This is Part 2 of a post I began earlier in the week. That one focused on a dinner featuring items from England and the Netherlands in the 14th and 15th centuries. This one follows up with a lunch item and a dessert option. If you haven't read that one to understand why I was…Read more Medieval Camp Cooking (Part 2)
History
Smithsonian Udvar-Hazy Center
Today I'm going to prioritize the "Flying" part of my persona - it's been extremely hot this week (over 100 deg F for 4 consecutive days), the humidity is up, it's just not comfortable. So in lieu of an outdoor trip the family and I decided to go visit the Udvar-Hazy Center, an extension of…Read more Smithsonian Udvar-Hazy Center
Dayhike: Paw Paw Tunnel, C&O Canal, MD
The Chesapeake and Ohio (C&O) Canal was built in the late 1700's and through the early 1800's to connect the goods and citizens on the East Coast of a young United States to what was then the western frontier, beyond the Blue Ridge and Allegheny Mountains. The utility of the canal was overcome by railroads…Read more Dayhike: Paw Paw Tunnel, C&O Canal, MD
Dam 5, Potomac River, C&O Canal
Dam 5, C&O Canal towpath along the Potomac River. Built in 1835, the dam raised the river level enough to fill 22 miles of the canal. It's a great place to stop and rest after a day of biking the towpath!
Gettysburg Dawn
After dense fog and rain for most of the trip, our final morning at Gettysburg dawned clear, cold, and beautiful. Get Out There http://www.flying-squirrel.org
Gettysburg Camp
Not a wilderness shot - but the site of my most recent campsite. On the grounds of a US Civil War, Confederate field hospital in Gettysburg, PA. (We camped to the right of the barn, just out of frame). Confederate doctors treated officers in the house, enlisted in the barn, completing about 1,500 amputations and…Read more Gettysburg Camp
Layers of History
The stripes on these cliffs show different layers of sediment laid down at the bottom of an ancient sea, between 3.5 and 5 million years ago. As the cliffs erode, fossils from that era are released and wash up on the beach.
Fossil Tooth
Fossil tooth from an extinct tiger shark, find at Westmoreland State Park, on Fossil Beach (of course!).
Winter Solstice (Astronomy: Week of 12/17/17)
Stars rule the night. They are more than just windows into an infinite cosmos, or keys to the history of our own world. In a more tangible sense, the stars provide humanity with a roadmap, establishing time and place. Long before artificial lights poisoned our view of the night sky, and before human industry occupied…Read more Winter Solstice (Astronomy: Week of 12/17/17)
Paddling Mallows Bay
In April, 1917, US President Woodrow Wilson issued a challenge to his country. World War I was raging in Europe, and Allied shipping was being torn apart by German surface ships and submarines. As a result, the US churned out over a thousand wooden-hulled cargo ships in about 18 months. The war ended in November,…Read more Paddling Mallows Bay