Sunset near the Skyline Drive

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

“Know what you want to do, hold the thought firmly, and do every day what should be done, and every sunset will see you that much nearer the goal.”  - Elbert Hubbard

This photo was taken about 6 miles south of Big Meadows on the Appalachian Trail.  I could see the opening and walked down to the Skyline Drive for a better view.

Humor of the day - A Really Bad Day


There was this guy at a bar, just looking at his drink. He stays like that for half of an hour.

Then, this big trouble-making truck driver steps next to him, takes the drink from the guy, and just drinks it all down. The poor man starts crying. The truck driver says, "Come on man, I was just joking. Here, I'll buy you another drink. I just can't stand to see a man cry."

"No, it's not that. This day is the worst of my life. First, I fall asleep, and I go late to my office. My boss, outrageous, fires me. When I leave the building, to my car, I found out it was stolen. The police said that they can do nothing. I get a cab to return home, and when I leave it, I remember I left my wallet and credit cards there. The cab driver just drives away."

"I go home, and when I get there, I find my wife in bed with the gardener. I leave home, and come to this bar. And just when I was thinking about putting an end to my life, you show up and drink my poison."

Magic of a Summer Shower

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

“God didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but He did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way.”

I love photos of water drops on spider webs, pine needles, etc.   I usually have my camera in my backpack while it is raining and unfortunately, I did not take it out soon enough after most rain showers to captures these images. 

Humor for the day - At a recent COMDEX, Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated that:




"If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25 cars that got1,000 miles to the gallon."

General Motors has issued a press release stating:

1. For no reason whatsoever your car would crash twice a day.

2. Every time they repainted the lines on the road, you would have to buy a new car.

3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason, and you
would just accept this, restart and drive on.

4. Occasionally, executing a manoeuvre such as a left turn, would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.

5. Only one person at a time could use the car, unless you bought "Car XP" or "Car 2000". But then you would have to buy more seats.

6. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive, but would only work on 5% of the roads.

7. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning light would be replaced by a single "general car default" warning light.
8. New seats would force everyone to have the same size butt.

9. The airbag system would say "Are you sure?" before going off.

10. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key, and grab hold of the radio antenna.

11. GM would require all car buyers to also purchase a deluxe set of Rand McNally road maps (now a GM subsidiary), even though they neither need them nor want them. Attempting to delete this option would immediately cause the car's performance to diminish by 50% or more. Moreover, GM would become a target for investigation by the justice dept.

12. Every time GM introduced a new model, car buyers would have to learn to
drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.

13. You would press the "start " button to shut off the engine.

Abstract Photo, Appalachian Trail

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

“Romance often begins by a splashing waterfall and ends over a leaky sink”  

Maine is known not only for its forest, but also for the many waterfalls.  I am taking my graduated density filter with me which allows me to let less light in so that I can do longer exposures, therefore causing motion blur in my waterfalls.  I am looking forward to having my SLR on this section of the trip.

Humor for the day - Smartest Man in the World


A doctor, a lawyer, a little boy and a priest were out for a Sunday afternoon flight on a small private plane. Suddenly, the plane developed engine trouble.

In spite of the best efforts of the pilot, the plane started to go down. Finally, the pilot grabbed a parachute, yelled to the passengers that they had better jump, and bailed out.

Unfortunately, there were only three parachutes remaining.

The doctor grabbed one and said "I'm a doctor, I save lives, so I must live," and jumped out.

The lawyer then said, "I'm a lawyer and lawyers are the smartest people in the world. I deserve to live."

He also grabbed a parachute and jumped.

The priest looked at the little boy and said, "My son, I've lived a long and full life. You are young and have your whole life ahead of you. Take the last parachute and live in peace."

The little boy handed the parachute back to the priest and said, "Not to worry, Father. The 'smartest man in the world' just took off with my back pack."

Green Leaf in he Stream

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

“Water which is too pure has no fish”

The next couple of pictures are more abstract than anything.  I just liked the color or uniqueness of the situation.

