Mount Rushmore

I've thought and thought about how to bring the essence of Mount Rushmore into this post.  I don't think it's possible.  Not even with the best photo equipment in the world.  It's that awesome.  It's the epitome of  "You have to see it to believe it".  Believe me.  You have to see it to believe it.

But I fired up my humble but trusty little camera and forged ahead.  These are colored photographs although it's difficult to tell.  It was an overcast day and the forecast called for snow turning to rain but we didn't know that until it was too late to turn back.   Fortunately, we arrived during a little "bubble" of sun which blessed us until we left the park.  Then it rained.  And rained.  Luck?  Somebody up there?  A little of both?

This first photo is really the back of the second photo, if you know what I mean.   What's so interesting is that if you look closely at the second photo (or click on it to enlarge it), you'll see the side of George Washington's face! 

Like this...and this is interesting...the plan was to put Thomas Jefferson on the left of Washington but there wasn't enough granite in the proper configuration to carve a head there.  So they carved him on the right.  Did you know that George Washington's head is as tall as a six-story building!

In any case,  we drove around the curve and we were there - at Mount Rushmore!   A perfect time of the year for us because there were very few visitors.  We were also fortunate in that we arrived 20 minutes before the park closed.   It was crunch time!  Not a moment to lose. 

The entrance is impressive.  And the closer you walk the more amazing it becomes.   It's quite magnificent.  This is the Avenue of the Flags...56 of them representing the states, districts, commonwealths and territories of the United States of America.

Each year more than 3 Million people visit Mount Rushmore National Park. That's more than three times the number of people who actually live in the entire state of South Dakota!

In 1923 South Dakota state historian, Doane Robinson, conceived this idea as a way to attract visitors to the Black Hills.   This was the gateway to the West and he and a group of backers approached sculptor Gutzon Borglum to carve a parade of Indian leaders and American explorers who shaped the frontier.  Obviously, that plan was revised...

Borglum had carved a Confederate memorial on Stone Mountain in Georgia in 1915.  He was an experienced carver of granite and that's what the Black Hills of South Dakota are...granite.  Work began on October 4, 1927 and ended October 31, 1941.  Fourteen years. 

These are photos of two exhibits inside the visitor's center.  They put this huge task into perspective, I think.  Especially the second photo.

There is a wealth of information at the official Mount Rushmore website.  My first impression of the website was that it had little information.  I was wrong...it's all there.  You've just got to explore all of the links.

For example, under the HISTORY AND CULTURE tab, you'll find a tab for Stories which explains why these four Presidents - George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt - were chosen for the memorial.  Well, alright, I'll tell you.  Borglum chose these four leaders because they "brought the nation from colonial times into the 20th century".  But there's much more...

Some trivia?  Well, did you know...

• 90% of the heads were carved with dynamite.There were nearly 400 workers who helped create this memorial.
• Total cost of memorial was $989, 992.32.
• No one died during the carving of the memorial.
• Rate of erosion of heads: 1 inch every 10,000 years.
• Mount Rushmore is 5,725 feet tall.
• Mount Rushmore was named in 1885 for New York lawyer Charles E. Rushmore.
• The mountain is made of Harney Peak granite.

My source for most of this information is the brochure that we received when we entered the park.  But there's a wonderful pdf student guide HERE which was my source for this trivia.

In the end, I'm so glad we took this detour on our way back home from Washington.  With summers so nice at Lake Mary, we're not likely to travel anywhere until the end of the season.  We are thinking of visiting Yellowstone National Park at the end of August or first part of September.  Either that or we'll visit the East coast...I've never been to Maine and I understand that Autumn in New England is not to be missed.
 
Something to ponder...

Lake Mary via the Black Hills of South Dakota

Back home.  Lake Mary is looking good.   We came home to warmth and sunny skies and gentle breezes which was not the forecast when we left Washington.  A pleasant surprise, for sure.

It would have been an uneventful journey if we had not taken a spur-of-the-moment side trip to the Black Hills of South Dakota.   I say spur of the moment because that's exactly what it was.

