2021 07/19 - 08/05 Lynchburg, VA through Bowling Green, KY

 

Blue Ridge Parkway near Lynchburg, VA - 21 July through 2 August 2021

Appomattox Court House National Historical Park - 21 July 2021

The house above, in the village of Appomattox Court House was owned by Wilmer McLean and his wife, Virginia. Robert E. Lee surrendered his Army of Northern Virginia to Ulysses S. Grant in the parlor on 9 April 1865, effectively ending the Civil War. McLean, a grocer, had moved his family from Manassas, Virginia, also known as the location of the First Battle of Bull Run, 1861. The farm, or Yorkshire Plantation, was being used as headquarters by Confederate Brigadier General P.G.T. Beauregard. The Union Army shelled the house and a cannonball dropped through the kitchen fireplace. McLean made his living during the war as a sugar broker for the Confederate States Army. The move to Manassas in 1863 was for the safety of his family but also because his business activities were made difficult because of the Union Army presence in the area. None of the furnishings in the present day parlor are originals as these were carried off by various Union Generals who simply handed money to the protesting McLean as they left. Printing presses were set up in the Clover Hill Tavern to quickly produce the 30,000 paroles required for Confederates en route to their homes.

Blue Ridge Parkway near James River - Milepost 63.7 - 22 July 2021

The Blue Ridge Parkway was decades in the making. Its route, stopping points, and vistas were all carefully planned by Stanley Abbott, the chief parkway designer and first superintendent, who often spoke with area residents and ensured their stories became part of the parkway.

Still running into Covid shutdowns, we were on our own to figure out what interested us. Carol, Dakota and Tori on the walkway to bridge over the James River. Bob on the bridge with the James River below. Cliff Swallow nests hanging on the underside of the Parkway overpass. Historical Kanawha canal was begun in 1785, encouraged by George Washington, intended to facilitate shipment of passengers and freight from the western counties of Virginia and the coast. Work was only half completed by 1851when permanently stopped as railroads overtook the canal as a far more productive form of transportation. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the 138-acre James River and Kanawha Historical District contains portions of old canals, locks and turning basins. Today boat rides are featured along a Canal Walk for 1.25 miles.

Our choice today was heading south from the James River Visitor Center to our first overlook, Thunder Ridge. A quiet perch over the Arnold Valley at 2,600 feet below. The Appalachian Trail passes through the Valley on its way from Georgia to Maine.

We met the Trail Angel when we stopped for lunch. She does not give her name, just her nom de guerre as she drives the Parkway providing sandwiches, drinks and a little First Aid to anyone in need. Carol is looking down on Arnold Valley at 2710 feet elevation which is 3510 feet above sea level. 

The sign said Cascade Falls this way, but they were not flowing. So we replaced the message with something we did find, a columbine.

Named for the designer of the Parkway, Lake Abbott is a 24-acre impoundment located near the Peaks of Otter and viewed from the lodgings on the lake shore. It is stocked with smallmouth bass, catfish, golden shiners, sunfish and blue gill. With stunning views, natural beauty and the surrounding Jefferson National Forest, it's no wonder the area has attracted people for more than 8,000 years. The first Inn was opened in 1834 (Polly Wood's Ordinary, a cabin that can still be explored).

Bowling Green, KY

At our KOA Campground - 01 August 2021

A nice patio at the end of the day. Definitely needed awning shade during our stay. But good for air drying towels apparently.  

National Corvette Museum, Bowling Green, KY  - 02 August 2021

Home of America's Sports Car. Developed under the code name "Project Opal", the Corvette first debut was a concept car in General Motors Autorama, New York City on 17 January 1953. It was such a success that a limited run of 300 production cars were built in June. All were Polo white with red interior and priced at $3,498 (really). 

Through the years: Clockwise from top Right 1955, 1961, 1965 and 1973. Every Corvette from 1981 has been assembled at the GM plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky, just 1/4 mile from the museum. 