Humor for the day - Joe grew up in a small town, then moved away to attend college and law school. He decided to come back to the small town because he could be a big man in this small town. He really wanted to impress everyone. He opened his new law office, but business was very slow at first. One day, he saw a man coming up the sidewalk. He decided to make a big impression on this new client when he arrived.

As the man came to the door, Joe picked up the phone. He motioned the man in, all the while talking..
"No. Absolutely not. You tell those clowns in New York that I won't settle this case for less than one million.."
"Yes. The Appeals Court has agreed to hear that case next week. I'll be handling the primary argument and the other members of my team will provide support.."
"Okay. Tell the DA that I'll meet with him next week to discuss the details.."
This sort of thing went on for almost 5 minutes. All the while the man sat patiently as Joe rattled instructions. Finally, Joe put down the phone and turned to the man. "I'm sorry for the delay, but as you can see, I'm very busy.

What can I do for you?"

The man replied "I'm from the phone company..I came to hook up your phone."

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

“Even if a snake is not poisonous, it should pretend to be venomous.”  - Chanakya quotes

On the first sunny day after several days of rain there were always two things you could expect: that you would have a great day in the sun, and that you would see snakes out sunning on the rocks.  I saw my first snake on Beech Gap just outside of Georgia and continued to see them through Vermont.  Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania seemed to be where I saw most of the snakes, especially the rattle snakes.   I saw the snake in the photo crossing a gravel road and went to take a picture of it.  On the way I saw a rattle snake and another black snake all within 50 yards of each other and all sunning on the old forest road.
Humor of the day -
A airline captain was breaking in Southbound Hiker that had just become a stewardess. The route they were flying had a layover in another city. Upon their arrival, the captain showed the stewardess the best place for airline personnel to eat, shop and stay overnight.
The next morning, as the pilot was preparing the crew for the day's route, he noticed the new stewardess was missing. He knew which room she was in at the hotel and called her up wondering what happened. She answered the phone, crying, and said she couldn't get out of her room. "You can't get out of your room?" the captain asked, "Why not?"

The stewardess replied: "There are only three doors in here," she sobbed, "one is the bathroom, one is the closet, and one has a sign on it that says 'Do Not Disturb'!"

Whitetail Deer on the Appalachian Trail

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

“A wounded deer leaps the highest.” - Emily Dickinson
I was hiking with Leon and his dog Halifax in the Shenandoah National Park when all of a sudden this deer ran up to us staring at the dog.  The dog was ahead of us and the deer ran around us as if it wanted to get a better look at the dog.  The dog was laissez-faire and did not pay the deer any attention, but the deer acted curious, as if it had never seen a dog before.  

Humor for the day - As a drunk guy staggers out of the bar one Friday evening, a fire engine races past, siren wailing and lights flashing.


Immediately, the drunk starts chasing the engine, running as fast as he can until eventually he collapses, gasping for breath.

In a last act of desperation he shouts after the fire engine, "If that's the way you want it, you can keep your bloody ice cream!"

Lizards and Salamanders

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

“I have never been in a natural place and felt that it was a waste of time.  And it's a relief. If I'm walking around a desert or whatever, every second is worthwhile.”- Viggo Mortensen

I was always amazed at the number of lizards and salamanders I would find on the trail.  It took a while to train your eye to spot them, but after you had been in the woods for a while and ran across a few sunning on rocks and hidden under logs, you learn to know where to look and what to look for.   People have asked me what animal did I see the most of on the trail, I can say without hesitation it was the chipmunk.  They were everywhere.

Humor for the day - A teacher asks her class if anyone can use the word fascinate in a sentence. Brian raises his hand and says, "The sky is fascinating."


The teacher says, "No that's fascinating."

Jennifer raises her hand and says, "When I saw the tigers at the zoo I was fascinated."

The teacher says, "No that's fascinated."

So finally Little Johnny raises his hand and says, "My mom bought a new blouse with 12 pearl buttons, but her chest's so big she could only fasten eight!"

Grayson Highlands State Park - Virginia

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

"It is not enough for a man to know how to ride; he must know how to fall." ~Mexican Proverb

If you were to ask a thru hiker there three favorite places on the Appalachian Trail, you would probably hear Grayson Highlands State Park.  This has been one of my favorite places for years and it did not let me down again this year.   The park is known for the wild ponies and are often seen grazing through the meadows and open areas.   The park is located in Southwest Virginia near I81. 