Our conversation:

Jack:   "We can be home by about 10 p.m. if we just keep driving".  "Or we can head down to the Black Hills."

Well, I kind of wanted to see the Crazy Horse project and revisit Mount Rushmore.  I'll tell you this, my friends, the Black Hills are mighty awesome.

Me:  "Whatever you decide is fine with me."

Jack:  "No, you decide"

Me:  "No, you...you're the one driving...it's up to you."

Jack:  "Let's flip a coin."

Me:  "Good thinking.  You call it and I'll flip."

Jack:  Heads...the Black Hills; Tails...home

So I flipped a quarter.  It landed in Jack's empty coffee cup.  It was heads.

So off we went.  First stop was the Crazy Horse project.  What a fabulous site that is. Who was  Crazy Horse and why is there a monument to him being carved in the Black Hills of South Dakota, you ask?

Well, it's a mountain carving in honor of all American Indians and their heroes.  It was commissioned by Lakota Chief Henry Standing Bear in 1939.  The sculptor, Korczak Ziolkowski had captured the first prize at the 1939 World's Fair for his Study of an Immortal - a statue of Paderewski.  So Standing Bear invited him to the Black Hills to carve Crazy Horse.

Standing Bear said, "My fellow chiefs and I would like the white man to know the red man has great heroes, also."

 In 1947, Korczak accepted the invitation and started work in 1948.

Korczak was a poor child of Polish descent who was born in Boston, orphaned when he was only one year old and lived his childhood in foster homes.   He was a self-taught artist who was almost 40 years old when he began this project.   He had very little money and struggled through financial hardship, but believed  in the free enterprise system and twice refused offers of federal funding.

This is a bronze casting of the statue.  It is meant to depict the spirit of Crazy Horse more than his actual likeness.  His left arm is stretched out pointing to "My lands where my dead lie buried."

To put it mildly, it was a difficult time for all American Indian tribes.   The Treaty of 1868 said, in effect:

"As long as rivers run and grass grows and trees bear leaves, Paha Sapa - the Black Hills of Dakota - will forever be the sacred land of the Sioux Indians."

But that treaty (among others) was broken and the tribes were left without their sacred lands.   Crazy Horse defended his people and their way of life until he was stabbed in the back by an American soldier.  He died  September 6, 1877.  He was about 35 years old.

When completed The carving will be 641 feet long and 363 feet high in the round!   His head is 87-1/2 feet high and his arm will be 263 feet.  The horse's head will be 219 feet high...that's 22 stories!!

I'm including link to the Crazy Horse Memorial website.  There's an excellent page on the Story of the Crazy Horse Memorial with lots of pictures and links.  This photo is actually a photo of a photo that's hanging in the museum!

Seven of Korczak and Ruth Ziolkowski's ten children are continuing the work on their father's Crazy Horse Dream.  Watch the short video showing some of the blasting on the mountain, the interior of the Indian Museum of North America.  You'll see pictures of Korczak, as well.

We were there only an hour of so because we still wanted to visit Mount Rushmore.  It was late afternoon and the National Park was closing at 5:00 p.m.   We got there with twenty minutes to spare!

Tomorrow...Mount Rushmore.  Stay tuned.

Chateau Poulet - A Postscript

Well, we've left Bainbridge Island and are feeling just a bit ambivalent...sad to leave family and friends but eager to get back to Lake Mary.  This is a shot of our dock on a foggy day last fall.  Spring is my favorite time of the year at Lake Mary.  Everything is fresh and new.  Can hardly wait to see what's coming up in our gardens. 

So yesterday Linda (of Chateau Poulet) left a comment on my Farmers' Market post.   They had a wonderful trip to Bali (who wouldn't??) and I'm sure they're happy to be back home, too.

She likes the blog (blush/yay!).   But...and this is important to me...she clarified some of my observations which I'd like to pass on.  In a nutshell, here's the scoop in Linda's own words with a couple of links from me:

"The Chateau Poulet sign (from Out and About at Chateau Poulet) was done by my best friend, Wendy, and was photographed and published in the NY Times travel section last year in an article on Bainbridge."

