2014 wasn’t a super year for the Gators, so their bowl game
slot wasn’t one of the big ones. But, they did get a slot in a game with
available and affordable tickets – the Birmingham Bowl in Birmingham, Ala.,
against East Carolina State University.
So, we decided to go and to meet Donna
and Rick there. Then, we got really insane and decided to drive. Scott wanted
to see Big Bend National Park (I had visited in September -- see blog here) and it was sort of
on the way.
Of course, traveling across the country in December and
January is risky. And, yeah, we did have some weather issues.
When we left Colorado, a snowstorm was approaching, so we
headed quickly south. We did encounter some snow and ice, but nothing serious.
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| Ice! |
Guadalupe Mountains
We stopped very briefly at Guadalupe Mountains National Park, which I had also
visited last September (blog here).
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| Magical |
It was very cold and windy, but beautifully snowy. We
saw a few tent campers who looked like they were not having a good time.
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| Pretty but cold |
The snow continued for a while as we headed south. Then it switched over to fog. We
planned to have lunch in Marfa, Texas, which is famous for its Marfa lights,
strange glowing orbs with no known source. Of course, it was daytime so we
didn’t expect to see the lights, but I had read in several travel magazines
that Marfa was a delightful artist community with lots of good restaurants. As
we approached town, the fog took on a very bizarre form. It appeared to be
rising from the field – giving some credence to the weirdness of the area.
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| Strange |
Then, it got even stranger, when a shape appeared out of the fog. It looked
like a moored dirigible and was actually a tethered aerostat radar station,
most likely for border patrol.
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| Stranger still |
Lunch in Marfa turned out to be a bust. There are a few nice
restaurants in town, but apparently none open for lunch on a Sunday in December.
So, it was DQ for us. At least that’s pretty authentic Texan!
Big Bend
Then, on to Big Bend. We approached via the border town of
Presidio and through Big Bend Ranch State Park, which is worth a visit in itself.
It has interesting rock formations, a crazy highway with steep grades, pretty views of the Rio Grande ...
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| The weather had improved as we moved south |
... and an abandoned movie set.
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| It looks real |
We stayed at the
Lajitas Resort west of Terlingua.
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| Our digs |
I had tried to stay at the Chisos Mountains Lodge, but it
was booked. The resort is nice, with a restaurant and golf course and rooms that are a bit overwrought with southwestern décor. I still would have rather been in the park.
By the time we got to Big Bend, we had left the snow and cold. We
had beautiful blue sky and mild temperatures.
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| Big Bend |
Scott and I toured the entire park, covering the areas I had
seen in September, plus a couple of extras I couldn’t do then because of high
water.
The first night, we tried to photograph the Milky Way, but although it was clear, there was just enough moisture in the air to mask the galaxy. It was more evident when I was there in September. But, the stars were pretty.
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| Night sky |
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| The yellow dot is Scott |
We hiked the Santa Elena Canyon trail, a deep gorge where the Rio Grande changes direction abruptly after following beneath the straight cliffs for several miles.
This sharp bend in the river was formed by
movement along the Terlingua fault zone that crosses the park.
For many miles
upstream the river is trapped beneath the high walls, eventually emerging into
a wider valley back at Lajitas.
The hike is short, but very cool – and the
canyon echoes quite nicely.
I couldn't hike Santa Elena in September because the Rio Grande had backed up over the path.
They are both right on the Rio Grande (and, thus, the border). But, they are very different in character.
This time, I discovered that
the winding, rocky trail I took last time I was there wasn’t actually the real route.
The area that
I photographed because of the weird cracked mud under a pool was the actual
trail.
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| Then |
It was pretty amazing how different things looked with normal water
levels.
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| Now |
Big Bend is beautiful Park, rugged and ever-changing with the sun and clouds. I also think it may be Batman's lair.
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| Sending out the Bat Sign |
The day we left the Park, we had to hurry because bad
weather was approaching. We heard that nearby Alpine had gotten several inches
of snow and that there was a danger of icing. So, instead of a leisurely trip
with a stop in San Antonio, we pressed on to DFW with ice chasing us the whole
way. We had a quiet New Year’s in Euless with our friends Bob and Adriana and,
then, headed to our next stop, Vicksburg.
Vicksburg
It rained the whole way, making the plan to tour the
national military park difficult (the last time we were there it was too hot!).
But, we did drive through, and in some ways, the rain and mist seemed
appropriate for such a tragic place.
