Month: May 2006

Posted on

Mammoth Cave Discovery Tour

Mammoth CaveMammoth Cave was cool as in 54° F or 12° C, which is to be expected.  Karen and I were on limited schedule of time, because we were heading over to Lexington, Kentucky.  Due to our limited time, we decided to only go on the self guided tour of Mammoth Cave.  This tour enters through the historical entrance and takes you by the saltpeter artifacts and walks you through some of the largest trunk passages in Mammoth Cave.

The saltpeter artifacts are from the time period around the War of 1812.  Mammoth Cave became a valuable commercial property with the outbreak of the War of 1812 between the United States and England. Cave sediments with abundant quantities of nitrate, an essential ingredient of gunpowder, were mined by slaves during the war.

Helpful maps: Park Map & Detail Map.

shapeimage_6

Posted on

Heading to Kentucky for Memorial Day Weekend

This picture is from the Kentucky Horse Park web site  The park is made up of 1200 acres dedicated to man's relationship with the horse.
This picture is from the Kentucky Horse Park web site  The park is made up of 1200 acres dedicated to man’s relationship with the horse.

Karen and I are heading to Kentucky for the Memorial Day weekend.  We have never been to Kentucky.  Karen has been wanting to see the bluegrass, which not actually blue.

We will start our trip by heading to Mammoth Cave in central Kentucky. As I understand this is the longest recorded cave in the world with over 360 miles of explored and mapped.  We are going to be staying at our first Bed & Breakfast while we visit Mammoth Cave area.  We found the Serenity Hill Bed and Breakfast at BBOnline, which a web site dedicated to providing information about any and all Bed & Breakfasts.

After Mammoth Cave, we will head north to drive the Blue Grass Parkway over to Lexington, Kentucky.  From Lexington, we will visit the surrounding area including Richmond and Berea.  In the Lexington area, we could visit the Kentucky Horse Park (pictured at the top of the page). In Berea, we will surely go to the Kentucky Artisan Center.  The center looks to be a great place to pickup a souvenir for our trip.

Posted on

Village of Providence's Saturday Market

Images Splash Fpo2Karen and I are going to walk up to Village of Providence's Saturday Market. They had one of these Saturday Markets last year and now they are having them every 2nd Saturday from May 13th through October 14th.

It includes a farmers market and artists. During last year's event, the artists worked in all mediums to include painting, printmaking, sculpture, jewelry, tile mosaic, drawings, photography and mixed media.

The event runs from 7-am to 3-pm.

Posted on

Hanging at Kenny Mango's Listing to Larry Woellhart

Karen and I headed downtown to Kenny Mango's Coffee Shop and Gallery. We had just finished a great workout at HAC so we headed to Kenny's to listen to Larry Woellhart, a friend, playing music. Kenny Mango's is located on North Side Square in Huntsville, Alabama. The crowd is not too small or too large. Kenny promises that he will get me a WiFi connection some day soon, but you may be able to pickup a nearby business' signal. (Not that I am suggesting you hijack a WiFi.)

Karen enjoyed the chamomile teas while I had cappuccinos and chai teas. The feeling of hot caffeine rushing through you helps you relax at 10 o'clock at night. Not!

Posted on

Mother's Day Just Around the Corner

Well, I hope that you have been thinking about your mother. Mother's Day is this coming Sunday. It is a good day to remember what our mother's have done for us.

For some, it is a day of reflection of things past. For others, it is a time to call our mothers or spend some time together.

Many of us have memories of past Mother's Day. Some of us are just starting to build memories.

Were ever you find yourself in this list of possibilities, I hope that you stop and remember your mother for all the sacrifices she made for you.

Posted on

Hiking in the Huntsville Land Trust in the N&S Section

Karen and I got out and did some hiking today.  The weather was great with the temperature around 74º.

