Home Again

We left home on June 30th and returned on November 8th – 20 weeks and what a trip that was.

Our goal this year was to stay put because of $4/gal gas prices and that we did. For a while in North Carolina gas wasn’t available to buy. This blog has chronicled a very interesting time for both Lois and me while we lived in Georgia and North Carolina.

As we were proceeding down the mountain from the Cradle of Forestry, Lois said, “I don’t have any regrets about what we did this summer.”

We both agree on that.

The weather here in Florida is great. We are glad to be home. All we have to do now is figure out what we are going to do next year.

EIU Takes North Carolina 42-0

This is how grandaughter Chase Cain looks when she is not on the Rugby field. She is a psych major with a goal of getting a master's so she can practice in the real world.

Playing with 12 other team members [the normal complement in rugby is 15], Chase and her team struggled against the University of North Carolina at the same Clemson field where they played Clemson three days ago. Chase and her team seem to have the fundamentals down, especially the single-wing formation where the players pass the ball back as they run toward the opposing goal [dropping the ball really messes it up].

The basic rules of rugby are not difficult. Just google "rugby rules" and you'll get a pile of responses. Rugby is 185 years old as a sport and is now played in 120 countries around the world.

So this ends a perfect season of 10 wins and 0 losses for Chase and her team. The 42-0 win over North Carolina was accomplished by 8 tries [grounding the ball in the opposing end zone for 5 points] and one good kick after [two points]. The kick after is not that easy, especially if the try is made toward the edge of the field [the place kick is always positioned out from the position of the scoring try, which becomes more difficult near the edges of the field].

We understand that only three of the EIU players are seniors, so Chase and 11 other players will be back next year. With all that experience at winning, next year's season should be looking good.

Army Corps of Engineers - Twin Lakes

We are at Clemson SC where Chase Cain is playing rugby for her school. Twin Lakes is only four miles from the Clemson campus, which is beautiful.

Twin Lakes is on the shore of Lake Hartwell which was created by the Corps of Engineers. It has 102 RV sites and we are in No. 5 which we obtained for $11, thanks to our Park Service Senior Pass. From the photo it is easy to see that the water level of Lake Hartwell is at least 10’ below where it should be.

This summer we have seen the same conditions at Lake Lanier in Georgia and Lake Fontana in North Carolina all of which are man-made bodies of water.

EIU Clobbers Clemson 72-0

Chase Cain greets Grandma Lois after the game.


A scrum in progress with the ref presiding. Ref makes sure no player is moving the ball with their hand.

The Eastern Illinois University lady Panthers maintained their winning rugby season [9 - 0] last night by clobbering the lady Tigers of Clemson 72 to zero, in spite of two serious scoring threats by Clemson. This was only the second time this season that Clemson lost, the first time being to Penn State last week.

EIU paid heavily for this win -- a broken nose, a dislocated shoulder and ankle sprains. For ten minutes of the second half EIU played with two less team mates.

Rugby players do not wear protective gear. They play two 40-minute halves and the clock is only stopped for injuries. Only lateral or backward passes are allowed, but forward kicking can be used to advance the ball as long as the kicker recovers. Most of the kicks we saw went out of bounds and the referee requires the teams to reset for an in-play maneuver.

A goal is 5 points and the subsequent kick through the goal posts is worth 2 points. A field goal is 3 points if the ball makes it between the goal posts and over the crossbar.

EIU’s last game of the season is against North Carolina University in a few days. The lady Panthers are hoping for a perfect season, according to our granddaughter, Chase Cain, captain of the team. Look for our report on this final game as well.

Gustavademecum #3

Out of a dozen or so candidate-restaurants where we did lunch in Brevard, Lois and I have discussed and agreed that Number 3 of our favorites is Dugans Pub , 106 E Main St. [828-862-6527 ]. What brought us back several times was the Rueben sandwich (which we split) and a pint of Guiness’ Harp lager on tap. Lois opted for Maker’s Mark which was unusual in a place where the suds were flowing.

We noticed that Dugan’s has it’s regulars who were there every time we happened to be there. We also noticed these regulars preferred a liquid lunch and a lot of talk.

Dugan’s in Brevard reminded us of the John Barleycorn pubs in Manhattan -- so typical of the Irish pubs but not at all typical of the pubs in the Emerald Isle. There’s lots to see on the walls and lots of accumulated dust on the ceiling and walls which adds something to the environment. The main bar is a smoking zone and the banners and flags on the ceiling have collected these pollutants over the years. The best place to eat and enjoy is the enclosed patio which is a non-smoking area.

The corned-beef in the Reuben is consistently top quality. The sauerkraut is also among the best we have ever eaten. Service from the wait staff is very good.

Sometime in 2009 Dugan’s Pub will be relocated to the new French Broad Building and the everything will be new, cleaned up and spic and span. Hopefully the food quality will remain high.

