Last Sunday I had plans. Plans that didn't include any of my usual Sunday stuff like going to church or writing my letter blog.
"What did you do instead?" you ask.
I know right! You're not the only one who wants to know. I've been making my beautiful sister wait all week long to find out too!
So! On the back of our local paper on October 12, was an article with big headlines that read, 30-Mile Game Land Tour Planned for Sunday. I read the article and it sounded so interesting! CCC roads, old mining and lumbering towns, a cemetery, picnic tables at Sunfish Pond to stop and have lunch, and fall colors to boot!
"Where's it at?" Mike asked.
"I don't know," I said and Goggled it. "Not far, forty miles. Let's just put Wheelerville in the GPS. Momma gave me an atlas with all the Pennsylvania roads in it, so we'll take that too." And with that in mind, we did no other pre-planning of our route. Does that sound too trusting?
Saturday we bought some turkey and Swiss cheese to make sandwiches with, and what would a picnic be without potato chips and Crunchy Cheetos?
Not a picnic, that's for sure!
"Are chips and Cheetos on your diet?" you ask.
No. So the chips were for Mike and I only got a small bag of Cheetos, instead of the family size, and mixed it with air-popped popcorn. The Cheetos have enough flavor that it carries the plain popcorn.
Sunday we get up, feed the critters, and made sandwiches. Then we hit the road. Even though the tour wasn't supposed to start until ten, we didn't know where we were going, and we were stopping for breakfast. At McDonald's. Mike loves the Sausage McMuffin with egg and I had an Egg McMuffin (which is totally on my diet!)
After breakfast, we put Wheelerville in the GPS and it couldn't find it. So I pulled out the map Momma gave me and navigated the old fashion way.
"Is there even a Wheelerville?" Mike asked.
"Yep. It's right here."
"Okay. You get us there."
I'm a terrible navigator. Invariably I'll miss a turn. As far as I'm concerned, GPS's are the best invention since sliced bread!
Somehow I get us on the right road and headed in the right direction, then I sit back to snap pictures of the landscape.
I saw Bigfoot!
And farms I never saw before.
There was some fog in the mountains.
More farms.
"Which way?" Mike asked.
I consulted the map. "Left."
"'The churches of Grover, PA welcome you'," Mike read the sign on the right and turned left.
We start up the hill and I snap a picture of these tractors sitting in the field.
"Are you sure, Peg? I don't want to have to turn around because you're too busy taking pictures."
"Well, let me see..." I picked up the map again and found Grover. "If we're headed to Grover then we are going the wrong way," I told him.
Mike turned around at the next road he came to and we went back down the hill. "Well, where are we?"
"I guess I'm not sure. Pull over and I'll ask those people sitting in the yard."
Mike did just that. He pulled over and I handed him Ginger (we took the girls with us) and I got out. Both the man and woman got up from their chairs and came over to see what I wanted.
"I think we're lost," I told them by way of greeting. "Can you help us?"
"Where're you trying to go?" the man asked.
"Wheelerville to the tour at the State Game Lands."
"Just turn left at the stop sign and go up the hill. The CCC Road is up near the top," he told me. "I've been on it many times. It's a nice ride."
"Thank you so much!" I told them, bid them a good day, and got back in the Jeep. Mike had had the window down so he heard the whole conversation. After my seatbelt was securely fastened, and Ginger back in my lap, Mike turned around in their driveway and back the way we came we went. This time when we got to the stop sign, straight across from us, big as day, was this sign. Wheelerville 4 with an arrow pointing left. If we'd have seen it the first time we wouldn't have had to turn around and come back down the mountain.
We found the CCC Road with no trouble and followed another truck in. An old man tottered over to the window and handed something in to the driver. We waited our turn.
"Are we too early?" Mike asked when he came up to our window. It was about twenty after nine.
"No. It's a self guided tour so you can really start anytime," he said and offered us a book. Mike took it and handed it to me. "There are numbers posted all along the road and all you have to do is find the number in your book there and it'll tell you what it is. Where're you folks from?" he asked.
"Wyalusing," Mike told him and as is Mike's way, he went on to ask him a question. "How many years has this been going on?"
Jack laughed a little and scratched his head just behind his ear. "I don't rightly know but I've been volunteering here for thirty years. Last year they didn't have it because the road washed out. In fact they weren't even sure they were going to have it ready for this year."
Another car came up behind us so we said good-bye to Jack and started the tour.
Number one is right at the entrance. I consulted the book and read aloud. "CCC Road — The road you are traveling on is called the CCC Road and it was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the depression."
"It's foggy," Mike stated the obvious.
"Fog can be okay," I replied. "You can get some good fog photos, especially in cemeteries."
We rode with the window on my side down, both to allow Ginger to hang out and for me to take pictures.
