattoos.  In one of the prison buildings was a rather extensive display on the history of tattoos.  Captain James Cook's sailors return home with them after a visit to Tahiti.

 

  The word comes from a Tahitian word "tatau",  meaning to tap or strike.  For the sailors wearing them meant that they faced and met the challenges of the sea.  It was a symbol of an adventurous life.  Years later it was the military, gangs, and prisoners that usually wore them.  It gave them a sense of identity when that was taken away or restricted.  United States prison rules did not allow a person to get one after being incarcerated, but tattoo artists were active inside the Idaho prison.

There were many buildings to look at on our tour of the prison, and I was not sure what to show my readers next.  The above symbol of death (popular as a tattoo) brought me to the next subject and the picture above of the prison's hanging room.  The prisoner was hung from a noose on the ceiling, lever was pulled and he dropped through the door on the floor.  Ten hangings were done here, the last one in 1957.  Three cells (death row) was on this floor as well as a viewing room.

Might as well finish this on another depressive note.  Pictured above are the solitary cells, located in what prisoners referred to as "Siberia".  No windows in these cells, only a hole in the ceiling for ventilation.  But hey, it was better than what was first used, a 4x4 cage, like something an animal would be transported in.  On our tour we also saw a trapdoor which led down to a dungeon, in the 1890s that was solitary.   So the cells pictured above were possibly better.  Prisoners said that in those cells they froze in the winter and roasted in the summer.  Something close to hell.  Will conclude this prison story in my next posting.  I will work on making it a bit more upbeat!

Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial

After we had toured the capitol John and I walked for several blocks seeking to find a church founded in 1872, the First United Methodist, also known as the Cathedral of the Rockies.  We found the church, sadly the original church is no longer standing.  However. it has been replaced by a very beautiful Gothic structure with impressive stained glass windows.

A very friendly volunteer of the church explained the numerous large stained glass windows located around the sanctuary and after our tour encouraged us to visit the Anne Frank Memorial.  She explained that in the early 1980s white supremacists were settling in northern Idaho and promoting their cause.   Idahoans, led by Bill Wassmuth, saw a need to build coalitions to battle the Aryan Nations.  Shortly after that a traveling exhibit on Ann Frank came to Boise.  They were looking for a home for their exhibit and discovered that Boise was the most appropriate place.  We walked over to the memorial from the church.  It is located in a park- like area complete with fountains and plants.   At the entrance of the memorial there are large  marble tablets upon which are written universal human rights, stating that everyone has a right to social progress, freedom and better standards of life.

The centerpiece is a life-size bronze statue of  Anne Frank pulling back an imaginary curtain, one hand is behind her back and holding her diary.  If you follow the direction of her gaze, it seems that she is looking at a tree.  She mentions this tree in her diary.  A sapling from the actual chestnut tree in Amsterdam has been planted in this garden.

Behind the statue of Ann Frank is a space marked out showing the amount of cramped space she and her family had to live in for two years.  I believe it was a total of seven people.  Beyond that space is a steep staircase which, at the time, was hidden by a bookcase.

The large stone wall behind the bookcase is part of a series of walls reminiscent of Amsterdam.

On the stone bookcase are quotations from Ann's diary, as shown above.  Also in the memorial is an 180 foot quotation wall.  Here are statements from presidents to slaves.  People who survived the holocaust, as well as the Japanese who suffered interment here during World War 11, and Native Americans.  All have a common voice decrying the loss of human rights and dignity.

 

There should be a memorial of this kind in every city of our nation.   It left me feeling more stronger than ever that we should not let our government lead us down paths which build walls, restrict immigrants fleeing poverty and war, or deny health, food or education to its own people.

State Capitol of Idaho

As our readers may remember, John and I always enjoy touring state capitol buildings.  For one reason, it does give us a good local history lesson.  And we did learn a few interesting facts on our tour of the building.  Below is a front view of Idaho's capitol.  Idaho was created as a part of the Idaho territory in 1863 by President Lincoln.  It was signed into statehood by President Harrison in 1890, as the 43rd state of the United States.

The inside of the capitol is not as ornate as some of the other state capitols which we have toured.   We first noticed large, beautiful "marble" columns supporting the rotunda.  They are not solid marble but have a finished surface comprised of gypsum, glue, marble dust and granite dyed to look like marble.  This fake marble, called scagliola,  originated in Italy in the 16th century because real marble was expensive and heavy.  However, in the Idaho capitol marble still is extensively used.