How cool is that?  The article is quite interesting and the Chateau Poulet sign is included in this  SLIDE SHOW.

"Cannery Cove is indeed the name of the end of Eagle Harbor (islanders also call the 'End of the Bay'. " 

So I wasn't mistaken about that.  This next bit about the house that was moved is also fascinating.  The cable show wasn't Move That House, however...it was Monster Moves which is a BBC show.  It was Season 4, Episode 6.  I checked to see if I could download the episode but it's not available at the moment.  Darn.  Now back to Linda...

"The house that was moved there over a year ago is the big gray one across from the water (on your left going into town) with all the black plastic holding the earth down in front. The move took place at 4PM on the highest tide day of the year and was filmed for a BBC documentary.

"They had a food and wine stand there all day as many people were very interested. The house sat perched on a barge and they kept moving it closer as the day (and tide) proceeded. And then the house sat up on stilts and scaffolding while they waited for permits that took a long time coming. Apparently there were also well issues as the digging drained the neighbor's well above them. Fortunately it was all settled in a friendly fashion, not always the case on this small island!!"

Here is LINK to an article about the adventure that was published in the "Bainbridge Island Review".   You really ought to read it...it's incredible how it all transpired.

There's a photograph of the house on the barge.  According to the article, it was moved during the year's highest tide and they only had 90 minutes to get it off the barge an onto the property or the barge would get mired in the mud! 

And then Linda gave me a chuckle with the following:

Sorry the chicken roundup was difficult. I have just gotten good at it and the "new" girls are not completely trained in. It is useful for one person to "herd" and the other to open and close the door, so the ducks and the other girls don't wander out.

They are happily free-ranging as I type. And Roger Ramjet (the rooster) has gotten very territorial and nasty. He had better behave or he may become stew!!!

Roger Ramjet...don't you just love that?  Any guy would have a big ego with a name like that!  I'm kind of hoping he doesn't become stew. 

This will probably be my last post until we're back home.  I've got so many blogs to read when I finally settle back in my little cozy office.  Catching up is going to be a priority. 

And gardening.  Ironically, the past month the weather in Minnesota has been warmer than the weather in Washington.  Guess what...a cold front is moving down from Canada.  Guess where...Minnesota.  Oh well...

Stay tuned...

Ebb Tide

There is a cove in Eagle Harbor that we drive by every time we go into or return from Winslow.   This is a picture of it.  Pretty?  Yes.

It's around a bend at the very end of the harbor where the ferry docks are - not sure how far in...maybe a couple of miles. There's a large sign propped up against a fence across from this bay that reads, "Save Cannery Cove" so I'm thinking that it's called  Cannery Cove.  Although, possibly not.  Cannery Cove is around here somewhere, I do know that.

I did a little online research and learned that in the early 1900's the land around this cove (which is also known as Strawberry Cove) was cleared by Japanese workers so they could grow strawberries which required little capital.   Sakakichi  Sumiyoshi  purchased the land in 1909.  The business grew so well that he hired workers from Canada to come pick the berries.  In 1923 a strawberry canning plant was built.  It operated successfully until 1941 when the Japanese were deported to internment camps.  A sad time, indeed.

My source for this information is a blog called Bainbridge Shoreline Homeowners and the post is very interesting reading.

What's my point?  Well, if this is indeed Cannery Cove, it's a lovely tranquil cove when the tide is in (as you can see by the top photo).  

But when the tide is out?  It's really a mud flat.  That's a lot of mud!  Boats are literally stranded there until the tide is in, again.  Notice the tall trees on the left side of each photo?   Since I obviously didn't take care to photograph from the same vantage point, this is the only way to tell that it's the same cove.

I don't know about you but I found that to be intriguing.    And every time we drive around that cove, I think about how much of the sea is washing in and out twice a day.   Maybe I'm just easily amused.