The next few stations were disappointing. There just wasn't anything to see. Food plots planted for the wildlife, the name of a creek, deer proof fencing that is no longer there, more food plots, a trout stream, but finally we had something! An old springhouse built by the CCC boys. Things were looking up and I was looking forward to seeing the ruins of the old towns.
On the other side of the spring house was more of the same disappointments. Signs saying food plots, tree plantings, old refuge area, ice mine... "An early digging created an ice mine behind the gate on right. The entrance to the mine was later blasted shut," I read. In other words, there wasn't anything to see.
I captured a couple of nice photos at this point in our driving tour.
Sunfish Pond was our next stop.
We took the time to have a sandwich.
"I took your brother Mike and one of your other brothers up to Sunfish Pond to go fishing one summer," Momma told me when I was telling her about this trip. "Let's see, was it Paul? Maybe it was John." So she knew where we were.
Then we were at the cemetery.
Parking provided for the handicapped. All others please park here and walk in, the sign read.
"Are you going with me?" I asked as Mike parked beside some other cars.
"Naw, I think I'll wait."
I didn't know how far it was to the cemetery and I didn't expect Mike to come with me because his back can't take a lot of walking, but I took Ginger and we headed out.
There were signs along this road too, saying where something once was. I stood and read this sign. The "V" notch behind this sign is all that remains of the entrance into Barclay #3 aka the STORE DRIFT, named so because the Barclay Coal Company general store was located on one side of the mine opening. The mine was opened about 1857 and was worked on and off as market demands dictated until the closing of all the Barclay Coal Company mines in December 1890.
"V" notch? I can't see anything behind this sign but vegetation.
The walk back to the cemetery was a pretty good jaunt and I knew Mike had made the right decision not to come.
When I got to what I thought was the edge of the cemetery, I looked up and was surprised to see even more gravestones way out yonder.
But I'd only been at the edge. I turned toward the center and the more densely 'populated' part of the cemetery.
Some headstones were so worn there was little left.
Then I started to see some signs. Where there had been a newspaper article written about the person, someone posted the stories beside the markers.
Poor James.
But even more so, poor Bridget. Poor, poor, baby girl.
Even way back then there were bad, bad, people. Evil even.
On the way back to the Jeep these bright red fruits catch my eye. What are they? I wondered and picked a couple of three up, rolled them around in my fingers before dropping them into my sweater pocket with the Wild Cucumber seeds that are still there.
I thought this tree had some interesting looking bark on it.
"Did you see the fence down the middle?" Mike asked.
"I didn't! And there wasn't any fog either!" I never thought about the fence the whole time I was there. The newspaper article said, and I quote, The tour goes by the Barclay Cemetery, where you will notice that a fence was erected through the middle of the cemetery, allowing for the Catholics to be buried on one side of the fence and the Protestants on the other side.
I didn't notice any dividing fence.
There are two adjoining State Game Lands here and together they cover more than 50,000 acres. There are pockets of hunting cabins and private residences here and there.
Although we are past the forecasted peak fall color, there were still plenty of areas that were pretty green.
Another example of a sign with nothing to see.
"Couldn't they've at least put a board up with a picture on it to show you what it used to look like?" Mike wondered.
At this point in our tour we were actually driving on the old railroad bed.
Then we see a bunch of heavy equipment parked just off the road.
We round the corner and see that they had been busy repairing a washout. On the other side, Mike stopped and I got out to take a picture.
I spot a hornets' nest hanging in the tree beside the road. "Hornets' nest!" I exclaim.
"Where?" Mike asked.
"Back there beside the road. Back up so I can get a picture."
And he does. Mike is a good husband.
Three hours after we started the tour, we were out of the State Game Lands.
And it was foggy!
"Where was all this fog when I wanted to take pictures in the cemetery!"
We went home a different way then we came so it gave me a chance to take more pictures for you.
An old store?
Despite my disappointment in the lack of relics, it was still a really nice day for a drive and I'm glad we went.
"Peg, are those on your diet?" you ask.
Boy! You guys are tough! You really are keeping me accountable. But since you are so interested in my diet, let me tell you something. First, you have to have a 'cheat' treat every once in a while just to keep you from feeling totally deprived. And second, I'm ten pounds from my goal. It's been almost a year now since I started on this weight loss journey, and I started at almost 180 pounds. This past week I weighed in at 155. My goal is to lose ten more pounds by the spring and start interval running again.
Check this out. I'm sitting in front of my computer one night and look up at the security monitor. Lots of times we see spiders on the cameras but I don't think that's what this guy is. A bee maybe.
We woke to a heavy frost this week, so I took Ginger and my camera and went out to take pictures for you.
Milkweed pods.
Goldenrod. This one is up as my current desktop photo.