Gustavademecum #2

Square Root is a close second of our favorite places to eat, located at 10 Times Arcade Street, in Brevard [828- 884-6171]. Times Arcade Street is actually an alley between Main St. (Hwy 276) and Jordan St. where the Transylvania Times used to be published.

This old printing plant provides the perfect place to enjoy a meal. There are so many interesting features, e.g. the 6,000+ 4x4 wood blocks which forms the floor. You can read more about the decorative features of the place in the menu all of which adds interest.

We ate here more often that we visited our first choice. The salads, the soups and the sandwiches were all very well done and very tasty. Guiness Harp is served on tap. The total tab, including drinks, was in the $30 - $35 range.

The wait staff is all female, young and quite pleasant. They try to make a campy fashion statement, but the eye candy doesn’t make up for excellent service. They have the potential for improvement in that regard.

Having said that, we’d go back to the Square Root any time without hesitation.

Gustavademecum #1

This sign advertised a taxi service to speakeasies during the prohibition. The table next to the sign sits in an old alley during those days and we commend the owner for preserving this little piece of history.

Without a doubt our #1 choice for a restaurant in Brevard NC is The Falls Landing, 18 E Main St, [828-884-2835‎]. We don’t do dinners, as a rule, preferring a lunch which costs at least half of what a dinner does.

The Falls Landing is the longest standing restaurant in town; that speaks volumes. It’s a store-front place and we like the tasteful way it was redecorated. One noteworthy thing they did was preserve a sign from the days of prohibition, shown above.

What about the food? The fish -- trout and flounder -- is the best. We usually went with the luncheon specials and were never disappointed.

The wait staff is experienced and very friendly. For a twosome of foursome, this is our recommendation for a wonderful meal at reasonable prices.

Rugby's Chase Cain

The following story appeared in the October 29th issue of the Rockford Register Star and is quoted in its entirety:

Blowing out opponents by a 100-0 margin and roaring through the schedule with a perfect 8-0 mark would be enough to keep any team fired up week after week.But the women of the Eastern Illinois University rugby team — including three from the area, all in the starting lineup — are focused on a lot more than wins and losses.

As the first NCAA-sanctioned team, and considered pioneers for the sport in the college world, the Panthers are trying to pave the way for women rugby players of the future.

“Coach (Frank) Graziano always says we’re setting an example for all those who come after us. We’re kind of setting the pace for the rest of NCAA rugby, and that’s something to be proud of,” said EIU junior Chase Cain, a former four-sport, student-athlete at Jefferson.

“Plus, it’s just so much fun to play. I can’t believe how intense it is; it’s unlike anything I’ve ever done before.”

Cain, her former Jefferson softball teammate Emily Harrison, as well as North Boone graduate Sarah Sremaniak are all a part of something they never thought was possible. As members of the most influential team in the sport of women’s rugby, they are leaders in the purest form.

Eastern Illinois was the first to start an NCAA women’s rugby team back in 2002, and they were on the field last year and this year for the only two official college games the sport has ever seen. Up to a dozen colleges around the country have formed teams, but there have only been two games between two sanctioned squads, and the Panthers won both of them.

“I didn’t know anything about it. I just kind of got thrown in there and I picked it up. It’s very different from softball, that’s for sure,” said Harrison, a former special-mention all-conference catcher who also played some high school basketball.

“It’s really exciting to be a part of this.It’s something I never thought I’d do — play rugby, and be a pioneer.”

Eastern Illinois has been the most dominant team in college women’s rugby’s short history, and it has outscored its first eight foes of this season 528-39. The Panthers have left a 100-point shutout of Purdue and a 102-0 rout of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in their wake.

“We’re doing fairly well,” said Graziano, in his ninth year with the program. “Recruiting is the hardest part of rugby, but we’ve got some well-rounded athletes with that competitive spirit we always look for out there this year.“

Chase and Emily are perfect examples. They came over with no knowledge of the game, and they’ve grown right into it. They’ve taken on the challenge, and they haven’t backed down at all.”Cain is the team’s starting flankerback and is first on the squad in steals after tackle (10) and is the second-leading tackler (59) behind junior Stephanie Militello (76). Harrison, a sophomore flanker, has 16 tackles and has scored five points, while Sremaniak, a freshman halfback, has 17 tackles and also has notched five points.But even more important to them than the dominant numbers is the pride they feel when wearing the Panther uniform.

“It’s exploring the unknown, you know. And I get to tackle people; how cool is that?” Harrison said.

“When we all line up to go onto the field, and we’re standing there wearing our matching uniforms and all taped up and stuff, we know it’s intimidating. To be a part of a team like this is unbelievable.”