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| Old cannon |
The park preserves the site of the Civil War Battle of
Vicksburg, waged from May 18 to July 4, 1863, ending in the surrender of the
city and giving the Union critical control of the Mississippi River. The park
includes 1,325 historic monuments and markers, 20 miles of historic trenches
and earthworks ...
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| A foggy field |
... two antebellum homes, 144 cannons, the restored gunboat USS Cairo (the first U.S. ship to be sunk by a torpedo/mine) ...
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| More cannons |
... the Grant's Canal
site where the Union army attempted to build a canal to let their ships bypass
Confederate artillery fire and the Vicksburg National Cemetery.
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| What cannons can do |
The National Military Park was established in 1899 to commemorate the siege and defense of
Vicksburg.
After Vicksburg, the weather continued to be miserable, with
a constant cold rain. We were worried that the game would be wet.
The Game
In Birmingham, we tried to attend a Gator Pep Rally, but
arrived just as it was ending. The next day, we left early to set up our
tailgating site.
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| Tailgating |
It was raining, but slackening a bit, so it wasn’t too bad.
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| Donna |
Our trip back was a bit less rainy, but not very exciting.
Poverty Point
We did stop at a Poverty Point National Monument, which I had never heard of.
Somehow, I managed to take no pictures – probably because as interesting as it
is, it is not particularly photogenic – especially on a gray day. Here's what it looks like (not too exciting).
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| Photo: Wikipedia |
Poverty Point National Monument is the largest and most
complex archaic earthworks in the U.S. Who knew?
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| Map: Wikipedia |
In Louisiana, across the Mississippi state line and just north of Interstate 20, Poverty Point comprises earthworks and mounds built between 1650 and 700 BC.
The culture that built them extended 100 miles across the Mississippi Delta. The original purposes of
Poverty Point have not been determined by archaeologists, although they have
proposed various possibilities including that it was: a settlement, a trading
center and/or a ceremonial religious complex.
The monument was brought to the attention of archaeologists
in the early 20th century, when it was given the name of Poverty Point after a
nearby plantation.
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| Rendering: DemocraticUnderground.com |
It includes six concentric, crescent ridge
earthworks, divided by five aisles radiating from the center at the riverbank
and several mounds on the outside and inside of the ring,
separated by flat earthen corridors.
Dividing the ridges into three sections
(formerly five) are two ramps that slope inwardly, leading to Bayou Maçon.
Each
of the ridge earthworks is about three feet high. Archaeologists believe they
were once five feet high, but have been worn down through plowing over the past
few centuries.
Alongside these ridges are other earthworks, primarily
platform mounds. The largest is called “Bird Mound” because it appears to be in
the shape of a bird when viewed from above.
Another platform mound contained a
human bone interred with ashes, a likely indication of cremation, suggesting
that this might have been a burial mound, or the individual may have been a
victim of human sacrifice, but very few bones have been found on the site. One
mound may have been a sports field of some sort. Another mound contained pieces
of chipped precious stones, indicating that people may have made jewelry there.
Poverty Point was not constructed all at once, but appears
to have been built up over a period of centuries or even millennia, as
additions were made by successive generations.
The Poverty Point culture people were a rare example of a hunter-gatherer
society that constructed large-scale monuments. The vast majority of other
prehistoric monuments, such as Stonehenge and the Great Pyramids, were
constructed by agricultural societies, in which crop surpluses allowed greater
density of population.
The Poverty Point ate local animals and plant life, cooking
food in earth ovens, some of which had plastered walls. The only used certain
types of firewood, including oak and to a lesser degree hickory and cane; probably
due to the flavor these wood impart, just like on today’s BBQ.
The majority of artifacts uncovered at Poverty Point are
small, baked clay shapes used to hold heat and aid in cooking food.
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| In the museum |
The
inhabitants of Poverty Point produced small amounts of pottery and used tools
that appear to have been made on-site. However, they were also active in trade
with other Native American peoples. Arrowheads found on the site originated in
the Ouachita and Ozark Mountains and in the Ohio and Tennessee River valleys ...
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| Photo: arrowheadology.com |
... soapstone came from the southern Appalachian Mountains of Alabama and Georgia
and copper from the upper Great Lakes region
Although a national monument, the site is managed by the
Louisiana State Parks System. Thus, National Parks passes are not accepted for
admission.
Trip date: December 27, 2014-January 6, 2015
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