 

If you drive past the Museum on the Highway 65, you will see this really weird yellow cone like thing with a red spire sticking out the top. This is the location of The Skydome Sinkhole Experience aka the Corvette Cave In. On 12 February 2014, a sinkhole opened up under the floor in this area and swallowed eight Corvettes. Thankfully, no one was in the building but security cameras were rolling to record the event. The exhibit includes an interactive area that virtual simulation of the collapse caused by the sinking floor, shows how the cars were recovered and their current condition, repaired or not, plus how the sinkhole itself was filled in and the engineering it took. 

 

Each car has a trunk ornament of a stingray.

Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky - 04 August 2021

Rolling hills, deep river valleys, and the worlds longest known cave system. Mammoth Cave National Park is home to thousands of years of human history and a rich diversity of plant and animal life, earning it the title of UNESCO World Heritage Site and International Biosphere Reserve.

Our tour guide. 

Entering the cave. Is it too late to turn back? Good thing I brought a cover shirt. The temperature inside the cave hovers around 54 degrees, year-round. Lots of folks wearing shorts and t-shirts were going to be very uncomfortable.  

Ah, this isn't so bad. Hey, who turned the lights out?!! Thousands of years of occupation by bats who deposited guano in the soil made the cave dirt rich with a compound called calcium nitrate. This mineral can be mixed with other high potassium materials to create potassium nitrate, or saltpeter, the principal ingredient in gunpowder.

Mining this mineral was extremely profitable in the early 1800s, and became even more important with the start of the War of 1812. To filter the cave dirt, vats were built in the cave. The dirt was mixed with water to extract the calcium nitrate which was pumped to the surface leaving just the dirt. Most of the workers were enslaved African American men, leased from nearby states. After the war, the owners of the caves left the vats and wooden pipes. These artifacts are now over 200 years old, preserved by the interior environment.

Hey, Bob, look over here. That's cool looking (straight down). 

This is supposed to be a tight squeeze. But Bob makes it, no problemo. 

Some more interesting features. Many of the first guides were members of the local families but by 1838 enslaved African-American guides held a more prominent presence. Some had even worked in the mines. 

One more interesting stalactite then it's time to exit up. How many steps did you say we had to climb? Total of 540 with a distance of two miles. Oh, and watch your head.

20210716 - 0719 Antietam Battlefield , Williamsport, MD

Antietam Battlefield , Williamsport, MD 

At our KOA Campground - 17 July 2021

View of Little Conococheague Creek. Tori keeping cool. 

A year and a half into the Civil War, General Robert E. Lee decided to move his army out of war torn Virginia with the intent of moving north into Pennsylvania. With the Union garrison at Harpers Ferry threatening Confederate supply and communication lines, Lee decided to divide his army into three incursions into Maryland; Hagerstown, Harpers Ferry and Boonsboro. The discovery of Lee's Special Order 191, the "Lost Order", detailed Lee's future campaign and afforded Union General McClellan the realization that he could strike these divided forces. Events over a few days would bring all these forces together for the bloodiest one-day battle of the Civil War. Dunkers Church, built in 1852 for pacifist German Baptist Brethren, became a focal point for Union attacks on the morning of the battle.

Joseph Poffenberger farm was purchased in 1851 from his father-in-law. The farm was occupied by the Union Army in preparation of the Battle commencing on 16 September 1862. The barn was used as a temporary field hospital following the battle. Clara Barton's actions of bringing bandages, lanterns and food to the hospital, led to the founding of the American National Red Cross. She was christened "The Angel of the Battlefield".

Observation tower above Bloody Lane (Sunken Road), Sharpsburg, MD,  which served as a breastwork for the Confederate Center. For three hours, 2200 Confederates held off the attacks of a combined Union force of nearly 10,000 men. Union and Confederate armies collided across several cornfields of local farms resulting in 23,100 men wounded, killed or missing in action.

Next to the Burnside Bridge, a tree that was young at the time of the battle, the Burnside Sycamore still stands to commemorate the Battle of Antietam that occurred 17 September 1862. Held by 500 Confederate troops for 3 hours, the bridge was finally captured by Burnside's command which forced the enemy to withdraw.