Last weekend’s game against Illinois was canceled, so the Panthers will get set to head to Clemson for a Nov. 5 matchup with the Tigers and a Nov. 8 showdown with North Carolina to wrap up the season. As of yet, there is no playoff format, nor is there enough teams to make up a conference championship bracket of any kind.But Graziano and his players feel like anything is possible in the future of college women’s rugby.

“I’d like to think we’re setting the model, so to speak, and that this can be successful,” Graziano said. “Eastern Illinois has shown everyone the way to go. These girls have been a great example of how it can work.”

Vibrant Volunteers

Pictured above are Barbara and Jack Merrell, caretakers of the Cradle of Forestry, at a dinner at the Pisgah Inn. Barbara, a retired high-school teacher, is in charge of all the volunteers. Jack, a former golf pro, is in charge of the food operation. They too are volunteers for the U.S. Forest Service.

Her we are, enjoying another meal together. We like volunteering.

V-aluable is the work you do.
O-utstanding how you always come through.
L-oyal, sincere and full of good cheer.
U-ntiring in your efforts throughout the year.
N-otable are the contributions you make.
T-rustworthy in every project you take.
E-ager to reach your every goal.
E-ffective in the way you fulfill your role.
R-eady with a smile like a shining star.
S-pecial and wonderful -- that’s what you are.

Author unknown.

Blue Ridge Blizzard

The upper photo is the Discovery Center covered in snow. The lower one is the volunteer RV area .

These photos were taken this morning by June Shaw who with her husband, Ron, has been a volunteer here at the Cradle of Forestry for three years. She took these great photos around the Discovery Center and RV area today.

We woke up this morning to snow, lots of it. The low temp overnight was 29 F.and the conditions were right for snow fall as the cold front rolled over the Blue Ridge at a pretty good clip.

The picture of our car and the motor home tells it like it is. There is an accumulation of at least 1.5 inches. We were told that snow like this has not happened here in a long time and we are about three weeks early for the first snow in these mountains.

It snowed for most of the morning and at least twice we had “white out” conditions as we watched the weather outside the front doors of the Discovery Center. By the middle of the afternoon, all the snow, and the excitement associated with it, were gone.

Trail of Tears

This is a photo of an oil painting by Robert Lindneaux which hangs in the Woolaroc Museum near Bartlesville OK. It depicts the 1,000-mile trek banishing the Cherokee people from No. Georgia in 1838. It could depict as well the similar treks to Oklahoma over the next 60 years forced on the Sioux from the Dakotas and the Apache from Arizona.

The term, trail of tears, generally refers to the route taken by the Cherokee Indians from North Georgia to the Indian territory in Oklahoma. It is also the title of a book by John Ehle (New York: Anchor Books, 1998, 397 pp.) which I have been reading from the Cradle of Forestry gift shop.

From 1795, when George Washington was president, the American policy was that native Americans should wear the white man’s clothing, learn the white man’s ways in school, including religion, and then, just maybe, the native American could be awarded citizenship in 50 years. It was not an enlightened policy of inclusion which should have respected the culture of native Americans.

The Cherokees had a sophisticated culture of their own. Women were respected and were the final authority in the Cherokee family structure. Men were also respected as providers, warriors and leaders. The social structure had many democratic features which worked well to maintain peace and social order.

The Cherokee nation, which inhabited northeast Georgia and the mountains of the Carolinas, assimilated the white man’s ways, lived in log lodges and reduced its language to written form, as Sequoya did with his syllabary. The irony was the Cherokees were the first to be removed from Georgia where over half of the eastern Cherokees lived.

When Andrew Jackson was fighting the Indian wars from Tennessee against the Creeks and the Choctaws, he hired Cherokee chiefs to recruit his forces and paid them handsomely to fight his battles. Later, when he was President of the United States, he openly plotted with Georgia leaders to banish the Cherokees from their lands, because a rich vein of gold was discovered in 1828 running from Dahlonega to the Nacoochee Valley, a distance of about 20 miles.

Population pressures caused by the gold rush and claims for deeded property and mining rights were so great that political leaders were forced to make choices. Indian nations owned land in common and no individual ever had a deed to where he lived. That's where the two cultures clashed and the Cherokees, far outnumbered by whites, were doomed to lose.

This is not a proud or happy story of early America, but it happened here where we have been this summer. Cherokees are alive an well in North Carolina, but gone in Georgia. We hope to visit Cherokee NC some day soon and tell about a little brighter side.

Lee's Walk in the Woods

Lee McMinn, part of the staff here at the Cradle of Forestry, gave a slide presentation the other evening, covering his walk in the woods from Maine to Harper’s Ferry WVA in the fall of 2007. Pictured here, Lee is a Forest Service employee who takes fees from visitors, since the Cradle is a fee area. Lee was the first person we met when we rolled in here with our motor home on September 1st.

