And the North Platte River runs through it. We needed a brake from our contagion pod so we went to this park in Wyoming.
View from the “Castle”
This was a very nice state park, and the best part was that there were very few people in the park. We think that the park was recently opened so there were very few camping reservations made this week.
Duncan Madog on the Oregon Trail
In the town of Guernsey near the park there are the deep wagon ruts where practically every wagon from here to California passed through this point.
Back in 1990 we went to Venice. From the top viewing port of St. Mark’s Campanile in the Piazza San Marco we could see the roof of the magnificent Doge’s Palace.
Hillbilly Shack?
Maybe the caretaker built this and lives there. Not sure if it is still there today.
In Tipperary A long long way to “The Rock” of Cashel and lots of the Irish High Cross pictures. “The Rock of Cashel is an ancient royal site of the kings of Munster and first attained importance as a fortress. Its origins as a centre of power go back to the 4th or 5th centuries”
Ross Castle We were here in 2017 and took a boat out to Innisfallin. Look here for that post.
Scanllion’s Place The Scanllion’s B&B was our post while in the town on Dingle and as it was near the inlet of the Dingle Harbor, they (The Scanllions) were excited because you could see a dolphin swimming in the inlet. I don’t thing the town had a name for it, but eventually they settled on the name of “Fungi”. (It’s the nickname of a local fisherman, they say)
OK; 3433/173741 = 1.98 ! The index is rising! This is NOT good.
The Reach These pics are out of sequence; This is Tides Reach in the Mumbles. The headland is thought by some to have been named by French sailors, after the shape of the two anthropomorphic islands which comprise the headland: the word “Mumbles” may be a corruption of the French les mamelles, meaning “the breasts.”
Dingle Banjo When we were in Dingle we stopped in at O’Flaherty’s Pub. It’s the place I played banjo with two young uilleann pipers.
On Worm’s Head OK, this was Alison’s idea to go to the Gower Peninsula in Wales, UK (also known as the Mumbles). She read a novel by Susan Howatch called “Wheel of Fortune” where the main character goes out to the “Worm’s Head”. SO we trecked out to the ‘Head and made it back alive.
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Merrion Hall This trip we went to Ireland and Wales with our friends Alison and Pietro. My notes say it took a long flight from Boston to London and then a short 55 minute flight to Dublin then taxi to Merrion Hall to meet our friends in the guest hallway. Note: The Merrion Hall is a former Plymouth Brethren church built by Alfred Gresham Jones and completed in 1863 that was located near Merrion Square in Dublin, Ireland. It has been reconstructed and renovated and is now a hotel but the facade has been retained. We took a taxi to Donahue’s Pub to listen to some music but left early because of all the tobacco smoke (It is 1992 after all). Spent first night in Dublin at The Merrion.Trinity College The next morning (October 12, 1992) leaving the Merrion we took a bus to the city center Dublin and to the college bookstore to get a notebook to write vacation notes. Saw also the Book of Kells, a fancy book I remember learning about in art class. Next, went on a rather long journey to get the car hire.We picked up a 4-door Toyota Carrola around 1:30 PM and raced out of town!
That’s Naas The above ruin was sometimes called St. David’s Castle, and sometimes called King John’s Castle, dates from about 1200. I can’t imagine anyone living there, but you can see a TV antenna sticking out from the roof. It’s in the town of Naas, where we stopped on the way to Kilkenny for food.
Bregagh on Dean Street, Kilkenny Got into Kilkenny about 3:30 and took a look around with a walking tour before we go to our place for the night, the Bregagh. Kilkenny Castle Killkenny was an overnight stop for us, but the town was rich in history. Apparently the Butler family dynasty originated here. Our guide told us that Michael Butler, the producer of Hair is related somehow. Michael was the famous person in Oakbrook, Illinois who I remember while growing up in nearby Villa Park. In 1993 Mr. Butler left Oakbrook for good, never to return!Hey, I brought a banjo on this trip! After we got our things to the B&B and parked the car, we set out to the pubs for some “action”. I brought my banjo: This would be the first time for me in a pub in Ireland. It works like this: If you want all the free beer you can drink, just bring a musical instrument to an Irish pub.At John Cleere’s The musicians hid out in the corner and were treated like royalty. We played until the place “closed” and then kept going because: Ireland. At the time, the John Cleere was a lively little pub, a nice place for the locals to gather and have a pint and listen to music. I learned that a few years after I played there they added a 100-seat theatre to the back of the pub. Since then, it has been at the heart of every major arts festival in Kilkenny and become a cultural institution in its own right.
