Lions and Tigers and Bears....oh my!

October 21, 2015

With only one overnight in Georgia, we would be in Florida the next day. Our stop over was  High Falls State Park as we traveled down from Chattanooga.  The park is named for tumbling cascades on the Towaliga River. Our campground was spacious and we sat apart from other campers for a very quiet night. Sitka and I had a peaceful morning hike to the falls before we hit the back roads. We're ready for Florida!

Not a lot of time on the road today. We made a beeline down I-75 to Noah's Ark Animal sanctuary in Locust Grove, Georgia. I swear I promised I'd stay off the interstate, but we had two visiting stops to make and needed to make some time. We have come to realize it is best to only travel three to four hours on days we visit places. Otherwise, we feel like we are road weary and scrambling to set up camp at night.

Noah's Ark Sanctuary

The first stop was both fabulous and extremely sad all at the same time. Those of you who are familiar with CBS's correspondent, David Hartman might know this story. He reported on a bear, lion and tiger (BLT) who all live, love and play together and I knew if I ever passed through Georgia I wanted to stop. The sanctuary is a 250 acre space with large enclosures for abused, unwanted and neglected animals. There are more than 1500 exotic, wildlife and domestic animals who have found their home at Noah's Ark. Among them are more than 100 different species of animals. Most of the animals have been rescued from failed small zoos, circuses and confiscated from folks who had them as illegal pets. There are thirteen exotic cats, eight bears, a host of primates, wolves and fox, (read their stories by clicking on links) and many more animals you can explore on their website.

Shere Khan, Leo and Baloo

How I learned about the sanctuary is of course BLT, Baloo the black bear, Leo the African lion and Shere Khan the Bengal tiger. They came to the sanctuary in 2001 after they were discovered in an Atlanta home during a drug raid. At only a few months old, all three cubs were frightened and malnourished and infested with parasites. The sanctuary saw their unlikely bond and they are kept in the same enclosure to eat, sleep and play together. They even seek out grooming and affection from one another, head rubbing and licking each other. Their terrifying early months of life bonded the three and they are truly inseparable despite their obvious differences.

BLT

It costs $33,000 dollars a year to feed and care for all the animals. There is no entrance fee, they rely solely on donations!

I wonder what it cost to build the facility. The enclosures are massive next to what you've seen at zoos.

Whistle Stop Cafe

Thirty more minutes down county roads is Juliette, Georgia–bout 20 minutes north of Macon, Georgia.  Juliette was a once bustling railroad community in the early 1900s. Over time the railroad industry declined and Juliette was all but forgotten until movie producers rebuilt the existing structures into the fictional town of Whistle Stop and filmed the movie Fried Green Tomatoes.

The iconic Whistle Stop Cafe hosts daily diners from 11am to 4pm. I wanted to try everything, but settled for the fried green tomato sandwich right where Idgie sat.

Juliette, Ga

Not much further and we will call it a day at Suwanee River. You can just hear the vestiges of Civil War troops marching through the woods.

High Falls video

Above and Below

October 17, 2015

Mammoth Cave National Park and on into Tennessee and the Georgia state line

Down we go

Early morning light and winter temperatures –below freezing–make this cup of coffee more than appreciated. Sitka is fed and we head down to the Green River through the rugged Kentucky hills. It feels good to be out hiking. I suspect we will put on more than 6 miles today.

Heading into the cave this morning. Beneath the sandstone and shale lies the most extensive cave system on Earth. Mammoth Cave is over twice as long as any known cave. Geologist surmise there could be 600 miles of yet undiscovered passageways.

Prehistoric peoples explored just a mere 10 miles or so of the cave 4,000 years ago. Archeological evidence shows that these early cavers collected crystals and other salts in the cave. Cave exploration ceased about 2,000 years ago not to resume until the cave was rediscovered in 1798.

Taking only one of the many tours into the cave; we will take the Domes and Dripstone tour.

This will lead us more than 200 feet underground to witness Speleothems. "Say what?" you say. Dissolved minerals in crystalline form create gypsum flowers, stalactites and stalagmite–all examples of speleothems. Spelotheums are what most people associate with caves and this passage gives a glimpse of a massive curtain of flowstone. This incredible formation cascades down more than 75 feet creating an illusion of a stone waterfall called Frozen Niagara.

Frozen Niagara

Green River Ferry

We are still learning this rig. Late this afternoon, I checked all our levels and found our battery nearly depleted. When we left for the cave we forgot to turn the furnace off. It is suppose to run on propane, Gerard is figuring the blower is powered by battery, but our solar panels should keep us charged. It was a very sunny day. So we have some research to conduct. We made it this far with our pantry latch intact… well, yesterday it broke. So grateful for our stop back in Rockford, Illinois for extra latches. Decided to take a little drive across the Green River to get our battery charged. Sitka didn't know what to make of the ferry ride across.

