Organ Mountains near Las Cruces, NM

Las Cruces, New Mexico, is located in the valley of the Rio Grande River and sits astride Interstate 25 and U.S. 70. One of its key features are the Organ Mountains to the east of the city. The Organ Mountains are so-called because from a distance they resemble the pipes of a huge organ.

Located in a desert, the mountains rise from the valley floor in an environment with only low-growing shrubs. The effect is a different perspective from any other mountains we've seen on this trip. 

These mountains are located on the western edge of White Sands Missile Range. While cattle graze the lower slopes, further into the mountains one can find ibyx and oryx. These two species brought from Africa where they were threatened with extinction have thrived here and are now considered game animals in New Mexico. 

The pictures of the mountains were photographed looking east.  The windmill was photographed from the same spot looking west toward Las Cruces and the Rio Grande valley.

This blog page is about space--very big, open space--commonly known as west Texas! Those of us from North Dakota talk about distance and open spaces. West Texas must compare somewhere between North Dakota and Australia . 

The pictures today were taken around Fort Stockton, TX, the only town of significant size on Interstate 10 for hundreds of miles. As you look across these great, arid distances you see windmills, not wind machines to produce electricity, but old-fashioned windmills to pump water for livestock and an occasional family dwelling. If you find Fort Stockton on the Texas map you will find that there are no communities of any size to the south to the Mexican border, very few to the west, most of the way to San Antonio. In North Dakota, the advice is to keep your gas tank half full or better.  Here the advice would be to have an extra tank!

The area is desert. The pictures indicate some of the common vegetation. ND has cactus, but nothing like these. They are everywhere. Yuccas can be 10 or 12 feet tall. The succulent with the long leaves grew near our RV park just east of Fort Stockton. Evidence of oil production is everywhere.

It's pretty clear that if you live here, you'll be close to nature and its whims.

The Gunboat - U.S.S. Cairo

Within Vicksburg National Military Park, the gunboat U.S.S. Cairo is the centerpiece off a Museum dedicated to the contribution that the Federalist Navy and gunboats like the Cairo made to the battle of Vicksburg. 

The Cairo was one of several similar iron-clad gunboats built specifically for use on the Mississippi. They were shallow-draft, flat-bottom, wooden structures with iron-clad bow and sides. Their armor was effective against even direct hits from the side but the ships were vulnerable to shells dropped onto their upper deck or torpedos exploded beneath them. On December 12, 1862, the Cairo and several other vessels were on maneuvers in the Yazoo River north of Vicksburg, when the Cairo was hit by two Confederate torpedos. The torpedos were detonated from land by Confederate troops. The Cairo sank in 12 minutes. Fortunately, none of the crew were lost. They were picked up by other vessels in the battle group. 

The sunken remains of the Cairo were discovered and lifted from the bottom of the Yazoo one hundred years later on December 12, 1962. The ship was quite well preserved because it was quickly covered by river silt. The reconstructed hull with boilers and a replica of the paddlewheel are on display at Cairo Museum. The upper part of the ship has been rebuilt; the lower part consists mostly of the original timbers. 

The Museum contains a wealth of artifacts recovered from the ship, including a bottle of ammonia with its contents intact and cooking condiments that were considered still safe to use but of questionable quality.

The Battle of Vicksburg

The Battle of Vicksburg was one of the definitive battles of the Civil War. The Federalist victory at Vicksburg gave the Union control of the key Mississippi River ports and divided Confederate states. Lincoln called the taking of Vicksburg a "key" to winning the War. 

Preliminary maneuvers by troops led by General Grant (see picture of the General on horseback) in preparation for the taking of Vicksburg began in January 1863. Serious fighting began in May, continued intermittently until Grant decided he would be unable to take the city by conventional military attack and put Vicksburg under siege.  The siege lasted 47 days and ended with the surrender of Confederate forces on July 4, 1863.

The military cemetery within the Park contains the graves of over 15,000 Union casualties. Over 13,000 of them are unidentified. Confederate casualties were buried in a private cemetery outside of the Park.

The monument is a tribute to Minnesota soldiers who fought in the battle. There are many monuments throughout the Park identifying military units from many states. The Park covers over 1800 acres and includes most of the area on which the Battle of Vicksburg was actually fought. Many cannon emplacements remain in the Park in actual battle positions, like the one pictured.