Last year, 2007, Lee thru-hiked the northern half, more or less, of the Appalachian Trail [AT] from Mt. Katahdin, Maine, to Harper’s Ferry in a little over 90 days. He had hiked the southern half in four sections since 2003 from Mt. Springer GA northward.

Right up front, he made it clear he didn’t do it for any big existential reason -- finding God, himself or anything like that. He first saw the AT in the mid-1970’s and the idea of doing it all has been on his mind for 30 some years -- his personal “bucket list.”

“I guess you could say ‘because it was there’,” he told the group of about 18 of us Forest Service volunteers.

We’ve read Lee’s trail log of over 80 pages and understand his interest in hiking. Some days he got in 20 or more miles, we know from reading his log. He’ll hike during his lunch break and can get in at least a few miles. He hiked the AT alone, but found some compatible Kiwis, a couple, with whom he hiked during the majority of time on the trail. [We think that’s good because, regardless of skills, being alone on the trail is not a great idea.]

Lee divided the northern half of the AT into three parts, just like Julius Ceasar divided Gaul [Gallia est omis divisa in partes tres]. 1. Maine, 2. The diner-to-diner route and 3. The rest of it -- these are the three parts of Lee’s hike last year.

Maine was the most challenging and at the same time the most beautiful. The 100-Mile Wilderness, he feels, is a misnomer because much of it was a walk in the park and he has the photos to prove it. However, he warned, watch out for those mud-sucking bogs.

The diner-to-diner route runs from Massachusetts to the northeast corner of Pennsylvania. This is where “real food” is available.

“Wherever the AT crosses a road,” Lee said, “you could be sure there was a diner on the road within a half mile in either direction.”

The rest of it involved Pennsylvania and Maryland. Once past Boiling Springs, Pennsylvania, a lot of the trail was “walking between farmers’ fields.”

Lee’s presentation was well received and enjoyed immensely. The last photo Lee showed was on the bridge over the Potomac at Harper’s Ferry. I remember it well since Georgia and I were there not too many years ago when we biked the mule paths on the Cumberland Canal from Cumberland MD to downtown Washington DC. Thanks, Lee, for doing this!

Metamorphic Monarch

The photo above shows to Monarch Butterfly chrysales which are about 7/8ths of an inch in height and about a half inch in diameter. We have four of them left here at the front desk of the Discovery Center. This happens to be a hobby of June and Ron Shaw who protect 150 monarch eggs per year and nurtture them through the caterpillar and chrysalis stages. The visiting public spends a lot of time enjoying this every day.

What you see here is a monarch butterfly which has broken out of its chrysalis, which is immediately to the left of the beautiful creature, about three hours before this photo was taken. We have a display at the front desk and this former caterpillar decided to hang on a small branch about 25 days ago, the chrysalis gestation period.

This morning the chrysalis started to crack about 10 a.m. and it was hardly noticeable because the hatching starts at the bottom of the chrysalis. From the photo you can see how the monarch extends and hangs next to the empty shell for up to four hours before it is able to take its first flight. It takes that long for the hatchling to extend and dry out. You can see that the butterfly is about three times the height of the chrysalis after hanging for three hours, soaking up the sun and drying its outer skin which is necessary to enable flight.

This miracle of nature was awesome to watch today. The Shaw's have a very interesting presentation about their monarch hobby at http://shawadventures.com If you would like to learn more, please google Butterflies in Your Back Yard or TheButterflyPlace

Soaring Sourwood

One of the brightest trees around here, deserving special mention, is the Sourwood. They get really bright red and stand out against the yellow leaves of the Eastern Birch. The one pictured here is in front of the Caretaker's Cabin, facing the maintenance area.

We saw a nuthatch this afternoon -- our favorite winter bird which we do not see in Florida. Black and blue with a white breast, combined with the unusual ability to march head-first down a tree trunk -- no belaying necessary. Winter is coming soon, folks.

Hi Crimson Color

We are really into the high color season now. Lois and I took a ride up on the Blue Ridge Parkway today and this is what we saw at Milepost 415 or so near the Graveyard Fields turnoff which reminded us of a Chicago parking lot.

We met a couple from Hinsdale IL, a Chicago suburb, and they told us they had come from Front Royal VA, meaning they had done over 500 miles on this meandering parkway. They said this is the best color they have seen on their entire trip.

Birthday Boy 76

What a great day this has been! It has been a perfect fall day with sun and more fall colors. The one photo was taken directly out of our front windshield window. The colors are changing daily. Lois took the other photo inside our RV just to let you know what a 76-year-old looks like.

Creative Camping

Old-style camping was being demonstrated this weekend at the Cradle of Forestry by the Schiele Museum of Natural History in Gastonia NC. Old style means the way it was in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s -- Teddy Roosevelt style.