Sitka got nervous when we left terra firma

Dinner around the fire tonight and I will get us mostly packed up. Tonight will prove to be another chilly night, 31º. It will be nice to be readying the inside for travel and have the outside work done.  I am ready for Florida!  I am very appreciative of our warm digs and thinking about all the people around us in their tents. Love to be glamping.

Old guide cemetary

Sitka and I stopped at the old guides cemetary on our morning hike.  The  history of the guides into the mine is an African American heritage. African Americans played a vital role in the development of cave tour routes and the visitor experience throughout the 19th and early 20th century. The first black guides were slaves. Their discoveries and story continues to live on within the avenues and guided tours of the cave today. While each slave guide eventually saw their freedom, their life was fraught with hardship in a time where the country was divided about their place in society. During their life they may have never realized the importance of their existence. However, today they are not viewed as slaves or lower class citizens. They are legends.

This morning we started the day relatively early. Our route drove us up to the top of ridges and followed streams down into the hollows (pronounced holler or holl-ah) After five hours of travel, we arrived in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Our friends, Joy and Dean told us it was well worth the ride to the top of Lookout Mountain. We stopped at Ruby Falls, checked the admission price and continued up the steep and windy road to Rock City where admission was even more steep, but we sucked it up hoping for spectacular views.  It's a quirky, fun place showcasing towering rock formations, lush fairy gardens and an overview of seven states. Lover's Leap and its falls were the highlight for me. 

We were hoping to go on to a national campground–Chilhowee, but we were plum tuckered and in need of WiFi, some rv manual reading and reception for our phones so we could check in with some folks. We landed at Racoon Mountain Campground and the temps are soaring into the upper 60s–it feels good to be warm! There is a cave here also, but I think I will stay above ground and hike up to the top of this ridge.

the streets of Rock City

heading into Fat Man's Squeee

heading into Fat Man's Squeee

We had another incident this morning. Gerard tied the animals up outside around 6am as Kole was biting at the bit to get out.. Around 6:30 am, I hear two canines growling and the barking started. Gerard jumped up and out the door to find Kole had slipped out of her harness and was gone. Feeling certain Sitka had saved her from a stray dog or coyote, we grabbed shoes and jackets to start our predawn search. This time, luckily she answered our calls and after 20 minutes or so came walking down the campground road. We will head into town to look for a more secure harness. I was seriously contemplating chalking up this trip and just making a beeline to Cape Coral. After talking to camp staff, they did think it could have been Coyote. I think Gerard is thinking this is a sign that Sitka and I should be the shunpikers and he and Kole be the homebodies keeping the hearth warm waiting for our return.

We are heading down south of Atlanta today. We are skipping the Georgia mountains as we are both wanting to feel the warmth of southern routes. See ya in the Sunshine State.

“I’m in love with cities I’ve never been to and people I’ve never met.”- John Green

Rough Starts ...but we're on the road

October 16. 2015

Delayed by a day, we finally hit the road on Monday, October 12th…. Indigenous People’s Day! We would only travel three and half hours from Chicago to find ourselves at Turkey Run State Park. Who knew Indiana rivaled the dells of Wisconsin in this area. We were about to enter prehistoric Indiana. The glacier recession a few thousand years ago carved the rock formations and canyons we will hike.

With camp all set, we settled in for the night, excited to go exploring the canyons of this park. At 6am Kole, our cat, bolted out the door. Kole has all her claws, but for the most part has been sheltered by a cat fence around the Duluth house. Gerard always thought she wouldn’t know her way back if she ever took off on us. He was so right. We spent the next two days scouring the woods and ravines around and within the campground. We never made it into the state park.

I notified the park staff, called the Humane Society, the County Sheriff and even the local lost pets board on Facebook. I let everyone know on my Facebook and asked that they visualize her walking out of the woods. Power in numbers right?

Our campsite was booked for the extra day we wanted to stay and search so we had to move camp sites and into another loop. We made our move and Gerard went searching the ravine one more time. I showed everyone I could a photo of her. We had our big ugly cry knowing we would have to pull away in the morning without her. I took some food and her bed over to the people who were occupying our previous site in case she did find her way back and just at that moment Gerard called me…. Kole walked out of the woods into the loop we were now camped!!!!!! The spot where she walked out was a site I had just shown a photo to the people camped there. They said “oh my god, there’s that cat!” They went calling for Gerard. 

I can’t tell you the relief and joy we felt and exhaustion–Gerard stayed up all night watching and waiting for her. And here she is –a long haired cat covered in burs is still a sight for sore eyes.

Forever grateful that Ms. Kole is back in our care, We were able to move on. Actually, we would take a shorter excursion through the trails at Turkey Run SP.