On the fourth floor is a statue of George Washington on his horse.  It was carved from a single piece of pine by an Austrian immigrant in 1869, after which it was bronzed and presented to the Idaho territory.  Opposite that statue is a replica of Winged Victory of Samothrace.  Unfortunately we could only look at that statue through plastic sheeting- workman were doing repairs on the ceiling above it.  In 1942 France sent boxcars filled with gifts to the capital cities of America in appreciation for the food, medicine, fuel and clothing they sent to France during the war.  Idaho's boxcar included a replica of Winged Victory of  Samothrace.

Pictured above is the Great Seal of the State of Idaho.  Only state seal which was designed by a woman, who was Emma Green.  It was adopted by a state legislature in 1891.  The miner on the right represents the chief industry at the time the seal was created.  Opposite him is a lady representing justice, freedom and equality.  Behind her is a sprig of syringa, the state flower.

This state capitol has another distinction which sets it apart from other state capitols.  Hot water boils underneath the grounds and sidewalks.  It is the only one in the United States heated by geothermal water.  Boise sits atop a large, naturally occurring geothermal resource where water is pumped from three thousand feet underground.

Speaking of water, the Boise River runs through the city.   After touring the capitol we walked several blocks through the downtown area and caught this river scene at the Ann Frank Memorial.  More on that in my next posting.

Shoshone Falls

This is the continuing saga of our adventures in the city of  Twin Falls.  We received information on where to see the falls of the Snake River Canyon and continued 3miles from the Visitor's Center into the city.  Realizing that we had a steep drive into the canyon to see them, we detached our car from the rig.  It was well worth it to see the "Niagara of the West". 

 

Shoshone Falls plunges 212 feet into the lower Snake River, making it one of the tallest waterfalls in the United States.  It is comprised of a series of falls that include the following: Bridal Veil, Bride's Maid, and Bridal Falls on the lower left; Two Graces in the Center; Sentinel as the southern most-and largest- fall.  Ordinarily the falls, by this time of the year, are not as spectacular ( during the summer the water is diverted for irrigation).   It was because of a heavy snow melt this year we were able to see the usual beauty of the falls.

The falls are almost fully diverted for irrigation, goes down to a trickle and then the river is changed downstream of Milner Dam into one of the West's most powerful rivers.  The Twin Falls Canal Company as well as the North Side Company manage miles of canals, laterals, and irrigates a total 363 thousand acres.   All thanks to the Snake River Plains Aquifer, an underground natural reservoir about the size of Lake Erie.  This information we received at interpretive signs in the park.

While we were standing on the observation deck a large rainbow had formed at the bottom of the falls.  It was quite the spectacular sight!  We finally made it to Boise later that day.

Twin Falls, Idaho

Our goal on Tuesday was to Boise.  Fortuitously that did not happen, for by late afternoon we realized that we still had a hundred miles to go.  We stopped for the night in Twin Falls and I started looking in the park's office for information about the area.  This was one time John was not on the ball regarding local tourist information.  I soon discovered that in the town of Twin Falls there was the Snake River Canyon, a large bridge spanning it, as well as some scenic waterfalls.  I informed John that the next day we had to explore the area before moving on.

 Pictured above is the Perrine Bridge which is 1500 feet in length and spans the Snake River Canyon.  After crossing the bridge we parked our rig in a location near the visitor's center and began walking along the rim of the canyon.

 

The land surrounding Twin Falls is called the "Magic Valley".  It is mostly sagebrush and desert, but the Snake River makes it magic.  Notice the green areas in the picture above.  In the late 1800s development of the land surrounding the river began brought in dams, canals and irrigation systems.  Magically parts of the dessert became green.  More on that in my next posting.

As we walked along the canyon rim John pointed out to me the raised ramp at the edge of the canyon from which Evil Knievel attempted to fly his sky cycle across the Snake River in 1974.  It is the raised area off in the distance in the picture above.  That earthen ramp is the last remnant of that event.

While we were there two Base jumpers came down from the bridge.  Pictured above is the first part of their journey from the bridge.  Base is an acronym for fixed objects from which they jump: building, antenna ,span and earth.  The bridge is 86 feet above the river.  It is the only man made structure in the United States where people can jump without a permit.