Humor for the day - A defendant in a lawsuit involving large sums of money was talking to his lawyer. "If I lose this case, I'll be ruined!"


"It's in the judge's hands now," said the lawyer.

"Would it help if I sent the judge a box of cigars?"

"No! The judge is a stickler on ethical behavior. A stunt like that would prejudice him against you. He might even hold you in contempt of court."

Within the course of time, the judge rendered a decision in favor of the defendant. As the defendant left the courthouse, he said to his lawyer, "Thanks for the tip about the cigars. It really worked!"

Confidently the lawyer responded, "I'm sure we would have lost the case if you'd sent them."

"But I did send them.", replied the man.
"What?" shouted the lawyer.
"I sure did, that's how we won the case... good thing I remembered to enclose the plaintiff's business card."

Just another one of my Hiking Partners

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

“When an elephant is in trouble, even a frog will kick him” - Hindu Proverb 

I have to say it is better looking than some of my hiking partners, (Sneaks, Sota, etc).  People always ask me if I went to the trail alone.  I may be alone at times, but even if people are not around, there were always the occasional bird, lizard, frog, etc to keep you company.  The next couple of days I am going to share a few photographs of these creatures.  

Humor for the day - "How was your golf game, dear?" asked Jack's wife.

"Well I was hitting pretty well, but my eyesight's gotten so bad I couldn't see where the ball went."
"Well you're 75 years old now, Jack, why don't you take my brother Scott along?" suggested his wife.
"But he's 85 and doesn't even play golf anymore," protested Jack.
"But he's got perfect eyesight. He could watch your ball," his wife pointed out.
The next day Jack teed off with Scott looking on. Jack swung, and the ball disappeared down the middle of the fairway. "Do you see it?" asked Jack.
"Yup," Scott answered.
"Well, where is it?" yelled Jack, peering off into the distance.
"I forgot."

Pedestrain Bridge on Appalachian Trail

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

“Always keep an eye out for the politician that would build bridges where there are no rivers.”

In this section of Maine there are no bridges so I am going to have to get used to fording rivers.   I thought I should keep the bride "theme" going for another day.  This bridge was located prior to reaching Dismal Falls. 

Questions that have Confused humankind!!
a.. Who was the first person to say \"See that chicken there....I\'m gonna eat the next thing that comes outta it\'s butt.\"
a.. Why do toasters always have a setting that burns the toast to a
horrible crisp, which no decent human being would eat?
a.. Why is there a light in the fridge and not in the freezer?
a.. Can a hearse carrying a corpse drive in the carpool lane?
a.. If the professor on Gilligan\'s Island can make a radio out of coconut, why can\'t he fix a hole in a boat?
a.. What do you call male ballerinas?
a.. If electricity comes from electrons, does morality come from morons?
a.. Did you ever notice that when you blow in a dog\'s face, he gets mad at you, but when you take him on a car ride, he can\'t wait to stick his head out the window into the wind?

Pedestrian Bridge over James River

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail. Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

“People are lonely because they build walls instead of bridges.”- Anonymous

The above photo is the Appalachian Trail Pedestrian Bridge over the James River.  We passed through this area Memorial Day weekend and I was surprised there were not more people on the water.  There were only a handful of kayakers, one of which offered me a ride into town for resupplies.


Humor for the day - An investment advisor decided to go out on her own. She was shrewd and diligent, so business kept coming in, and pretty soon she realized that she needed an in-house counsel. The investment banker began to interview young lawyers.
"As I'm sure you can understand," she started off with one of the first applicants, "in a business like this, our personal integrity must be beyond question." She leaned forward. "Mr. Mayberry, are you an honest lawyer?"
"Honest?" replied the job prospect. "Let me tell you something about honest. Why, I'm so honest that my father lent me $15,000 for my education, and I paid back every penny the minute I tried my very first case."
"Impressive. And what sort of case was that?" asked the investment advisor.
The lawyer squirmed in his seat and admitted, "He sued me for the money."