At this time in history, the Pisgah National Forest belonged to George W. Vanderbilt of the Biltmore House. Gifford Pinchot, the first chief of the U.S. Forest Service and Dr. Alwin Schenck, founder of the Biltmore Forestry School, both foresters hired by Mr. Vanderbilt, roamed these woods and slept under canvas in the fashion demonstrated by these re-enacters.

Sleeping under canvas was only one part of camping back in the day. Cooking over an open fire, created either by friction or flint and steel, camp stools and outdoor clothing of the day are some of the other parts. You won’t see matches, cellophane, plastics of any kind, or the camping gear found on the Internet; none of these products existed back then.

I had the pleasure of meeting David Wescott of Rexburg ID, author of “Camping in the Old Style.” Steve Watts, educator from The Schiele, who lives in Charlotte was there. I also chatted with the Conley’s of Columbia SC who are teachers in their real jobs and who like to do this for recreation. It sure looks like fun.

The photos show four styles of canvas shelters -- the wall tent, the wedge, the pyramid and the “whelen” -- a kind of forester-style lean to. You can see all kinds of personal gear, including candle lanterns which were used back in the day.

Wescott wrote his book to provide us with an alternative style of camping and having fun. Our gift shop didn’t have his book so I intend to buy one from amazon.com. I’ve seen bits of it; it looks like an old Scout handbook. Mr. Wescott has given me permission to publish his e-mail address, so feel free to contact him directly if you have questions or any trouble acquiring his book. dwescot@aol.com

Coming into Color

In the next few weeks, fall colors around here will be in their glory. The locals divide colors into low, medium and high.

Some trees are a brilliant red. The photo taken from the Blue Ridge Parkway might be classified as low color but that will all change quickly in the next few weeks.

Prof. Kobliha from Prague

Today I worked the fee gate ($5 USD is required for each adult) and had the pleasure of meeting Prof. Dr. Jaroslav Kobliha, head of the Department of Dendrology and Forest Tree Breeding, of the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, Czech Republic (www.czu.cz). He was escorted by a forestry professor from NC State and accompanied by two young Czech senior students who displayed a wonderful and friendly demeanor with excellent English.

The Czech forestry professionals are engaged with NC State in a forestry project of tree farming Frazier Firs for Christmas trees. Tree farming is popular farther north from here and the Czech people are also getting involved, looking to the universities as resources.

How appropriate, I thought! Here we have educators from the land of the Good King Wenceslaus learning with foresters here how to grow Christmas trees on a commercial basis.

Lois visited with them in the gift shop and told them how we had such a great time in Prague back in 1995.

As they were leaving, I had a chance to visit as I was on lunch break. I told them my family came from Burgenland (south from Bratislava and s.e. from Vienna) and that I had the pleasure of exploring Seewinkle. They recognized this preserve as being adjacent to Neusiedlersee in Austria. That made me happy to know that we shared common ground.

A day earlier we met a couple from The Netherlands who were visiting the Cradle of Forestry. We exchanged stories and talked about the American presidential campaign.

It is definitely a benefit of this volunteer job to meet people from other places who are visiting us here in the Cradle of Forestry.

Cold Mountain

Dot and Gentre may remember this -- Cold Mountain stands majestically to the west of where our road (Hwy 276) meets the Blue Ridge Parkway. We were there last night to enjoy a dinner at the Pisgah Inn and couldn't resist taking a few moments to enjoy the view as the sun was setting.

Cold Mountain is located within the Shining Rock Wilderness of the Pisgah National Forest about 15 miles (24 kilometers) southeast of Waynesville and 35 miles (56 kilometers) south of Asheville. The mountain lies completely within federal lands and is uninhabited. It rises to 6,030 feet (1,819 m) above sea level. It is the 40th tallest mountain in the eastern United States.

The mountain was made famous by the 1997 novel , "Cold Mountain," by Charles Frazier. A major motion picture based on the Civil War novel was distributed by Miramax Films in 2003. The movie was filmed in Romania and all this time we thought the location was West Virginia.

How wrong can one be?

Forest Festival Day

Today was Forest Festival Day and we all had to work. It was a day of high expectations, but fairly low results.

In previous years there have been as many as 4,000 people in attendance. Last year there were 1,700. This year, because of the gas shortage and the poor economy, we would be fortunate to have 1,000 (estimates among the staff were running between 600 and 1,000).

Lois and I were in the Cafe from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Then we were free for the rest of the day. All volunteers worked today and half had the morning and the other half had the afternoon shift.

The first thing we did was have cheeseburger-lunch outside, freshly cooked on this beautiful autumn day. The photo shows this food station was popular with long lines the whole time we were there.

The music program featured “The Hogtown Squealers” and the eclectic bluegrass of the “Quarter House.” We missed that because we were working. What you see in the photo is “The Dowden Sisters Band” with a bass, guitar, mandolin and banjo. The sound was good but we don’t know where the sisters are.