Augusta Museum of History

In the annual Holiday Gingerbread Village competition at the Augusta Museum of History, judges select winning gingerbread houses. Entries are created from an approved list of historic buildings. The winning creations are chosen based on their overall appearance originality, creativity, precision, difficulty, and consistency of historic theme.

The creations pictured include an historic home in Waynes- boro, GA. The other pictures include the boyhood home of President Woodrow Wilson, the old clubhouse at the Augusta National, and a local church. 

Tree Trimming in Augusta, GA

We arrived in Augusta November 20 and spent several days exploring the area with Anita's brother Dan. Augusta is growing and it is surely helpful to have a long-time resident show us around. Thanksgiving in Augusta was our first truly planned stop on this trip.

One of the things we did was to help Dan remove a tree from his back yard. Dan has a nicely landscaped back yard with close to a dozen big yellow pine trees. He has thinned them out some over the years.  The little tree we removed was too close to the neighbor's fence and over the neighbor's garage. 

Dan's neighbor, Gary, also helped. The tree was relatively small compared to other trees in the yard but it was still quite tall. We trimmed out some lower limbs, tied the trunk into the large pine tree beside it, and tied it off to another pine tree. Then we cut the tree off at the base and began to lower it with the rope, removing top limbs as we could reach them from Gary's garage roof. 

It went pretty well, all things considered. We did manage to leave Dan with some cleanup to do after we left.  

Mountain Farm Museum

On our drive through Smoky Mountain National Park, we stopped to visit the Mountain Farm Museum. It's a recreation of a typical Appalachian farm in the 1800s. The buildings were moved from various locations in the area.  

The house was made of huge split logs. Joints were simply covered by boards fastened to the inside of the logs. Cooking and heat were provided by wood burning fireplaces. The farm was essentially a subsistence operation. Everything that a family needed to live on was produced by the family living on the farm. While these families were able to provide nearly everything they needed, it is important to note that every aspect of this subsistence existence was labor intensive.

The apple room (essentially what those of us in more northern climates would call a root cellar) was a primary food storage facility. Apples were a staple for these Appalachian farm families.

There were two other crops that played key roles in the lifestyle on these farms. One was corn; the other was sweet sorghum. Corn provided a food source for the family as well as most of their livestock. Sweet sorghum was grown and used to produce molasses. Molasses substituted for sugar. The picture shows the device used to boil sorghum syrup down to molasses.  

Livestock includes hogs and chickens mainly. Hogs were a primary source of meat and other byproducts such as lard. Chickens produced eggs and were also a source for meat.

An adequate drinking water source was critical for these families. The Farm Museum had a spring as a fresh water source.  A fenced gardens provided a variety of additional food products for the family.

The Biltmore House is western North Carolina's premier tourist attraction. It would be wherever it was located. Built by the Vanderbilt family, the house was built over a six-year period from 1889-1895. It is four stories above ground--including public rooms, family quarters, guest rooms, and servant quarters. Below ground are laundry, kitchen, food storage, a bowling alley, swimming pool, and a gym. 

Even more amazing is the quantity of precious art works in the house. There are paintings, tapestries, sculptures, and furniture produced from around the world created by famous artisans and artists or owned by well-known historical figures. (No pictures were allowed in the Mansion.)

The mansion is part of an 8000 acre site which the Vanderbilts intended as an operating estate. At one time that plan included a world-class dairy operation plus other farming endeavors as well as gardens. The dairy has been converted to a state-of-the-art winery which continues to produce award-winning wines. While we were on the estate, they were harvesting corn.

The fountain shown is at the opposite end of the long front drive to the house. 

The Vanderbilts opened the house to the public in the 1930s in an effort to attract visitors to the area and create jobs during the Depression. The family still owns the property and continues to open additional sections of the mansion to the public.  

While we visited, the house was decorated beautifully for Christmas, including a harpist playing Christmas music in the entry hall. A real 40-foot Christmas tree in the main dining room will be replaced at the end of the month with another freshly cut tree for the Christmas month. Many other Christmas trees adorned the house.