If you haven’t hiked the Land Trust trails, you are missing out on some great trails.  The trails are primarily located on Monte Sano Mountain in Huntsville, Alabama, but there are others located throughout Madison County and north Alabama.  The Land Trust has over 3,400 acres of land.  The trails include many levels of difficult from easy on up.

Land Trust Hike May 6th 2006We hiked all over the area between the Land Trust Parking lot and Cleermont Drive.  I highlighted our hike on the map.  It is a beautiful area with a creek running between the Fagan Spring Trail and Wildflower Trail.  We found a lot of wild life on the hike.  I saw a large black snake that was over three foot in length, but it move to quickly for Karen to catch up and see it.  Soon after the first snake, we saw smaller two foot long black snake similar to the first.  The snake did not move.  I guess warm of the sun was to good to leave.  The under growth was jumping with life, too.  We saw chipmunks, squirrels, and lizards frequently.  Karen spotted a pool of tadpoles.  They were too young to see any legs or arms.

If you are interested in hiking the area, I have provided a link here to the trails in PDF format.

Posted on

Hiking in the Huntsville Land Trust in the N&S Section

Partial  map of the Huntsville Land Trust trails with our hike hi-lighted.

Karen and I got out and did some hiking today.  The weather was great with the temperature around 74º.

If you haven’t hiked the Land Trust trails, you are missing out on some great trails.  The trails are primarily located on Monte Sano Mountain in Huntsville, Alabama, but there are others located throughout Madison County and north Alabama.  The Land Trust has over 3,400 acres of land.  The trails include many levels of difficult from easy on up.

We hiked all over the area between the Land Trust Parking lot and Cleermont Drive.  I highlighted our hike on the map.  It is a beautiful area with a creek running between the Fagan Spring Trail and Wildflower Trail.  We found a lot of wild life on the hike.  I saw a large black snake that was over three foot in length, but it move to quickly for Karen to catch up and see it.  Soon after the first snake, we saw smaller two foot long black snake similar to the first.  The snake did not move.  I guess warm of the sun was to good to leave.  The under growth was jumping with life, too.  We saw chipmunks, squirrels, and lizards frequently.  Karen spotted a pool of tadpoles.  They were too young to see any legs or arms.

If you are interested in hiking the area, I have provided a link here to the trails in PDF format.

Posted on

Cinco de Mayo

Mexican FlagKaren and I headed out after work today to celebrate Cinco de Mayo at Bandito Burrito.

If you don't know about Cinco de Mayo, I can give you a quick answer. From Wikipedia, “Cinco de Mayo (“The Fifth of May” in Spanish) is a national celebration in Mexico and widely celebrated in many parts of the United States. It commemorates the victory of Mexican forces led by General Ignacio Zaragoza over the French expeditionary forces in the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. It is a common misconception that Cinco de Mayo is Mexico's Independence Day.” To learn more, I would suggest reading here.

I had a blast today and even collected some swag. Karen got a cool Dos Equis XX t-shirt which she proceeded to put on, because she was getting cold. While, I got a Corona hugger to keep my beers cold.

To crank up the fun at work, I hung a piñata in the my lab. and I had Mexican music playing all morning backed up by a mix of salsa.

Posted on

Selling Blueberry iBook on eBay

Karen and I have put her original iBook up for sell on eBay.

If you are looking, I should you click over to eBay to take a look at it.

It works great, but the battery doesn't hold a charge. (But, you can buy a new battery for it.) We have included all the original equipment plus we have a matching blueberry carrying case and airplane power adapter.

The power adapter works in cars, too.

Posted on

Garmin GPSMAP 60cs is SOLD!

Well, the bidding got exciting today as the auction came to a close on our Garmin GPSMAP 60cs. During the last twenty minutes, the price ran up another $40 to close at $305 excluding shipping.

I had only expected a closing price around $275. So, this all goes to lower the cost of our new GPS which is on already being shipped as I type this entry.

I am looking forward to trying out the new GPS which is a Garmin GPSMAP 60csx.