Turkey Run State Park Trails

Trail #3

We didn't want to move on without seeing at least a few of the 31 covered bridges in Parke County. Every town in this part of the state seems to have a festival. Park County’s Covered Bridge Festival always starts on the second Friday of October and runs for 10 consecutive days. Headquartered in Rockville on the courthouse lawn since 1957, the festival attracts thousands to Parke County to see the shining stars of it all, 31 historic covered bridges.  The fair encompasses arts and crafts and all the fair food you can imagine. It is also a pickers delight. In fact, as we traveled down  Highway 59, 46 and on to Highway 135, it appeared to be a state wide rummage sale.

The Story Inn

Along Highway I35 we found Story, a quaint village founded in southern Indiana in 1851, nestled between the Brown County State Park and Hoosier National Forest.  It became the largest settlement in the area. In its heyday 1880-1929 the village supported two general stores, church, schoolhouse, blacksmith, sawmill, grain mill and post office. 

Story never recovered from the Great Depression as families abandoned their hilly, marginal farms looking for work elsewhere. No new construction followed the Great Depression and fortuitously, no one attempted to “modernize” the aging structures. Story is perhaps the best preserved example of a 19th century small town that survives in the American Midwest. 

Our stop was a well needed rest and an answer to growling stomachs. Our intention was to make it to Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, but our pace was slow due to the turns and twists in a ribbon road where speeds were 10 and 15 miles per hour for those turns. We continued our trek down Indiana 135 and came across Starved Hollow Recreation Area, perfect place to set camp, get some rest and a hot shower before continuing down rural back roads heading into Kentucky.

A smile after a good grilled cheese

Even though the busy days of summer have fallen away, the falling of leaves brings out scores of folks to see the color. We arrived on a Friday at Mammoth Cave National Park early enough in the day to choose a preferred campsite; however, by late afternoon the campsites were all but filled. We gained an hour by traveling back into the central time zone, so it seems ridiculous how early I will be drifting off to neverneverland. 

Dinner at Mammoth Cave National Park

Dinner at Mammoth Cave National Park

Tomorrow we go spelunking.

“We travel, some of us forever, to seek other places, other lives, other souls.”- Anais Nin

And Here We Go (or how I unfriended Joaquin)

Finally, the house is clean and becoming more sparse as we have sold more and more of our life treasures... ok yeah, and our junk. We have not sold the house ... YET, but a short term tenant found us. Breathing much more easily now that we are hitting the road. We hugged Moscow and Chino, two of our three cats and I cried yet again, before leaving them in their backyard sanctuary with Henry. We put Kole's harness on her, she knew something was up and climbed into the loaded and ready for travel ZiOs mobile. Sitka is always ready for an adventure.

Our whole itinerary took an about face. We were headed east across Ohio and West Virginia to the Eastern Seaboard, but something named Jaoquin is sending us packing a different direction. Hurricane Joaquin by itself is not responsible for the heavy rain threat. Some upper level low spinning away across the Southeast is responsible for the torrential rain and biblical flooding.  It will take several weeks for the waters to subside and untold damages do not make for a bucket list trip. I pray for a quick recovery for the region. It is unfathomable what folks must be going through. I think if I lost it all, I would definitely go on the road full-time.

It is always about getting off the interstate, isn't it? I use to travel down I-65 to visit my sis in Cincinnatti when she lived there. Never thought much of Indiana and I was kind of dreading the road getting down to the rolling hills of Kentucky... but thank you Pinterest! A little exploring Indiana boards and found waterfalls and winding country roads abound in western Indiana. In fact, were just in time for the covered Bridge Festival of Park County.

Bean blossom Bridge

So here is our new trajectory, would love to have you comment and insert places along the route that you think we should see... would love your guidance!

•Turkey Run State Park, Marshall Indiana

•the covered bridges of  Park County

•the arts road- Hwy 46 going to Story, Indiana

•Bailey's Point and/or Fall Creek Falls, Mammoth Cave (thanx Heather for that suggestion)

• Yep, gonna do the touristy Lookout Mt with its Ruby Falls

•Brasstown Bald.. highest point in Georgia with expnsive views of the Appalachian Mts.

•Tallulah Gorge, Georgia

•Locust Grove, Georgia to see the lion and tiger and bear...oh my!

•the Whistle Stop Cafe in Juliette, Georgia... fried green tomatoes anyone?

•Ichetucknee Springs Fort White, Florida

•Ginnie Springs, High Pointe, Florida

and where to next?   Just follow the center line and go, I guess.

I have certainly learned about making plans... (see above- I had a whole planned itinerary along the Eastern Seaboard) so we do know to just go with the flow.

driving through Wisconsin on I-94

Our drive out of Minnesota was a fall foilage postcard. We are on a three day family hold over in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. Excited to visit with family, neighbors and hook up with a childhood friend... it's been over 40 years, right Tracy? I am hoping it will give the color down here time to catch-up with us. It is still pretty green in northern, Illinois.

“We travel not to escape life, but for life to not escape us.”- Unknown