The third photo is where the biggest crowd gathered to watch traditional woodsmen skills competition between four colleges -- Montgomery Community College, Penn State Mont Alto, North Carolina State and Haywood Commmunity College, who hosted the event. Male and female competitors climbed poles, threw axes at a target, and cut logs.

Out of Gas

The entire southeast region of the country is low on gasoline, thanks to Hurricane Ike a few weeks ago. North Carolina was especially hit hard on the gas supply -- something to do with the routing of the pipelines from the refineries in east Texas and Louisianna.

We haven’t seen anything like this since the early 1970’s when the gas shortage caused long lines at the pump. Locally in Brevard, 15 miles away down the mountain, the police were out to direct traffic and prevent people from cutting in ahead of people in line.

Needless to say, we haven’t gone anywhere in order to conserve. It has been rather pleasant up here on the mountain, but we had to go down this morning in order to get groceries. Only two gas stations in Brevard had gas and we had no trouble getting a half tank to top off.

The newscasters tell us this gas shortage may go on for a while. We are prepared to hang out here on the mountain for another week or more.

The Healing Forest

People have known for thousands of years that plants from the forest can be used to treat injuries and cure diseases. Knowledge of the healing properties of herbs, bark, twigs and flowers has been handed down through the generations.

There are many ways to prepare plants for use as medicine. Some used in early America are as follows:

Infusion: Prepared by pouring boiling water over fresh or dried herbs and allowed to steep, then drunk as tea or used as a wash. For example, an infusion of wild cherry bark was used by the Cherokees for the treatment of “yellow”.

Poultice: A mixture of bread, milk and herbs was applied to cuts, bites and wounds.

Plaster: Herbs were ground and mixed into a paste, then aapplied to the chest or back to relieve pain or a cold.

Decoction: Fresh or dried herbs, bark or twigs were boiled in water to extract medicine. For example, the Cherokees treated a child’s stomach ailment by bathing the child in water in which the barks of sassafras, flowering dogwood, service and black gum trees had been steeped.

Storing these medicines in early America was done with oil, tinctures or salves. Oil was usually olive oil and the preparation was done like sun tea. Tincture was done with alcohol, like rum, or pure alcohol in which the herbs were allowed to steep for weeks. Salves were made by frying herbs in lard or butter, then removing the herbs and storing the greasy substance in crocks.

The trick is to know which herbs for which purpose; we don't know. We have excellent doctors.

The photo in this posting is what we see every day from our motor home. We never tire of it.

Gas Guzzling

This view of the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina was taken by Dot and Gentre from their room at the Pisgah Inn (milepost 405). We have seen many such views, simply beautiful, but this week things are different. THERE IS NO GAS TO GO SEE THESE VIEWS.

We just came from a Brevard shopping trip, which we combined with a nice lunch at the “Square Root” but we could find no gas. We both had a pint of Harp lager, so we didn’t get all upset about it.

We understand this is happening all over North Carolina because of Hurricane Ike which hit the offshore platforms and refineries in Texas. Other areas if the nation are similarly afflicted.

So we are sticking close to the motor home at The Cradle of Forestry until this crisis blows over. It may take weeks, but fortunately we have enough gas to tide us over.

What's a Board Foot?

Because my Dad and Grandpa Fischer from Austria were carpenters, I often heard the expression, “board foot.” Years ago, lumber used in building houses was bought by the board foot.

The number, 12, is key. A foot measure is 12 linear inches. A board foot is 12 cubic inches. For example, a board 1”x 12” and 1” thick is one board foot.

A regular 2”x 4” stud, used in building a house, is eight feet (96”) long and contains 768 cubic inches or 64 board feet (768/12).

A board foot is equal in volume to a square foot of lumber 1" thick.
A square foot of lumber/flooring, etc. would be 12" x 12" (or similar dimensions totaling 144 square inches), but could be of any thickness.
If you know the thickness, you could calculate the board footage from the square footage. Flooring may be sold by the square foot, since that is the measurement you are likely to take when you are calculating the size of the area to be covered, so it's a convenient unit of measure for floor coverings.
Visit the lumber calculator at www.woodweb.com/Resources/RSCalculators.html

1st Forest School Founder

The volunteers at the Cradle of Forestry are given a book about the founder of the first school of Forestry in America and it happens to be an autobiography. The following is a precis of the book with footnotes which I wrote as time allowed:

Carl Alwin Schenck, PhD
Founder, Biltmore Forest School

Carl Alwin Schenck, “unquestionably one of the most individualistic, distinctive and colorful personalities that has thus far appeared on the leadership scene of American Forestry,”[1] was born in Darmstadt, Germany[2] on March 25,1868,[3] “the sickliest of five boys.”[4] During his adolescence, Schenck chose a career in forestry and his family encouraged it, thinking it would improve his lung condition.[5]