Visitors can take a self-guided tour or rent an audio tour. We recommend the latter. The mansion has a fascinating history and the details are in the audio.

Sites along the Blue Ridge Parkway

Along the Blue Ridge Parkway, there are bridges, arches, and walls built of native rock such as you can see in the first picture. While the stonemasons aren't identified, their work is beautiful and consistent along the Parkway. 

The cabin in the second picture was the home of "Aunt" Orelena Hawks Puckett who began a life's work of delivering babies in 1890 when she was past 50.  She lived to be 102 years old. She delivered over a thousand children. She was married at age 16 but none of her own 24 children survived infancy. 

Notice the rail fence around her cabin.  This type of fence is frequently seen along the Parkway.

Mabry Mill was a lumber mill, grist mill, and a carpentry shop which was built and operated by the Mabry family. The Park Service rebuilt it authentically many years after the Mabry's left the area. The mill is in a beautiful setting. It was so still when we visited, that the picture includes a wonderful mirror image of the mill. Included on the site are farm implements from many years ago, a still for making corn whiskey, and a sorghum mill for making molasses. 

The Beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway

The Blue Ridge Parkway has to be one of the most scenic drives in America. Running from Waynesboro, VA, to Asheville, NC, it winds through the heart of Appalachia. "Winds" in the operative word because the roadway is two lanes wide and follows the contour of the mountain slopes. It is beautifully maintained with frequent observation points to allow visitors full enjoyment of some truly incredible vistas. 

While we were a bit late to catch the prime fall colors, we still able to capture some breathtaking scenery. 

The Parkway is not a national park. It is a scenic byway with private homes viewable from the roadway. The Park Service maintains the rest areas and some historic sites along the Parkway. 

Every mile provides multiple photo opportunities.

Arlington National Cemetery

A visit to Arlington National Cemetery reminds us of the price of our freedom. That seems particularly appropriate a few days before an important national election. It's a quiet, even reverent place with thousands of headstones marking the graves of many of those who have served.

Arlington also includes a reverent spot where John Kennedy, his wife Jackie, and two of their infants are buried.  We were reminded that the Kennedys lost a baby just a few months before the President was assassinated. Robert Kennedy's tomb is also close by. The guards were insistent that visitors remain quiet and reverent near these graves. A number of members of the Kennedy family visited the graves while we were at Arlington.

The Tomb of the Unknowns--see the inscription--is impressive.  We witnessed a "reflagging" ceremony while there.  That involves placement of a wreath near the tomb in a spectacular but solemn ceremony which ends with the playing of Taps.  

National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

On the feast of All Saints, we chose to visit the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on the campus of the Catholic University of America. The Shrine is very beautiful. There are hundreds of mosaics, tapestries, and other works of art in the Basilica. There are many smaller chapels throughout the church each dedicated to a different saint.  The Crypt Church, which is on the lower level, is a larger chapel, where occasionally there is a Latin Mass.

It was serendipitous that we visited on November 1. We were able to attend a solemn High Mass with Archbishop Petro Sambi as celebrant and homilist. He is the apostolic nuncio to the United States. In layman's terms, as we understand it, he is the Pope's emissary to our country.  

The Mass was magnificent, including a dozen priests, a full choir accompanied by the Cathedral's massive pipe organ, and an ethnically diverse group of worshippers.

Major Attractions--Washington, DC

The nation's capital city is the site of some of our most well-known monuments and buildings. We hardly need to say more. Here you will see four of the best known: The Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the White House, and the Capitol. It is inspiring to visit these sites. It is common to hear many languages spoken near these historic sites. The fall is a great time to visit because the crowds are 

small and the 

fall colors 

are gorgeous!

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial

On every trip to Washington, we visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. There are over 58,000 names of soldiers who died in Vietnam on the wall. On each visit, one always sees at least one Vietnam veteran mourning his comrades and family members mourning their loved one. It's never an easy visit.

The statue marking the park entrance, shows three young soldiers. The Memorial Guide told a tour group near us that the average age of Vietnam soldiers was 19.  

The final picture shows the name on the monument of Tom's youngest brother, Gerald Anthony Decker, who died in Vietnam in April 1969. He was killed by misguided friendly fire during a night engagement with enemy forces.