Away from “The Cut” and a few days in LondonSept 13,1999
Note: Everything posted is in reverse order, so what you see in this little travel log starts with the end of the trip first. Just deal with it.
The Hotel Sept. 13, 1999 – Checked into the Luxham Gardens apartments; much nicer than the first night in London. Had dinner near Earl’s Court. Circus That evening after dinner we went to Picadilly and saw the movie “Austin Pawers – The Spy Who Loved Me”
London Near St. Margaret’s near Westminster. We checked out the walking tour of Whitehall with emphasis on: 1)The Banquet House. We took an audio tour and viewed the video on the history of the building. It was not a big tourist attraction so it was a pleasant place to stop. 2) The Cabinet War Rooms. This was the WW II bunker that housed the U.K. cabinet under Whitehall Street.
Tube Escalator After the war room, we had lunch at the Weslian Church school cafeteria. Later we purchased half priced tickets to “The History of America” by the Reduced Shakespear Company. Sept 15, took the tube to the airport: End of vacation on the cut!
2475/141854 = 1.74 !
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Dorothy Cranking Dorothy was the head chef and always the first one out of the boat to operate the locks. Her husband Jeremy gave her an aluminum crank handle for her birthday one year because the steel ones were getting too heavy to carry. If we ever borrowed the handle, we were warned not to leave it at the locks! Apparently Jeremy had a large collection of steel cranks he found abandoned at the locks after 20 years of sailing.Jeanne of the Locks The boat is either lifted or lowered depending on your location and the terrain will determine how it will be. In some cases if the water levels in some areas is so great that using a hydraulic lock system is prohibited, a large mechanical lift would be used like the Falkirk Wheel in Scotland. We were not in Scotland so NO WHEEL FOR US!Emily Pondering As Emily was an avid reader she was quite happy to see the rather large library in a canal boat measuring 65 feet long by 6 feet wide. Somehow all of us got along well, but Emily, not a big fan of camping remarked at the end of our journey that the experience was the best vacation she ever had and she would NEVER do it again!
Jim & Jeanne in the “salon” As this boat’s dimensions meant that space was a premium, the concept sort of can relate to living in a “Tiny House” world. Our dining table converted into a bed in the evening and the shower stall was also the toilet stall and sink. Don’t ask how that worked.Jim & Jeremy at the stern The Unicorn is not a horse drawn boat like they were in the 19th century but powered by a diesel engine. This was an older boat that didn’t have extra motors to propel the boat from side to side called “bow thrusters” . A Bow Thruster is an additional aid to manoeuvring a boat. It provides a boost to make the bow/front go port/left or starboard/right without even moving the tiller and without throttling backward or forward. As Jeremy says “Real men don’t use Bow Thrusters!”Roger being himself Roger basically kept us smiling this whole trip as he often found an interesting way of detailing our experience. He was also a good friend to us all.St. Michael’s Church We took a break in the town of Marbury and when we arrived, we heard bells chiming in the distance. As we followed the sound of the bells, when we entered St. Michael’s church yard, the bells stopped. We saw some people leaving the church an found out that these folks were the ones pulling the bell chords. They were practicing for a country wide bell chorus that was planned for the new year (You remember Y2K?)Hungery Visitor Floating swan and duck food is the best possible feed for any wildfowl. This is because, like all animals there are certain foods that are designed for them which suit them much better. For instance, corn, grapes, oats, wheat, lettuce, vegetable trimmings and peas are all much more suitable. So our little vacation on the cut was ending soon. The next day we sailed to our ending point in the town of Nantwitch and said good by to our friends. A cab ride to the town of Crew and then the train to London.
2211/123428 = 1.79 ! So why is the index going up?
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The 1999 journey along the canals of England and Wales
Over the cut Sept. 9: Aboard the boat– sort of like camping. The head (bathroom) was tiny, and the toilet was one of those chemical types. The water tank on the boat was extra large so everyone could take a shower if he/she wanted, but few did, at least for the first days. The itinerary was to keep on the Llangollen canal and visit “Chirk Castle” A Float Above We were in luck to have chartered this boat when we did. Starting off on the Llangollen canal proved to be one of the best points to embark and since this trip starts wherever the boat is at any particular time our time was now! First day on the journey we came up to the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. This 18-arched stone and cast iron structure is for use by narrowboats and was completed in 1805 having taken ten years to design and build. It is the longest aqueduct in Great Britain and the highest canal aqueduct in the world. View out of the boat We are floating at a maximum speed of 3 miles per hour so it was not very hard to jump ship and climb down toward the base of the aqueduct to take this picture. Actually we could easily walk along side the boat and view the countryside with ease. Note: When getting back on board, it is important to “Mind the Gap”: You wouldn’t want to get your foot caught in between the boat and the edge of the cut. And a tunnel Too! Not too far from the aqueduct was a tunnel! Called the Whitehouses Tunnel, it was completed between 1795 and 1802. and one of the first tunnels in Britain, that has a towpath all through it, is wide enough for one boat, and is 191 yards (about 175 metres) long. Not too long so you could see any other boat on the other side! Next: On to the town of Chirk.