At age 18, he was graduated from the Darmstadt Institute of Technology. In the spring of 1887, he began attending forestry school at the University of Tübingen,[6] but a near drowning incident cut that short. His next move in 1888 was forestry school at the University of Giessen, where one of his physics teachers was Wilhelm Konrad Roentgen, discoverer of the X-ray.[7] He also studied law at Giessen and “barely” passed the state exam.[8] Early in 1895, at age 26, Schenck obtained his Ph.D. degree from the University of Giessen.[9]

Not long thereafter, while vacationing with his uncle on the French Riviera, Schenck received a cable from George W. Vanderbilt, reading, “Are you willing to come to America and to take charge of my forestry interests in western North Carolina?”[10]

Schenck arrived in New York on April 5, 1895[11] and took a train to the Bilmore.[12] In due time he met Mr. Vanderbilt[13] at dinner in his temporary residence while Biltmore House was under construction and “not for a moment was forestry discussed.”[14] Such discussion was saved for the business meeting at 10 a.m. the next day.[15]

“Vanderbilt was most kind,” Schenck wrote. “My annual salary was to be $2,500. I would be provided with two saddle horses and their feed. I would have the fine old country place theretofore occupied by Baron d’Allinge. I would be allowed a leave of absence for three months in 1896 and thereafter two months every second year in order that I might complete my military duties as a lieutenant in the German army.”[16]

With George Vanderbilt’s permission, the Biltmore Forest School, the first such in America, was opened in the fall of 1898.[17] There were daily lectures from 9:30 to 11:30, followed by trips to the field in the afternoon.[18]

Dr. Schenck wrote: “When the school was founded, I voluntarily promised Vanderbilt that, since my salary was paid for by him, I would turn over to him half of any surplus receipts that I might obtain from the school or any other work done by me outside the estate. The latter work contemplated expert advice in forestry, expert services at courts of law, or services as an agent of forestry with the federal Division of Forestry...”[19

When he left Biltmore at age 41, Dr. Schenk summarized his accomplishments during his 14-year employment:
· “established the first school of forestry in America.
· “established in Biltmore Forest the first private forestry in America.
· “protected the 100,000 acres of Pisgah Forest and grew it in value.
· “proved that forestry and lumbering are inseperable.
· “wrote a number of books on forestry, including textbooks.[20]
· “secured for North Carolina laws favorable to forestry.”[21]

Dr. Schenk took the Biltmore Forest School with him to Darmstadt where he immediately obtained an assistant professor position at Darmstadt Tech.[22] He continued to operate the Biltmore Forest School until the fall of 1913 when Dr. Schenck returned to the German army to serve on the eastern front.[23]

In 14 years, 300 of Dr. Schenck’s students completed the course work of the Biltmore Forest School and more than half went into forestry work. “His contribution to the fledgling profession of forestry was undeniable,” wrote Steven Anderson, president of the Forest History Society.[24]

After WWI he continued traveling the USA and Europe until he was forced to return home again in 1939 with the onslaught of WWII. He resumed his work and travels in the 1940's and was appointed by the U.S. military government as chief forester of the new American state of Hessen. He died on May 17 1955 at age 87. He is regarded as one of the foremost pioneers of forestry in the USA and Europe.[25]

The information for this biosketch was excerpted mainly from Dr. Schenck’s autobiography, entitled “The Cradle of Forestry in America” (1998:Forest History Society, Durham NC).

FOOTNOTES
[1] p. vii, Joseph Illick, SUNY @ Syracuse
[2] p. 2
[3] p. 3, & UNC @ Asheville, Schenck Award Bio
[4] p. 2
[5] p. 3
[6] p. 2
[7] p. 3
[8] p. 4
[9] p. 16
[10] p. 17
[11] p.18
[12] p. 23
[13] p.31
[14] p.32
[15] p.33
[16] p.33
[17] p. 77
[18] p. 78
[19] p. 78
[20] p. 175
[21] p. 176, selected Schenck bibliogrpahy is on p. 211.
[22] p. 178
[23] p. v
[24] p. ii
[25] UNC @ Asheville, Schenck Award Bio

Railroading Reduced

In Bryson City NC there is a model railroad musem which we got to visit because the entrance fee is included in the price of our train ticket. The photos here show a model RR setup which is the largest we have ever seen. Nothing like this would ever fit in one’s house.

In addition to the operating trains shown in the photos, there were displays over every kind of American locomotive known. It was a veery impressive display

Take the Train

Today was train day -- that is The Great Smokey Mountain Railway train. It leaves Bryson City NC daily at 10:30 a.m. and slowly makes its way across Lake Fontana (shown in the top photo) and up the Nantahala River Gorge where lots of folks get off and raft back down the Nantahala River which advertises Class 2 and 3 rapids, but they looked more like Class 1 and 2 to me (bottom photo). The train arrives back in Bryson City about 3 p.m.