A UPS driver who stopped by one day told me that there's a house at that end of the harbor that was moved from another part of the island and it had to be brought over the water.  It was for an episode of that cable television show "Move That House".

Can you imagine having to schedule that move so the tide was well and truly in?   It's really just gossip and I have not verified the story, of course, but it sounds plausible since that show revolves around moving massive homes under the most difficult circumstances.

Anyway, I have very much enjoyed watching this simple act of nature.  It makes me think of the old Frank Sinatra song  "Ebb Tide"...

First the tide rushes in
Plants a kiss on the shore
Then rolls out to sea
And the sea is very still once more

I'm probably going to have that tune running through my mind the rest of the day. But that's fine...it's a pretty song.

The Ultimate Arboreteum - The Beautiful Bloedel Gardens of Bainbridge Island

The Gate House

If you are ever in Bainbridge Island, Washington you must visit The Bloedel Reserve .  Although we've been to the island at least once a year for the past five years or so, we visited for the first time, yesterday.

The weather couldn't have been more perfect...sunny, warm (sort of), no wind.

The only downside was that I neglected to bring extra batteries for the camera.  Was a little worried that the we might run out of battery before we finished the entire tour.   Big mistake.  It's about a two hour tour so it was important to be selective.   Still got some nice shots, though.  Be sure to click on each one to enlarge it...you won't believe the difference it can make.

The Visitor Center (formerly the residence)

This beautiful abode used to be a private home in an area known as Agate Point.  In 1951 Prentice and Virginia Bloedel acquired the 150 acre property and proceeded to transform it into a beautiful botanical garden by creating ponds, beautiful lawns, gardens and arbors - much like an arboretum.

Fast forward to 1974 when the Bloedels created and endowed The Arbor Fund.  In 1985, the fund purchased the property and continues to protect and maintain The Bloedel Reserve for the enjoyment of everyone who is lucky enough to visit.

We were greeted by a lovely woman at the Gate House and purchased our tickets ($8. each - a real steal, in my opinion.)   They have a little booklet you can borrow for your self-guided tour.  We set off.  Our walk began at "The Meadow"...

 ...where the Bloedels had their sheep!  There's a photo in the Visitor Center to prove it.  There's a barn there that is now a maintenance building but still has that "old barn" spirit.  No sheep anymore, of course.   After passing through the meadow, we followed a bark covered trail and descended into a deeply wooded area...

...which led us to the Bird Marsh or Bird Refuge.   I didn't snap any photos of the Bird Marsh because we had barely started our walk...I had visions of running out of batteries any second.  I should have taken at least one, though, because the Bird Marsh is wonderful.  Reminiscent of a rain garden, I thought.  All is not lost...you can see four or five photos HERE.  (You'll be glad you clicked that link, I promise.)

The original pond in the bird refuge was used as a source of water for the gardens.  It was ultimately expanded which resulted in an excellent wild-life refuge and natural wetlands.  Plantings were chosen to provide food and shelter for the wildlife and the ponds were stocked with trout to attract heron and kingfishers.  Little islands of undisturbed soil were left as nesting places for birds and water fowl.  The ponds were dredged deep enough to keep predators like raccoons from reaching the nests.

From the Bird Marsh we crossed this pretty trestle bridge...

...and descended into a vast second-growth forest and more wetlands lush with grasses and ferns and flowers and old moss covered logs.

Believe it or not, the plant that produces this beautiful yellow flower is called Skunk Cabbage!  I can't get my mind around that one.  Supposedly, it has an odor (didn't smell anything but then we didn't get that close!) and it generates enough heat to melt snow around it.  Actually, it has another name...Swamp Lantern.  I like that much better.

...we walked through a forest of ferns...and crossed a boardwalk...

 ...into more wetlands. 

I don't know what this strange looking striped plant is.  Was going to call the visitor center to see if anyone could tell me but they were closed.  I googled native plants of the Pacific Northwest and looked at a LOT of photos but couldn't find a match...nada.  If I figure it out, I'll post an addendum.  It's way cooler "in person", I can tell you that.