Ginger was straining at the leash, not letting me slow down to take pictures. "Wait a minute!" I scold her. She sat on her haunches and let out the most pitiful little whine. It was then that it dawned on me that her little feet must be cold and she was hurrying to finish the walk and get home. I know. You knew that before I said it. It takes me a while to work this stuff out. "Come here," I ordered. She came and picked her up and carried her the rest of the way home.
The sun coming up around the barn.
Rush. I think it's a Soft Bulrush.
I just thought the coloring was pretty in these next two photos.
It warmed up nicely and I collected more dried milkweed pods and scattered the seeds in the upper field.
OH MY GOODNESS! For the past week and a half, two weeks, I've been hearing the great cacophony of many birds.
I mean many, many birds. Mike took me on the golf cart to try and find them one day but we didn't have any luck. Even though I've heard them since then I didn't go looking. Then one morning I let the dogs out and hear them. They were right in my own trees! I grabbed my camera, didn't stop for shoes, and braved the wet cold grass to get some photos.
What are they? I wondered. Zooming in on one closer to me, I knew what they were.
"I almost called you yesterday," Lamar told me on his morning visit.
"Oh yeah? Why?"
"Because the creek was full of these black birds taking a bath. I've never seen birds use the creek for bathing before."
"Did you get a picture?"
"No, but I looked them up. They were Grackles."
And that's what these guys are. Grackles migrate in huge flocks. And they make a lot of noise. I've seen three or four of these huge flocks move through this fall. Maybe one day I'll tell you lots of interesting facts about Grackles but not today. We need to move on.
Wednesday, oh Wednesday, what a day you were! A long one, that's for sure.
Mike and I planned our bi-monthly shopping trip for Wednesday, and we needed to do the long version. We needed things from Home Depot in Vestal, Lowe's and Wal Mart in Athens. Even though there are both a Lowe's and Wal Mart in Vestal, New York has higher taxes so we try to do most of our shopping in PA. It adds an extra half hour of highway driving time onto our trip.
After everyone had breakfast, and I made a travel thermos of coffee, we took off. Just outside of our little town sits the slaughter plant. I can smell it way before I can see it. The smell of death, you know what I mean? I think it's funny (not ha ha funny) that they don't kill cows there, they knock cows. "After they quit knocking cows for the day," someone said to me. I guess it sounds better than, "After they quit killing cows for the day."
Having a slaughter plant in our backyard means that we have lots of trucks like this on our roads.
More road pictures.
These are dairy cows.
An old crane out in the field.
Here's the bigger picture.
We have been working really hard on the renovation project this past week. We set my kitchen counter and what will pass as cabinets.
In digging through stuff that has been in storage for more than ten years, there are a few pieces I don't even recognize.
"Where did we get that?" I asked of this buffet style piece.
"I don't know," was Mike's answer.
"What are we going to use for a TV stand?" Mike asked. But I didn't have an answer for that.
On our shopping trip, a kitchen sink was on our list of things to get. Lucky for us we found a place that manufactures kitchen and bath cabinets and sells their seconds and over-runs really cheap. We still can't afford to put cabinets in yet but my kitchen sink and counter top were half the price of Lowe's.
Nonetheless, a trip to Lowe's was also on our list. As soon as we walked in the door we were face-to-face with the perfect piece to put the TV on — and it was on clearance!
"How much more can you take off this," I asked the gal at the service desk. "I'd really like to have it but it's out of my budget range."
"I don't know. You'll have to talk to the manager. He's on lunch now but should be back soon."
"Okay. We'll do our shopping and come back."
When we finished shopping Mike spoke with the manager and he made us a deal we couldn't pass up.
"Can we pick it up tomorrow?" Mike asked. "I don't have room to haul it right now."
"Sure," he said and called another gal over. He told her what to charge us for this piece and to put a hold ticket on it.
"What was in the Jeep?" you ask.
Besides my kitchen sink we'd picked up a quartz top for the charging station. We've all heard stories of batteries causing fires so in our house you can only charge your phones on the quartz top so if it does overheat, it won't catch the house on fire. The top also has a notch for the room divider to rest in.
So the Jeep was full.
We paid for everything and as we're walking out to the Jeep, Mike says, "Let's take this stuff home and come back for the TV stand."
And so a long shopping day became even longer with a second trip to Athens in one day.
By the time we were heading home, the sun was starting to set over the valley. I'm not normally out at this of the day so you're not likely to see this view at this time of day very often.
I love my new house. The colors Mike has picked and painted are just perfect. But, as he was cutting the top for the sink, I couldn't help but wonder if there was another reason he chose that color for the kitchen.
"I don't know," Lamar said and split one in half to look at the center.
Rosie picked it up and tasted it. "It tastes like apple."
Even though this fruit is little, like the size of a cherry, I do think it's a variety of crabapple.
Let's call this one done!
No comments:
Post a Comment