Harpers Ferry

“The hardest thing in life is to know which bridge to cross and which to burn” - David Russell

NOTE: Headed to Maine to finish my Appalachian Trail Thru Hike.  I have prepared a number of blogs and scheduled them to post while I am on the trail.  Thanks for following and I will be back soon.

Theme: Bridges
Located at the confluence of the Potomac River and the Shenandoah River is the historical town of Harper's Ferry.  Much of it's history, both good and bad, is due to the two rivers it borders. From the bridges being burned during the Civil War to the floods it has encountered, Harper's Ferry remains an icon in American Civilization proving that obstacles can be overcome by determination.

Humor for today - There are 4 guys in a car, 1 from Iowa,1 from Wisconsin, 1 from Florida, and 1 from Illinois. The guy from Florida says "I'm tired of seeing oranges everyday" so he throws some oranges out the window. So then the guy from Iowa says "I'm tired of seeing Corn everyday" so he throws some corn out the window. The guy from Wisconsin is very inspired so he opens the door and pushs the guy from Illinois out of the car!

Butterfly Macro Photography

"There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it's going to be a butterfly" ~Richard Buckminster Fuller

I am continuing with the butterfly pictures because I know soon they will be gone.  With all the rain we have had, it is hard to get out and take pictures, but we did have a little break today that rewarded me with this picture. 

Well the trees have started revealing their fall colors in Maine so I am heading back to the trail this week.  I well be away from the computer for awhile, but I am have some blog post I have already created scheduled to post while I am gone. I do not know how many I will have time to create before I leave, but I will do what I can. 

Humor for the day - The more you study the more you know, the more you know the more you forget, the more you forget the less you know, so why study?

Azalea along the Appalachian Trail

"When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a flower with the other." ~Chinese Proverb

Photo taken in early May along the Appalachian Trail.  

Humor for the day - The best way to garden is to put on a wide-brimmed straw hat and some old clothes. And with a hoe in one hand and a cold drink in the other, tell somebody else where to dig. - Texas Bix Bender

Osprey - The Sea Hawk

“Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.” - Henry Van Dyke

Keeping on my beach theme for a few days, I wanted to share with you a few photos I managed to capture while kayaking through the outer banks.   The osprey is unique in that it is the only hawk that hunts on water.  The scientific name: Pandion Haliatus, “Sea Hawk”. An osprey’s narrow, six-foot wing-span, awesome eye sight (they can spot a fish from hundreds of feet in the air) and razor sharp claws provide them with expert fishing equipment.

The osprey has a lifespan of 20-25 years and will reach 2.5 to 4 lbs as an adult.  They are also unique in that they allow smaller songbirds to nest under them to help alert of danger.  

Humor of the day - Bob was in trouble. He forgot his wedding anniversary. His wife was really upset.

She told him "Tomorrow morning, I expect to find a gift in the driveway that goes from 0 to 200 in 6 seconds AND IT BETTER BE THERE !!"

The next morning he got up early and left for work. When his wife woke up, she looked out the window and sure enough there was a box gift-wrapped in the middle of the driveway.

Confused, the wife put on her robe and ran out to the driveway, brought the box back in the house.  She opened it and found a brand new bathroom scale.  Bob has been missing since Friday.

Flowers at the Ice Cream Man's House

"Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you". ~Nathaniel Hawthorne"

Strange Butterfly Facts
1.  Butterflies can not fly if their core body temperature is below 86 degrees.
2.  Butterflies can reach speeds of 12 mph,  some moths can reach speeds of 25 mph.
3.  Butterflies range in size from 1/8 inch to almost 12 inches.
4.  There are about 24,000 species of butterflies and about 140,000 species of moths.
5.  Butterflies can not hear, but they can sense vibrations.
6.. Butterflies can see red, blue, and green.

Humor for the day - Three small kids were bragging about how tough they were. “I’m so tough”, said the first little boy, “that I can wear out a pair of shoes in a week.” The second little boy said, “I’m so tough, I can wear out a pair of jeans in a day.” “That’s nothing”, said the third child. “When my parents take me to see my Grandma and Grandpa, I can wear them out in an hour."