 

I talked to a local person who said he walks the canyon rim daily and sees many jumpers, not only from our states, but from around the world.  They are required to make 200 jumps before attempting the Snake Canyon.  Circles are marked along the bank where they are to land, the jumpers we saw did get close to that target safely.   We visited the falls next, which are located about 3 miles from the visitor's center.  More on them in my next posting.

On the Road Again

We are back on the road and I got so excited about what we have been seeing the past few days that I decided to start writing again.
John and I left Florida in May and returned to our home base in St.Louis.  Besides visiting friends, we did find a few new and interesting things to do- like visiting the mansion of the founder of Magic Chef stoves.  Also there were new exhibits at both the Science and History Museums.  We also got in one Muny Opera show.   I am forever impressed by St.Louis with all that it has to offer!
We left St. Louis in July to attend the Lohrmann family reunion in Colorado.  Fortunately our niece Heather and her spouse were able to find a resort with enough cabins to accommodate our large group, which numbered 69 people- from the ages of 3 months to 78 years.  The highlight of this reunion for me was that this was the first time when all eight of my living brothers and sisters attended.  We had 5 days of fun and fellowship, with one of the days spent at Royal Gorge.

 

From the resort (located near Salida Co.) John and I drove to Grand Junction, where our home was parked near the Colorado National Monument.  We have visited there before and I wrote about that park in a posting of Aug.21,2015.  Below is a picture of that park at sunset, from our home.

Part of the reason we decided to make another trip west was that John noticed on his map of the states that there were roads which we have not covered.  We had a beautiful drive out of Colorado into Utah.  John, however, did not realize that it would be slow going as we had several passes to go over on interstate 70.  It was all worth it, especially at Black Dragon Canyon.  An interpretive sign at the viewing area noted that we had climbed 1000 feet in elevation from the valley floor to the top of San Rafael Reef.   In that climb we had lost 50 million years in geologic time.  Sedimentary layers were deposited here 250 million years ago before the Permian extinction.  Pictured below are some of the red cliffs of the canyon, their color caused by the presence of iron oxide.

After leaving the canyon area we continued to drive through western Utah along the Sevier Desert which is marked by the presence of  large rock formations.

At this point of our drive a  rainstorm descended on us and we had lost our sunny day for a brief time.  Our stop for the night was at the base of the Wasatch Mountains near Provo.

Last Posting

Sadly this will be our last posting- at least for awhile.  As you, our readers, may know is that our postings have been few and far between since we have been sitting here in Florida.  Our grandchildren have become our major focus, we have been doing more babysitting than sight seeing!

 

We had forgotten how much work there is in caring for little ones, but the joy and love they give in return makes it all worthwhile.
John and I are certainly now in a new chapter of our lives.  We have not regretted the traveling we have done, for we have gained a lot in new sights and experiences.  Proudly we can admit that we have embraced it all- hopefully you can tell that from our postings.

 We have even found some unusual happenings here in Florida, as at the Dunedin Celtic Festival where we heard a rock and roll band with bagpipes.  That is what the musician on the far right is playing.    I did like the jazzed up version of "Danny Boy".   Dunedin is quite proud of its Scottish heritage,  and at the festival it was not unusual to find many of its residents dressed in kilts.

Also in the picture above is an inflatable sofa, which one family used for their five children to sit on during the concert- something which I have never seen before!
Since we have spent a good deal of time in Florida the past three years it seems appropriate to write about our impression of the state.  No, it is better just to narrow it down to parks- where we spend most of our time.  We have explored many of them in the Tampa Bay area, just because that is a place to go with our 2 year-old grandson.  The parks, especially those with playgrounds, are wonderful.  They are designed with safety in mind and the play equipment is quite different from park to park. The parks are also interesting because they are well used by people from all walks of life.  They reflect the diversity of the corresponding neighborhood.  Children from mansions play in the same park with children from small cottages.  New subdivisions are constantly being constructed, and it seems that what is most important is that one's home be located  near some body of water.  Consequently a subdivision of homes priced over $500,000.00 may be found next to an impoverished neighborhood.   There seems to be no problem with diversity in the Tampa Bay area!  I do like that about Florida. 
It remains to be seen yet where John and I will eventually settle down.  Yes, we are now considering that likelihood, but it may still be a year or so- for myself I am hoping it is sooner than later.  We are planning another trip up north to St.Louis in the spring, and maybe a trip west during the summer months.  Bottom line for me is that I do not wish to be away from our two grandchildren for any long stretch of time.!