NOTE:  We signed the online guestbook and I left a message with a link to this post asking to be advised of any corrections that I might need to make.  (After all, I want to be as accurate as possible.)  Anyway, I received a very gracious reply and am told that the striped plant is a native plant Equisetum Hyernale otherwise known as Horsetails!  They are an ancient plant and are quite invasive.  By golly, they DO sort of look like horsetails, don't they?

There is moss everywhere!!!

We came to the end of the wooded area and entered into a bright open space approaching the Visitors' Center.  This is the Mid Pond which is really between the visitors' center and the Japanese Garden.  It's lovely.

We arrived at the Visitors' Center...stepped inside to see the photographs which tell the story of the Reserve and visited with two very nice docents.  They answered our questions patiently and then sent us on our way.  The building is surrounded by beautiful trees like this magnolia tree, a copper beech, lots of maple trees and rhododendrons just to name a few.   And it overlooks the harbor.  It's a stunning view and I wish I had taken photos there.

After we left the Visitors' Center we walked down to this waterfall and the Swan pond...sadly we did not see any swans but there are photos of them on the website.

This bridge took us on a winding path...

...past some lovely trees...these are Himilayan white birch trees...

...and gorgeous flowers and shrubs...

One of the most beautiful gardens is the Japanese garden...this is the Stroll Garden which is absolutely beautiful to walk or stroll through.  It's peaceful.  I took this photo from the deck of the guest house (which I did not photograph but if you look HERE you'll be amazed at the scope of this breathtaking garden).

This is the entrance to the Meditation Garden...

The Meditation Garden or Stone Garden is an example of a Zen Garden.

After leaving the Japanese Garden we followed the bark path to the Moss Garden.  To quote the self-guided tour information...

"To create the moss cover, 2200 flats of Irish moss (Sagina subulata) were brought in.  Those flats were cut into little cubes, amounting to 275,000 starts, which were planted about six inches apart, creating a temporary “moss” floor for the garden. The native true mosses then invaded the Irish moss and crowded most of it out in time..."

In all honesty, these photos do not do the Moss Garden justice.  You really ought to follow this LINK at the Bloedel Reserve website for some really excellent photos of this amazing garden.  Really.

One more garden to go!  It's the Reflection Pool.  It was Mrs. Bloedel's favorite garden and it's where she and Mr. Bloedel are buried.  It's so beautiful in its simplicity.

That is a bench at the far end.  Be sure to enlarge this by clicking on the photo for a much better perspective.

The pool itself is about 200 feet long.  The plan took two years to develop and involved studying the water table so the water in the pool could be at that exact level.  The pool level is maintained by natural springs.    Apparently the concrete curb simply holds the turf away from the water.  Isn't that interesting?

After leaving the Reflection Pool we followed this bark path...

...and ended our walk back at the meadow.   We both agreed that it was a wonderful experience and we'd do it again in a heartbeat.  Maybe next trip.

The philosophy and purpose of The Bloedel Reserve reads (in part) that "The Bloedel Reserve is intended to be a place where people may find refreshment and tranquility in the presence of natural beauty."

That it does.

Two Flowers and a Pier

We took a quick trip into Edmonds, Washington on Wednesday for lunch and shopping with my sisters and brother-in-law.  It's a ferry ride between Kingston (on the Olympic Peninsula) about 1/2 hour from here to Edmonds.  Had lunch at Claire's Pantry just a block or two from ferry and then shopped 'til we dropped!

I took that first photograph as we were walking across the bridge from the ferry.  I think it's interesting...wonder whatever happened to the old pier?

The next shot is intesting, too...it's artwork in the sidewalks of this shopping district.  On all the corners.  Brass and mother-of-pearl (I think) compose this leafy/floral design.  It kind of reminds me of seaweed.  But maybe it's not.  What do you think?  If you click on the photo you'll have a much better view and you can even enlarge it further by clicking on the plus (+) icon.

