Henderson, KY

I like old towns and Henderson, Kentucky seems to be just such with large old homes in the downtown area not far from the banks of the Ohio River. I was surprised to locate the house that great great grandfather Arch Dixon built in 1860 as a wedding gift for his daughter Rebecca who married John Young Brown. It has not been as well maintained as many of the older homes.

A nice park on the banks of the Ohio River was the beginning point for a morning walk though the historical district.

We spent a bit of time at Fernwood Cemetery when I slipped into genealogy mode. At first Leon thought that was better than geocaching mode but he soon learned otherwise.


The Audubon museum at the state park had a nice display of Audubon memorabilia and includes 435 original prints from the 1839 folio edition of "The Birds of America."

John James Audubon lived in Henderson for nine years and the sculptures throughout town make one well aware of that.


Walmart was our campground of choice for the two nights we spent in Henderson. I tried to visit my aunt in the nursing home but her caregiver wouldn't allow it unless ok'd by my cousins and I could not get in touch with them. I guess that is what you call being in guarded condition.

I did have a delightful visit and with my new friend Martha who lives in Henderson. We have a common great great great grandfather, Wynn Dixon, and many similar interests. Afterwards we continued north and east.

An afternoon in Illinois

After lunch back at the Walker farm we had a wonderful visit with David before bidding our farewells. He caught us again geocaching near the farm. The cache is on the right side of the road on the guardrail after turning off the highway to the farm. It is magnetic but not a bolt! Go for it!

After locating that we were determined to get one Illinois cache which was found in a cemetery. The snakeskin should have been the first clue.

I never imagined the snake would be hiding behind the camouflaged 35 mm film can. He wasn't that big but he knew where he was and I did not!


I had quite a reaction and almost got left in the cemetery!

A beautiful drive through the Shawnee National Forest led us to the Garden of the Gods. It was very much to our liking and at first I thought Leon would climb on each and every rock. He does like rock hopping!

When the sandstone was underground it was saturated with groundwater mixed with iron. Chemical changes caused the iron to solidify and the raised dark bands, called liesegang bands, have resisted weathering.


We drove on to Henderson, Ky for the night using caution as we saw many deer out! We got a Walmart fix!

Morning on the farm

What better spot could one ask for with a sunrise like this. There were no dogs barking, no kids playing, no people talking - just peace and quiet.

We were atop a hill where we could see in every direction. Just below was this old shed. Farm equipment was everywhere as it should be on a farm.

These newer silos have replaced the older ones atop the hill that are no longer used.

Then it was time to visit my farm again. The soybeans seem to be doing ok.

Soybeans anyone?
On the banks of the Ohio.

Morganfield, KY

The day began with a visit with our neighbor from Key West. He was traveling with his friendly one year old birds so I visited with the parrot.

We had enjoyed dinner at Patti's so much the night before we returned for lunch since we were passing by anyway. Again I ate too much and enjoyed every bite. Everyone for miles around seems to know about this place.

We mosey along the Kentucky backroads and checked out camping areas at Moffit Lake and Lake Mauzy. The latter was a good possibility. We found some wifi on Sunday in Shawneetown, IL and spent some time near the library before crossing back over the bridge into Kentucky.

Not much going on in Old Shawneetown these days unless you ride a Harley!

I called my friend Suzanne and a hilltop at her farm sounded like the best offer yet! What a great spot with a view and a breeze to spend the night. She had electricity for us but I preferred to get some use from the $589 generator repair for the coffeepot and hair dryer!

Land Between the Lakes, KY

We traveled further north exploring the Land Between the Lakes. We passed two more furnaces! The Homeplace, a living history farm, was having a gathering festival.

There were demonstrations of basket making, quilting, paper making, weaving and pottery. The farm represented life in this region for many in the 1850's in the 16 reconstructed log buildings. Crop fields and gardens were planted with heirloom seeds - historic varieties not commonly grown today. Historic interpreters, dressed in period clothing, demonstrated various skills.


At this demonstration we learned all the basics of how to make paper. The results were quite amazing.

I was most impressed with seeing how the tobacco had been hung in the tobacco barn and was being cured and dried by slow burning fires built in trenches in the floor of the tobacco barn. This process gives it the dark desirable color unless the fires are too hot. This region is famous for their dark-fired tobacco.

Some people even tried their hand at jumping rope and I saw none that did too well, so thought I would give it a try. I didn't even know I could still jump!

I thought this was okra growing until on closer examination I learned it was the old time tall cotton. Now I understand better the saying that one is in "tall cotton."

A drive through the nearby bison range provided us a glimpse of these hefty creatures.

We made another stop at the nature center to look a coyote, fox, deer, owls, hawks, turtles, snakes, and all things related to nature. We ventured further north in the park and found a beautiful spot on the shores of Kentucky Lake in which to spend the night.


But not before we visited Patti's 1800s Settlement in Grand River, KY.

Land Between the Lakes, TN

Noontime on Thursday, Sept 9 found us in Memphis, Tennessee. We stopped in the Peabody Hotel to check on the ducks. They come down the elevator from their penthouse each morning on a rolled out red carpet and spend the day in the lobby in their fountain before they parade back to the penthouse for the evening. All seemed well in their world.