928/65201, index = 1.42
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Downtown Chester“The Rows” In London September 6, 1999 and spent a sleepless night at a hotel where the noise level was high with all sorts of activity all night. Sounded like there was a belly dance studio next door, then a drunk woman was screaming until someone called the police, and then workmen started pounding on something for hours until 4 a.m. We were to greet our friends Roger, Emily, and Gloria the next day, but someone nicked Gloria’s purse and she had to get to the passport office. Since Roger, Emily and Gloria would be busy most of the day, we decided to get out of town and get to the meeting place a day earlier. We took the train to Chester that morning.
Dee River We found a quiet B&B in Chester and purchased a city bus tour since we would be in town for an extra day. The Eastgate Chester’s most recognisable landmark, the Eastgate is the original entrance to the Roman fortress of Deva. Chester was founded in AD 70 as the Roman fortress of Deva Victrix. Tree? Standing next to a weird tree trunk someplace in England. Plas Newydd Note the extra letters in the above. We met our friends the next day in Chester and took a cab to the town of Llangollen, Wales. From there we will meet up with Dorthy and Jeremy who own a canal boat. But first we’re going to check out the town.
Valle Crucis Abbey Valle Crucis Abbey was founded in 1201 by Madog ap Gruffydd Maelor, on the site of a temporary wooden church and was the last Cistercian monastery to be built in Wales. Roger and I saw the ruins way up on a hillside and decided we would hike up there and take a look. (Note that our corgi Duncan Madog used the name due to his Welsh heritage)
Canal Boat There is a canal in Llangollen and on the way back from the abbey, Roger and I took a short ride on this horse drawn canal boat, So tomorrow we start our adventure “On the Cut”.
Castle Edinburgh Set upon its mighty rock, Edinburgh Castle’s strategic advantage is clear. Seeing the site’s military potential, Iron Age people built a hill fort on the rock. So far, so good, but in 1639 the castle was captured in just 30 minutes, so just saying…
Holyrood Abbey Holyrood Abbey is a ruined abbey of the Canons Regular in Edinburgh, Scotland. The abbey was founded in 1128 by King David I.
The Royal Mile Kind of like Michigan Avenue in Chicago, but lots older. The mile refers to the mile between the castle and Holyrood Palace.
Jeanne at the castle Melville “Set in a magical Scottish landscape of rivers, woodlands & enchanting pathways Melville Castle is the ideal place to escape from it all and enter into a Christmas Wonderland; a ‘home from home’ in the stunning Melville Castle. “
Our room at the castle OK, we spent three nights in a castle. Please note that old castles will not have the usual amenities us ‘Mericans tend to expect while on vacation. Still, quite charming and fun, like camping in a solid tent.
We at the castle It looks like I set the camera up for a 10 second timer shot and then ran over to the couch and tried to look ‘natural’. Jeanne looks great.
Castle pipers There was a wedding reception on one of the nights that we were there so we had the pipers out near the entrance to greet the parties. Note: There was a bar in the castle dungeon that seemed to never close.
Castle Bill I kept this bill because of the list of services offered by the hotel staff. Note that you could have rented a dog! Also, we paid 20 Scottish Pounds per night (maybe $30 US) in 1978. Castle Dog We didn’t rent this dog. In 1978 we were cat people and didn’t have a dog until we got Duncan Madog. Duncan’s a good dog! Yes he is!
It’s St. Patrick’s Day and the parade has been canceled. The toll is 85 as of today, Index = 1.82.
There’s this big national park in Kilarney and on this day of our visit we had the most beautiful weather. And while this was the high tourist season, there were not that many people in the park.
Boat out to the island
OK, see there are some tourists, but not many of them took the boat out to the island.
Banjo on the island
At the abbey ruins on Innisfallen Island it seems that we had the whole place to ourselves. We took some paths around the island and finally saw some other people who were lost (sort of like us).
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Ross castle
Boat out to the island
Banjo on the island