Lois enjoyed the day as you can plainly see (middle photo).

Gentre made the arrangements. He is so good at that sort of thing. He chose the right thing out of four options -- open car where you might press on benches against some of the fattest asses alive, closed passenger car where one can sit two-by-two more comfortably, club car and dining car. Gentre chose the club car for us and we each had a table and comfortable seating. Included in the price were non-alcoholic drinks, danish, fruit, cheeses, crackers and small pretzels. Way to go, Gentre!

Powering the train was a diesel locomotive. It was slow because the tracks had speed restrictions. We didn’t mind that at all. We were there for a fun ride, not to break any records.

For lunch we stopped at the Nantahala Outdoor Center where one can rent kayaks or white-water rafts. They gave us one hour to purchase a sandwich and chips and overemphasized that we would be left behind if we were not back on the train by two o’clock. We didn’t mind because there is always someone in the crowd who doesn’t get it.

For more on white water in this area see: http://www.noc.com/
For more on the train stuff: http://www.gsmr.com/

Making MOVIES

I often thought that one of the neatest jobs in the world would be location scout for the movies. All one has to do is travel around and find good photogenic places to film a movie.

Chimney Rock and the gorge bearing the same name has been the location for movies. For example, the great scenery here stole the show in the 1992 remake of James Fenimore Cooper’s “The Last of the Mohicans.” This has been enjoying a rerun recently on the cable movie channels.

Down in the valley, “Dirty Dancing,” filmed in the l980’s, we believe, starring Patrick Swazey, was done in the resort building shown here in the photo on the shore of Lake Lure.

This certainly is a beautiful part of the world.

Cool Chimney Rock

This was one of Dot and Gentre’s targets for their trip and they mentioned Georgia had put them on to this place. HOWEVER, it is prominently mentioned and advertised in the AAA guide. We might have eventually visited here, as it is about 50 miles away. What a breathtaking bunch of scenery!

Until May of 2007, Chimney Rock was privately owned by the Morse family for more than four generations. The State of North Carolina bought it and it is now known as Chimney Rock State Park. They wouldn’t recognize my federal Senior Pass. Darn!

This terrain was formed by the rocky Broad River. We crossed the river at the entrance (1,040’ alt) and drove to the parking lot (2,280’ -260’). The 260’ is the height of the elevator which took us through the rock to the Sky Lounge. There is a tunnel through the rock which is at least as long. All this work was done years ago with dynamite and hand tools.

The Chimney Rock itself is 315’ high and stands at 2,280’ overlooking a beautiful valley. Simply breathtaking!

Another feature of the park is Hickory Nut Falls which is 404’ high, and claimed to be higher than Niagara Falls. Niagara must be the gold standard because a lot of falls around here and north Georgia are compared to Niagara in some way or other.

We couldn’t see the the falls from Chimney Rock. To see the falls, Dot and Gentre took the two-mile hike there and back, which they seemed to enjoy. I enjoyed the afternoon nap.

For more about this awesome piece of landscape: http://www.chimneyrockpark.com/

Canvassing Connemara

While Dot and Gentre were visiting us here in Western North Carolina, they had selected some places to visit and we were glad they did, because we wanted to visit these places as well. One of these was CONNEMARA in Flat Rock NC -- just south of Hendersonville about 35 miles from The Cradle of Forestry.

This was the last home of Carl Sandburg -- poet, minstrel, lecturer, biographer (Lincoln) and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. Sandburg was born in Galesburg IL, worked for the Chicago Sun Times and received many honorary degrees for his literary work. The irony was he only finished eight grades of formal education.

Carl was 67 years old when he purchased Connemara for $45,000 in 1945. Twenty-two years later, his wife, Lillian, sold it to the National Park Service for $200,000 -- a pre-arranged transaction. To many of us, Carl Sandburg remains an inspiration to many, especially those of us who like to write.

Carl had emassed a collection of 14,000 books for reference. The place was like a time capsule, as if the Sandburg family had just gone out for a stroll before we got there.

It was Lillian who discovered this mountain farm which had everything the family needed or wanted for their champion goat herd and seclusion for Carl’s writing. Carl would do all-nighters most of the time, sleep until lunch, correspond in the afternoon and make dinner the highlight social hour of the day. It was here, between the ages of 67 and 89, that he produced his best work, including the last four of the six-volume Lincoln biography.

The place was built by Christopher Memminger, treasurer of the Confederate States of America, in 1838 -- ironic for the most comprehensive biographer of Abraham Lincoln, the leader of the other side in the American Civil War. Connemara was the name given to this place by the second owner, Ellison Smyth, a textile tycoon, to celebrate his Irish ancestry. Carl and Lillian were the third owners.

Needless to say, we thoroughly enjoyed this visit.