We could not resist heading to the Rendezvous for ribs. Well, maybe not we, but I! They are unofficially open for lunch, which means you can get ribs, beans, and slaw. Leon had a nice Greek salad.

We later located a delightful spot on the shores of Kentucky Lake in Piney Campground at Land Between the Lakes. This is a 40 mile long peninsula that is a National Recreation Area between Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley, the southern half lying in Tennessee.


I couldn't resist a geocache located several miles from our camp. It led us to the Bear Spring cold-blast furnace near Dover, TN that was used until 1901. What an education.
The first one was destroyed in the Civil war and this was the replacement. This furnace, built of limestone, produced pig iron from the brown hematite ore found in the area. Charcoal made from the abundance of timber in the region was used for the fire. Temperatures often reached 3,500 degrees. A find like this is what geocaching is all about to us!

Fifty years ago Leon was stationed at Ft. Campbell, Kentucky, only an hour's drive from our campground. On 9/11 we were ready for an adventure. He had spent a lot of time in Clarksville, Tennessee and wanted to look for his old haunts again. Sure enough there was the Roxy Theater and Frank's Place, two that he recalled vividly.

I enjoyed visiting with this fellow who was reading the newspaper founded in 1808 and showed him the new way to go - my iphone!


The museum is in an attractive old building that was once the 1898 Old Federal Building.



After a stroll on the riverwalk alongside the Cumberland River we visited the home of the 101st Air Assaut Division of the U.S. Army. Here Leon reminisced about his home for 3 years. We toured the Pratt Museum and he located a 3/4 ton like he used to drive.

Then there was the 105 mm Howitzer like the one he learned to fire in Ft. Chaffee, Arkansas.


This is a C 119 which is what Leon jumped from more times than he would have liked. It was also called a "flying boxcar." photo


I thought this one looked like more fun!

Several miles from our camp we stumbled upon Ft. Donelson National Battlefield. Ft. Donelson guarded the Cumberland River, which allowed Tennessee access to the Ohio River.


At first the confederates defeated the union army and disabled their ironclads.

After some confusion the union army prevailed. Ft. Donelson is significant as the first major Federal victory of the Civil War was here. 13,000 confederate troops were taken prisoners of war and the towns of Bowling Green, Ky, Columbus and Nashville, Tn evacuated as a result.

It was dark when we arrived back at camp. If each day is as fun-filled as our first then we should be exhausted before long!

Is this better, Barb?

Las Vegas time

A June wedding in Las Vegas was the perfect reason for us to travel west, but this time we took the fast lane and flew. Leon was delighted to see his grandsons. They spent two days with us and we spent a lot of time in the arcades to their delight.

It seems there are machines for everyone!!

We stayed in the Flamingo and on the way to the car we had an Elvis sighting!


He even followed us to Trish and Steve's wedding at Graceland Chapel and ushered the bride down the aisle. How many father's would do that for their favorite daughter?

Gunnar had not changed so much since we saw him a year ago but Blade had really grown up in the last two years since we saw him at Disneyland. They will now be a senior and freshman in high school in Bakersfield, Ca. and their grandfather could not be prouder!


Trisha and Steve stayed at the Venetian and we were captivated by the scenery there. The umbrellas with water dripping in front of the waterfall were so imaginative.


And then there were the gondolas that provided rides in the river without the odors of Venice.

I just could not get enough of the beautiful lighting all along the strip on Las Vegas Blvd. each night. The weather could not have been better! The humidity was low and the highs were in the 80s. I was chilly several times but never too warm.


I put on my brave hat and we allowed Blade to show us the way to the top of the Eiffel Tower. What a view of the city we had from that vantage point.

One morning we enjoyed breakfast at the Belagio. Their conservatory was so whimsical and we just wandered along enjoying each minute detail. I find it amazing that there is so much of a water theme throughout Las Vegas while it is situated in the middle of the desert.

Each morning small mums are used to replace those that are fading such as on this frog and Lady Bug.


In the pastry shop the chocolate fountain makes you feel like you are in Charlie's chocolate factory. The display is several stories tall and near the bottom the dark and white chocolates blend . Leon is worried about where all the extra chocolate goes.


Although we were only in Vegas for five days we managed to walk a million miles, eat a ton of food, get our sleep patterns all messed up, to lose a little money but not a lot, to eat two buffets, to go to an Elvis wedding, to play with grandsons, to visit the Bellagio, Caesar's Palace, the Flamingo, the Venetian, Treasure Island, the Mirage, the Palazzo, Denny's, IHOP, the Sahara, the Eiffel Tower, the pirate show at Treasure Island, the water show at the Bellagio, sit by the pool, and stroll the streets to our hearts' content.

Well DRAT!

I have finally figured out why my photos will not enlarge on this blog. If you click and drag them around when you create the blog they supposedly lose their link to the original which is filed on Picasa. The strange thing is that this is not the case on my other 3 blogs! I have the code to fix it. We will see. Or will I just begin a new one? What to do...what to do...