VanCleve, Kentucky - Mothers & their Colts

Mothers and their colts at VanCleve, Kentucky across from the Kentucky Mountain Bible College.  This pasture was located along side the Kentucky River.

Hiwassee River, Cherokee County

We visited the Hiwassee River in Cherokee County, North Carolina.  I thought Cherokee County was a poor county from the conditions of the houses and farms we saw while driving through the mountains.  The homes may not be elaborate but these people were rich in the beauty and glory of their rivers and mountains. 

Young Osprey at Vaill Point

For several months, people walking the trail at Vaill Point would stop us and ask if we saw the Bald Eagle.  This evening we finally saw the big beautiful bird in a bare tree at the marsh.  These birds love large towering trees with bare branches.  After examining the picture of his profile, I believe it is a young Osprey with a white breast and black wings.

He picked the tallest tree in the marsh were he could see wide and far for his prey. The scenery looked gorgeous in blue and silver sheen skyline.

Ghost Stories of the St. Augustine Lighthouse

We visited the lighthouse this evening and there was a large cocktail party. The light house is surrounded by trees.  They had very unusual lower branches that reached out across the lawn like long hands.  I walked around the back and took several pictures of the lighthouse towering over my head.  I did some research on the ghost stories.  "The lighthouse and surrounding buildings have a long history of supposed paranormal activity. Allegedly, visitors and workers have seen moving shadows, heard voices and unexplained sounds, and seen the figures of two little girls standing on the lighthouse catwalk (who purportedly were daughters of Hezekiah Pittee, Superintendent of Lighthouse Construction, during the 1870s; the girls drowned in a tragic accident during the building of the tower). Other reports are of a woman seen on the lighthouse stairway or walking in the yard outside the buildings, and the figure of a man who roams the basement.  Stories like these have led The Atlantic Paranormal Society (TAPS) to the scene where they shot an episode of the SyFy show Ghost Hunters. During this episode, TAPS claims to have captured a few mysterious incidents on video in the lighthouse such as a disembodied voice of a woman crying "help me" and a shadowy figure was supposedly recorded on video moving about the stairs above them." 

A most unusual growth of an Oak Tree branch.

Ode to An Old Truck in the Kentucky Foothills

People always telling me

you've gotta get rid of this truck.

It's old and it's rusty

It's just a piece of junk.

I smile and I tell them

this ole pickup truck

Has been a good ole workhorse

It got me through mud & muck.

She may not be much to look at now

But she was dependable to the core.

She's helped me work this farm

For twenty years or more.

There's too many memories to keep

that can't be beat. 

.

The clouds came down to earth and floated on the water - Carr Creek

You can barely see the clouds in the skyline but you can see their reflection in the water among the different shades of green.  It looks like the clouds came down to earth.  The Kentucky mountain lakes are emerald green and are the sharkling jewels of the mountains.  I am use to seeing the blue ocean w/ blue sky since I live close to the beach.  It was a real treat to see such deep vivid green waters and the gorgeous wild flowers on the banks.

Field of Dreams - Earthly Vines and an Old Red Truck

As we were traveling this summer, I was looking for an old red truck that had been left in a field to become part of the landscape.  I saw a painting once and really liked how it was true to life.  Old trucks have been around for a long time and rural farmers don't want to get rid of that old truck in case they can always use one of the parts.  That was the case with my Uncle Rufus who left an old car sitting on the side of my grandmother's yard for years.  It was an late 1940's model and I played in that car and pretended that I was driving.  That is how I learn to shift gears at the age of 8.  Outside of Arbingdon, Virginia We came across this red truck that the vines and Mother Earth decided to make part of the landscape.  It was in a pasture and several donkeys were in the background grazing.  This was not the image I had.  The vines and brushes were consuming the truck.  I am still in search of that perfect springtime pastoral picture of an Red old truck in an open field with tall grass growing around it. 

“Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself”

My folks, sister and I visited the Little White House in Warm Springs.  I never studied very much about the life of Franklin Roosevelt.  After this visit, I learn to greatly appreciate a man of the people.  He cared deeply for the poor farmers of the area, the sick and polio stricken children.  He help to get the country out of the depression and saw us through World War II.  Where are the great men of today?

Blood Mountain, A Cherokee Holy Place

Two Indian tribes resided in North Georgia in the 1500s. By the late 1600s the Cherokee and Creek began to compete for resources and fought a battle on the mountain near Slaughter Gap. The Creek lost, ceding Blood Mountain to the Cherokee, who considered it a holy place.


There are various theories on the origin of the mountain's name. Some believe that the name of the mountain comes from a bloody battle between the Cherokee and Creek Indians. Others believe that the name is based on the color of the lichen and Catawba rhododendron growing near the rocky summit.  We visited Blood Mountain on our way to see our granddaughter at her new college in Dahlonega.

Root Beer Float at Ellis Soda Shoppe in Abingdon, Virginia

We visited Abingdon, Virginia this afternoon while staying in Bristol.  It has a lot of history dating back to Daniel Boone.  In 1760, frontiersman, Daniel Boone, named the area Wolf Hills, after his dogs were attacked by a pack of wolves during a hunting expedition.  We stopped at the Ellis Soda Shoppe that was once a drug store.  They had many of the old drug store items on display.  I liked the 2 dozen or more tin platters hanging on the wall of the Coca-Cola Girls.  It gave the old country drug store a nostalgic atmosphere of days 'gone by'.