Meanwhile, I thought I'd also share a flower or two with you...these are in the "secret garden" here.  It's really not a secret garden.  I just think it sounds nice.

Today we're going to visit the very beautiful Bloedel Reserve and Gardens here on Bainbridge Island.  It's a gorgeous day and I want to take advantage of it.  Lots of photo opportunities not to be missed so this is the day to do that.

Have a great weekend.  I hope it's all sunny and warm wherever you are.

Happy Tax Day?

Weather Vane at Chateau Poulet

"Indoors or out, no one relaxes in March, that month of wind and taxes, the wind will presently disappear, the taxes last us all the year."  ~Ogden Nash

So it's Tax Day.  Sometimes it's happy and sometimes it isn't but whadda ya gonna do?  Nobody likes taxes.  Nobody likes PAYING taxes but we're all pretty cheery if we get something back at the end of the year.  I know they say that the best scenario is to break even.   Wonder how often that happens?

Nobody likes going to the dentist, either, but if you don't you could find yourself in a lot of trouble.

So in "honor" of this special day I'm posting a few humorous quotes by a few noteworthy people.  Everybody has an opinion...Enjoy.

"Did you ever notice that when you put the words "The" and "IRS" together, it spells "THEIRS?"  ~Author Unknown

"I owe the government $3,400 in taxes. So I sent them two hammers and a toilet seat." - Michael McShane

"You must pay taxes.  But there's no law that says you gotta leave a tip."  ~Morgan Stanley advertisement

And this might be my all time favorite...

“Isn't it appropriate that the month of the tax begins with April Fool's Day and ends with cries of "May Day!"?”

Wishing everyone a day of breaking even...

Free Range Chickens (or A Roundup Gone Awry)

It all started when we decided to let the chickens out of the chicken house for the afternoon.

We were told that every once in awhile on a nice sunny day it's a good idea to let them out of the chicken yard to roam for a few hours.  The day we came to stay the entire feathery flock was out roaming around the yard and we had to stop the car in the lane because there were probably 30 chickens milling about.  I still don't know how many there are but there are a LOT.

 
We were met in the lane by the lady of the house who very smoothly (with outstretched arms) walked toward the flock and guided them into the fenced area and then into the chicken yard.  She said that at the end of the day the "girls" all want to go back into their living quarters so they're easy to collect.  They go willingly.  In fact, they're eager to get back to their little house.  All ya gotta do is stretch out your arms and walk slowly toward them and they'll just all gather together and march back home.  Easy as pie.  We were impressed.

So today we did that...let them all out into the fresh sunshine so they could roam freely.  Free range in action.  They were loving it.

They were loving it so much that they did NOT want to go back in.   We absolutely followed the correct procedure to the letter but the "girls" were having none of it.  No indeedy, they ran hither and yon and no amount of pleading and arm stretching could convince them that it was time to return to their little nests.

We managed to herd (is that the right word?) most of them to the chicken yard door (the one I closed behind me, if you remember that episode).  Opened the door and tried to shoo them in.  Most of them cooperated but a half dozen of them took off in the opposite direction and the ducks (who are not allowed out of the chicken yard because they can fly) got out.  That was not a good thing.

They scurried here and there with us right behind them.  I even tried to bribe them with a little of the chicken scratch that they love so much that they practically kill each other trying to get at it when we sprinkle it in their pen.

Then, to add insult to injury, that rascally rooster took after me as I was trying to get the hens out from under the chicken house.   I was not pleased.

By the time we got everyone but two back into captivity, we were well and truly pooped.   The last two had crawled under the fence gate and were scampering around the driveway.  We finally managed to corner them.  Jack picked them up and I lifted up the roof of the nesting boxes and we plunked them down inside.

So that's the end of that!    No more Mr. and Mrs. Nice Guy...those girls are grounded for the rest of our stay.

NOTE:  I took these pictures when we first let them out.  I wanted to take more as we were putting them back but needless to say we had our hands full so that didn't happen.