Recent Hikes in Florida's Preserves

Unlike the rest of our nation, we have been enjoying unusually warm weather here in Florida, until the last couple of days.  Last week we hiked Booker Creek Preserve, a wonderful wilderness area of pine flats and wetlands.  We certainly saw a lot of cypress and tupelo trees.

The preserve, being a large wilderness area of 8,700 acres, has a lot of wildlife.  However, when John and I were there, we saw only a solitary anhinga. 

Two days ago we visited Weedon Island Preserve, a much smaller area of 3,700 acres.  John has been there before without me and came back excited about all the wildlife he saw there- from gopher tortoises and a racoon to shore birds and a kingfisher.  We saw nothing when we were there.  Well, we did see a gopher tortoise hanging out in his hole.  Maybe he and his cohorts somehow realized that cooler weather was coming in and were already settling in for the night, which was going to be quite cool.  John and I did find the nature center at the preserve quite interesting.  There was an exhibit about the Native Americans who had inhabited the island about 7,000 years ago- their artifacts have been found in the area, including a pine canoe estimated by archeologists to be about 1,000 years old.

The length of the canoe is 39 feet, it is Florida's longest prehistoric dugout  used in a saltwater environment.  It was found in 2001 and the logistics involved in exposing this boat to the outside of its watery home were so involved, and needed to be resolved, that it took until 2007 before it could be removed.  It was discovered near the shoreline of Old Tampa Bay on Weedon Island.

Speaking of boats, we saw many kayaks below our trail ( we walked boardwalks for many of the paths).  In the 1960s canals were dug in the island for mosquito control.  This allowed small fish to come in from the bay to eat the larva.  An idea which really did not work and drastically changed the ecology of the island.  As a result large numbers of mangroves now inhabit the island.  They do well growing in saltwater We saw many dense strands of red, white and black mangroves.  Along with their prop roots they present a tangled mass of limbs and leaves along our path.  Quite a difference from our hike of last week where we saw many cypress trees and their knees protruding from the swamp!  One knee covered with moss seemed appropriate for the season.  It looked like a Christmas tree!  Hopefully we plan to return to both of these wonderful preserves.

Central Park in Largo Florida

My daughter Melissa and I have explored many parks in the central western area of Florida for her son Nathan.  We have been pleasantly surprised that there are so many of them with innovative play equipment suitable for the young as well as the older child.  That does seem a bit strange for a state whose majority population are senior citizens!  What is equally interesting is that the play equipment varies from park to park.  We chose to go to Largo park last Saturday because it offers a holiday train for little Nathan.  We had also learned awhile back, when attending Prince of Peace Lutheran church, that the park was going to feature a Bethlehem village for the Christmas activities that evening.

The playground in Central Park has double swings, one for a young child and another for an adult or older child.  Another playground we visited this past week had a large merry-go-round with small circular movable disks to ride inside of the main one.  Maybe the recent playground equipment is not so unusual, but rather it is just that John and I have not been visiting parks for the past thirty years!

Another interesting feature of this park  are the whimsical statues of children found in various locations of the park.  I especially like the above one of three children crossing a creek.

As I may not be writing another posting until next year, I will take a minute here to wish all of you our readers a very Merry Christmas!  We left the park for supper and just John and I returned in time for the tree lighting.  The whole park was now lit up with Christmas lights.  Adding to those lights were those of a ferris wheel and a carousel.  The playground still had many children playing in it.  Prior to the tree lighting a small stage near the tree had a variety of dance groups performing for the gathering crowds.  I especially enjoyed the choreography for the song  "The Little Drummer Boy".

The Christmas story was played out in the Bethlehem village by live actors, including a real baby.  We certainly had a enjoyable evening strolling through the park.  Besides enjoying the lights, arts and crafts booths, we also stopped to look at a great horn owl perched on the arms of staff member from a bird sanctuary located in Largo.  There was also a bonfire built by a Boy Scout troop where many people were gathered roasting marshmallows.  It was not that cold of an evening, either!

We enjoyed a little bit of everything that evening, including chalk art.  I bet there are plenty of Santa Clauses here in Florida running to the beach after a day in their costume!