Kayaking through the Outer Banks - Cape Lookout

"Those who would find solitude must not be afraid to stand alone." -- William Deresiewicz

This is the first year in a long time that I have not been able to make it to the beach.  So on this rainy day, I thought I would go back through my archives and post a few pictures I took last year kayaking through the Outer Banks of North Carolina.  I reached the coast on Friday Night, but I had about a 4 mile paddle out to Shackleford Banks so I decided to get a hotel for the night and head out first thing the next morning.   It was a great day to be paddling other than the fact that the tide was against me.  I reached the island and right away I saw one of the wild horses.   Shackleford Banks is home to about 100 wild horses.  About 400 years ago when settlers were heading to America, some would wreck in the shallow shoals of the Outer Banks.  The horses were often thrown over to try and lessen the weight and fortunately, some were able to swim ashore and survive the arid climate.  Shackleford Banks is about 9 miles long and tends to be the preferred island of the horses in the area.   The National Park Service tries to not manage the herd other than making sure the population stays a little over 100 horses, at which point they will put a few horses up for adoption.

Kayaking through the tidal channels was a pure pleasure.  I enjoyed floating around a corner and having the horses and birds around the next bend, neither of which giving you much attention.   The was is so shallow that boats can not get into the channels so it felt like I had the area all to myself.  

Todays Humor - Three old men are sittin' in their kayaks fishing a cove on a quiet Sunday morning when a funeral procession drives by. One of the old men takes off his hat & puts it over his heart. The procession winds its way around the cove and disappears over a hill. The old man puts his hat back on and continues fishing. One of the other old timers says "Geeze Ed, that was a thoughtful thing to do." Ed replies "It was the least I could do after 49 years of marriage." -Unknown Author

Macro shot of wasp on flower.

"The serpent, the king, the tiger, the stinging wasp, the small child, the dog owned by other people, and the fool: these seven ought not to be awakened from sleep.' - Chanakya

I caught this wasp enjoying food and the sun's warmth in between rain showers.  

Humor of the day - Eye-examination charts vary according to the manufacturer, but one thing they have in common is that they don't spell anything.
One day a patient came into my office for an ophthalmological exam. I asked him to read the 20/40 line of the eye chart, but obviously the letters FZBDE were mostly a blur to him. Finally he ventured a guess.
"I can't pronounce his name," the man said, "but I think he played football for Notre Dame."

Spring Flowers

"When you have worn out your shoes, the strength of the shoe leather has passed into the fiber of your body. I measure your health by the number of shoes and hats and clothes you have worn out." ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Spring was just hitting as we entered Atkins, VA. The green leaves and fresh blooms were a welcomed surprise as we left the high country and entered the lower elevations and milder climates.

Descent on Mt. Moosilauke in New Hampshire

In my previous entry I described the 1.6 miles down Mt. Moosilauke. I wanted to include a few photos of the cascades. For most of the way the trail ran parallel to the cascades, often with water splashing onto the trail making it slippery. This is the first part of the descent where the brook first joined the trail.

I had also mentioned steps to help make the path traversable, well this will give you an idea of the steps we encountered. I believe the design was to drill holes in the rock, epoxy rebar into the holes and then epoxy the timber onto the rebar. You would run into stretches of bare rock and most of the long and steep sections would have this system. There were a few places that did not have this system and it was easier to just slide down the rock on your read end.


This is one of the final cascades we encountered on the trail. I would love the opportunity to go back with my SLR camera and a photograph the waterfalls with a filter to allow more motion blur.

I had also mentioned earlier that someones parents had invited us to dinner. I recall ordering 8 wings and a large pan pizza. I believe I ate all but one piece which I had given away to someone that wanted to try a Hawaiian Pizza. The family was from North Carolina, so I asked them if they had driven to North Carolina and the daughter replied "No, that would have been crazy, it would have taken forever". My reply way, yeah, imagine trying to walk it.

Signs along the Appalachian Trail

I wanted to share a few signs I saw on the trail that were worthy of their own blog. Some signs are humorous, while others offer warnings of just how tough some sections of the trail can be.

