Travel – Page 15 – Valerie's Voice

South Hills Market & Cafe

Usually when we travel we like to stay away from chain restaurants…so on Saturday night, after a little research we decided to eat at the South Hills Market & Café in Charleston, West Virginia.

Usually we do not sit at the bar… but since this was a small, family–run restaurant with few tables that were already reserved until 8:30 pm, and it was a busy Saturday night, and we didn’t know where else to go, we decided to sit at the bar since they served the same menu.

I chose the Buttermilk Chicken with a Pecan Waffle that I had found intriguing when we looked at the menu online. Gary chose fish tacos. Both were delicious.

But what made our experience extra special were the people sitting beside us at the bar. To my right a mom and her adult son were also eating dinner and we visited for a while…they were from the Charleston area. A little while later, as the place filled up, another couple sat down beside Gary on our left. They were “regulars” and the staff knew them. They were very friendly also, and stuck up a conversation with us.

Soon I was tapped on the shoulder and Pam, on my right, offered me 2 beignets – a French-style pastry. They had ordered the dessert but the portions were so large they decided to share it with us which I found touching. When we left I told them we’d pay it forward.

So now I have a new outlook on sitting at the bar versus sitting at a table. Both have their place, but for this evening the bar was a wonderful choice.

We were celebration our 40^th anniversary too!

Memorable Hikes – Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado 1992

Continuing my Friday series on memorable hikes…

Our family camping trip out west took us to several national parks in 1992. Each park is unique and so much fun to visit and explore. We are so grateful for those who went before us to preserve such wonderful lands.

Cliff Palace, Mesa Verde’s largest cliff dwelling NPS Photo

At Mesa Verde National Park we took a hike to see the cliff dwellings, for which the park is known. Mesa Verde is unique because the park preserves the ancient cliff dwellings of the Ancestral Puebloans. When we were there in 1992 the park called the people Anasazi Indians, but when recently looking up information on the park I discovered they no longer use that term, and the correct name is Ancestral Puebloans.

View of Cliff Palace from above NPS Photo

The website reads the park “offers a spectacular look into the lives of the Ancestral Pueblo people who made it their home for over 700 years, from AD 600 to 1300. Today the park protects nearly 5,000 known archeological sites, including 600 cliff dwellings. These sites are some of the most notable and best preserved in the United States.”

Long House NPS Photo

The website also gives permission to copy photos from their site as long credit is given to the NPS. “They (the photos) may be used for private, public, or press use. Please credit “NPS Photo.”

We went on a ranger led hike through the cliff dwellings. I remember the ranger’s warning that one had to be able to climb ladder steps and fit through small spaces in order to participate in the hike. It was fun to see the cliff dwellings up close and learn about the fascinating life style of the people who had lived there years ago.

Memorable Hikes – Tent Rocks Nat’l Monument, NM 2017

Continuing my Friday series of memorable hikes…

Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument is located between Albuquerque and Santa Fe, New Mexico. Kasha-Katuwe means “white cliffs” in the Pueblo language. I didn’t know the difference between a national monument and a national park so I looked it up and this is the answer I found:

“To laypeople, the distinction between lands designated as national parks and national monuments can appear finite. The primary difference lies in the reason for preserving the land: National parks are protected due to their scenic, inspirational, education, and recreational value. National monuments have objects of historical, cultural, and/or scientific interest, so their content is quite varied.”

In Tent Rocks National Monument, volcanic rock and ash have formed unusual slot canyons and tent-shape rocks that make up the landscape of this very unique park.

There is a 1.2 mile trail through a slot canyon up to a lookout point and we hiked it one day last fall. The slots through this canyon trail were sometimes very tight, unlike the slot canyon in The Narrows in Zion National Park. The Tent Rocks trail was interesting because of all the distinctive, smooth formations and conical-shaped rocks. The vistas at the top were great and at the bottom we hiked another mile along the base of these rock formations. It was a fun hike. I had never heard of this park until we planned our trip to New Mexico, but what a wonderful find!