Coca-Cola Girls - Pictures of Antique Ads

My grandmother had a beautiful tin sign over her fireplace of a Coca-Cola girl holding a bottle coke.  It was old and she had it for many years.  I don't know what happened to it but I would have love to have it.  As a small girl, I often glazed at it; it reminded me of my own young mother with dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a wide smile. She could have been a Coca-Cola girl.  I took some pictures of the Coca-Cola Ads that were hanging on the walls at the museum.

"One Bottle At a Time" Coca-Cola for 5 Cents

We visited the Coca-Cola Bottling Museum in Monroe, Louisiana.  In the 1950's My Uncle Hillhouse had a country store in Sixes, Ga. that had an old Coca-Cola machine like the one in the museum.  I remember paying 5 cents for a bottle.  You can still pay 5 cents for a bottle if you travel to Monroe, Louisiana and visit the museum.

Soo Locks, Sault Ste. Marie, MI

Swan stretching her wings.

We took a Soo Locks Boat Tour; it was a cold damp day but it was very educational.   Learned a lot about the cargo boats on the great lakes. 

Had to have a picture of a tugboat. A picture of an old sea captain would have made my day.

Saint Ignace, MI

This picture was taken at dust from our hotel room on Saint Ignace, MI.  There were hundreds of sea doves on the beach.  I got one lone picture of a swan.

On the ferry ride, we went under Mackinac Bridge.  It is the third longest suspension bridge in the world.  It is 5 miles long. 

Fishing Pier, St. Augustine Beach

I like this view of the fishing pier.  It shows curves in the structure which I never noticed.  It was a busy late afternoon on St. Augustine Beach.  People still hanging out at the Beach.  A lot of small sea shells had washed ashore.  I liked the ripple effects from the waves on the sand.

It's a Bird's Life

It must be nice to sit on top of an old sea craft and watch for fish and see your reflection in the water or to fly out into the horizon with miles of blue sky and water. 

Morning Walk - Moultrie Creek

We took a stroll on Shores Drive at Moultrie Creek.  Several canoes were on the water.  The morning air was cool and the water was so beautiful and calm that I wished I had a canoe and could join them.  I have only been canoeing several times and it is long past due.  When you only live 5 minutes from several easy ramp accesses, there is no excuse.  I must plan a canoe trip this fall.  Gotta do it!

Manistique Lighthouse & Mackinac Island's Lighthouse

 

We drove through Manistique, stop for a while and enjoyed wonderful Lake Michigan's sand beach and boardwalk and the picturesque lighthouse. It was an important shipping port in the late 1800's when logs were floated down the Manistique River from logging camps to local sawmills.  Michigan has over a hundred lighthouses and I really would like to take a trip and visit them all.  They are all unique with beautiful structures.

Some history on Round Island Lighthouse:  "Built in 1895 for the dangerous shoals around the channels between Mackinac Island and Round Island, this lighthouse was damaged but restored in 1995. The Round Island Lighthouse is also well-known for those that are familiar with the movie "Somewhere in Time" with Christopher Reeve & Jane Seymour."

Morning Walk - Hanging moss, Spiders, Wild Flowers and things

We have a lot of tourist which we are grateful for our local economy but we are also grateful that they stay on St. Augustine Beach and don't venture out to our local parks in town.  Vaill Point Park is historical Florida with the hanging moss, wild flowers & birds; a very beautiful park all year round that we locals love.

itsy bitsy spider at Vaill Point Park

The itsy bitsy spider went up the big oak tree today
Down came the rain, and washed the spider out.
Out came the sun, and dried up all the rain,
and the itsy bitsy spider went up the oak tree again.

Shadows at Sunset, Crescent Beach

We went for a walk last evening at Crescent Beach.  The shadows made even the smallest sea shell stand out across the sand.  Our shadows made us ten feet taller and reached the edge of the water. 

Sunset at Matanzas River

  Last evening Matanzas River had a tranquil feeling, calm and peaceful with a soft breeze.  The sunlight reflection from the river had a wonderful orange glow.

Flowers & Cannons on the Mississippi

Vicksburg, Mississippi has a lot of history on the Civil War.  In tracing my ancestry, my grandfather Hillhouse had 4 ancestors (all brothers) to fight at Vicksburg in 1863.  They were all in their mid to late 50's during the Civil War which greatly surprised me. The town has a lot of literature about the devastation of the town's people who had to flee and live in caves during the battle.  Some of the Cannons now stand among flowers on the Mississippi River bank in memory.

A Morning Walk in St. Augustine South

I feel blessed and grateful to live in such a beautiful city on the coast. We traveled a lot this summer and I saw many states and beautiful places but my home town is just as captivating. We took a morning walk in South Augustine Shores and in my own back yard was beauty that can match any where and any place. The marsh is full of wild life and I was fortunate to get a few photo opts. There was a silver sheen over the water and the reflection of the birds and stalks was like looking into a mirror. Wild flowers were growning up the rails on the path.

Mud Island River Park

This replica of a flat River Boat was hand built and used in several historical reproductions of Lewis & Clark on the Mississippi River.  It is now located at the Mud Island River Park in Memphis.  It would have been exciting to see a River Boat going down the river during Mark Twain's era.

Mark Twain Country

As a small girl, Mark Twain was my favorite author.  I read several of his books over and over again during the summer when I was 9 years old.  Tom Sawyer was my favorite.  As we were traveling through Arkansas, we stopped at a park and took this picture of the Mississippi River.  I could just imagine Tom, barefooted and in tatterd and worn clothes sailing on a small make-shift raft going down the river.

Elvis Country

We stopped in Memphis and visited the Welcome Center.  There was a large statue of Elvis.  I set the security alarm off when I tried to hug him for a photo opt.