If you ever get a trivia question that ask "What town did (blank) take place in during (either the Civil War or the American Revolution) and you do not know the answer, just say Harpers Ferry and you have a good chance of being right. It is probably best known for the abolitionist John Brown and his raid on the armory and arsenal to capture weapons to be used in free the slave in 1959. It seemed every building had some kind of sign or plaque stating something that at that point at some point in history. This sign was located on the balcony at the outfitter.



The Trail club used a little humor with this photo posted at an overlook offering views of Mt. Moosilauke. You can almost tell that this section of the trail is maintained by a college by the humor in the sign. I loved it.

You follow a series of cascades/waterfalls for the last 1.6 miles down Mt. Moosilauke. In order to try and make the trail navigable, there are a series of rebar, steps, and handholds to allow for traversing the step and hazardous terrain. Having already gone about 17 miles, including summitting Mt. Moosilauke, we were pretty tired and looking forward to camping at the shelter just before this 1.6 mile section. When we got to the shelter we learned that the others had moved on and that one of our friends had family in town and they had offered to take us to dinner. Sota called them and told them we would meet them at the parking area in about 30 minutes. When he told me 30 minutes, I asked him what part of step and treacherous did he not understand. So anyway we took of. It did take me about 55 minutes to reach the parking area, but I felt like I was flying. It did keep the adrenaline up, but it was very unnerving at the same time. I did stop a few times to snap a quick photo of the cascades.

Macro Photography, Flowers

“We say we love flowers, yet we pluck them. We say we love trees, yet we cut them down. And people still wonder why some are afraid when told they are loved.” - Unknown

I am going to miss taking photos of flowers this winter. I have started practicing indoor photography with a little DIY light box so I am guessing I will have to visit the florist this winter a few times at least.

I am not exactly sure what these flowers are. I do know that they only bloom during the day.

Flowers at Night

"I often think that the night is more alive and more richly colored than the day." ~Vincent Van Gogh

I went out tonight and played around with photographing flowers at night. This gave me some ideas for a few other things I want to try but this is my first attempt. I wish I had focused on the front of the flower, but I think this turned out ok for my first attempt.

Brice's Crossroads National Battlefield

"So you're the little woman that wrote the book that made this great war" - Abraham Lincoln upon meeting Harriet Beecher Stowe.>

On June 10, 1864, Nathan Bedford Forrest and his Confederate Army met General Samuel Sturgis and his Union Troops at Brice's Crossroads. While the battle was a success for the Confederate Army, it did divert the them away from their supply line and would eventually contribute to their defeat.

Brice's Crossroads is located near Baldwyn, MS about 20 minutes from Tupelo, MS. For more information on Brice's Crossroads please visit http://www.bricescrossroads.com

Few things are sweeter than a good watermelon.

"When one has tasted watermelons, he knows what the angels eat" - Mark Twain

On the trail there are many things you crave. Most people seemed to crave ice cream or cheeseburgers to begin with. Later on fruit seemed to be one of the most craved items. For me it was always watermelons. Usually when I arrived in town I would buy a watermelon, go outside to eat it, and then go in and do the rest of my grocery shopping.

When I was younger I used to help my grandfather raise watermelons and cantaloupes. Now my father and one of his friends raise them and I have been able to help out the last couple of weeks. I still think the best tasting watermelons are the ones you break open right in the field when you are ready for a break.

Appalachian Trail - West Virginia

"Always carry a small flask of whisky in case of a snakebite, and furthermore, always carry a small snake"- W.C. Fields

I was asked if I saw many snakes on the trail. I saw my first one in North Carolina just past Beech Gap. In Northern Virgina, West Virgina, and in Pennsylvania, I saw snakes on just about every sunny day. In Northern Pennsylvania I think I saw rattlesnakes on almost every sunny day. This is the only copperhead I saw on the trip and I saw it a few days before Harpers Ferry.

Backyard Antics

"In the beauty of nature lies the spirit of hope" - Unknown

I have missed having my SLR. I have missed its functions that allow you to be a bit more creative than I could be with my Panasonic FZ28. I played around some today in the backyard have a few pictures to show for it. I also have a few mosquito bites to show for it.