I always enjoy discovering and exploring new places. There are so many in this world…

Memorable Hikes – Cape Town, South Africa 2015

Continuing my Friday series on memorable hikes…

Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa

After spending Christmas and starting the New Year (2015) with our son and his family in Mozambique, my husband and I flew to Cape Town, South Africa. It was great to see another country on the African continent. Cape Town is a more progressive city and we were excited to see it and the surrounding area, including the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point, at the southern most tip of Africa.

Table Mountain is in the center of Cape Town and is visible from anywhere in the city. It’s flat top makes it looks like a table, hence the name. We decided to hike to the top of Table Mountain.

Getting closer to the top…deceiving photo though – you cannot see the people in it.

It was going to be another beautiful, sunny day in Cape Town so we started hiking up the mountain in the morning with much anticipation and energy. The climb soon became difficult: it was steep, rocky, hot and slow going. But we made it to the top and we were glad when we did.

As we were hiking two people stopped to ask me if I had enough water. I did. We are always careful a about carrying enough water with us when we hike. As people passed us up I noticed a lot of them were younger than we were. About two thirds of the way up we stopped to rest under a rock overhang, to stand in shade for a minute because we were so warm. A young man came up to me and asked if I had enough water. I said yes, and then he asked me to hold out my hat…when I did he poured his water into my hat and told me to pour it over my head. I did and it felt so good. I said thank you and he took off and continued on his way and I never saw him again. I was impressed with such a random act of kindness.

A beautiful view of Cape Town off to one side of Table Mountain.

The views at the top were fantastic and we spent a fair amount of time up there. When it was time to head down we took a cable car instead of hiking. The cable car is continually taking folks up to the top of the mountain and back down again. Usually hiking down is harder than hiking up, so I was grateful for the option to ride down the mountain.

A funny story about the cable car is we happened to be first in line for the next ride down. When we stepped into the cable car we were excited to get a front row view out the window. Once the cable car filled up and started descending, the floor of the cable car started rotating so everyone was able to have a chance to have that front row view. It was surprising, but what a great idea.

A cable car coming down from the top of Table Mountain.

Even though the hike up Table Mountain was a difficult one, we are happy we did it!

Memorable Hikes – Tucson, Arizona 2003

Continuing my Friday series on memorable hikes…

In 2003 we went to visit friends who spend their winters in Arizona, away from the Minnesota cold, snow and ice. They bought a lovely town home in Tucson and we enjoy visiting them, over a long weekends, in February, when it works.

There is a lot to do and see in the area where they live: Tuscan Botanical Garden, Saguaro National Park, Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, DeGrazia Gallery, Old Tuscon Studios, Mt. Lemon and the Santa Catalina mountains, good restaurants and several places for hiking. Sabino Canyon is one of those places.

Sabino Canyon is a desert oasis in the Coronado National Forest. When you arrive at the park you can take a tram up the canyon and walk back down if you desire. That’s a great way to hike! But there are several trail options available to hike back down. We have hiked in this canyon on several different trips. On this day in Sabino Canyon we were casually hiking down along the canyon in the beautiful, warm, sunshine. There was water in the canyon; water pools in the canyon during winter months and being near water while hiking is a always a treat. As we were walking we caught up with a couple in front of us that had stopped on the trail. They pointed to a rattlesnake coiled up in the sun on a rock along side the trial. We tiptoed past it and kept on going. That’s the first time, and hopefully the last time, I see one of those snakes!

Other than the snakes, the desert landscapes in this park are beautiful and it’s especially nice when one can enjoy warmth and sunshine knowing it’s cold and icy back in Minnesota.

Memorable Hikes – Itasca State Park, Minnesota 2011

Continuing my Friday series on memorable hikes…

My husband and I went camping in Itasca State Park. This park is a beautiful treasure in Minnesota. In this park, the headwaters of the Mississippi begin. We camped here with our boys when they were younger, but this year it was just my husband and I.

It’s always fun to say “I’ve walked across the Mississippi River.”

One afternoon we took off hiking on a trail from the campground, and I was in the lead. As we were walking along I noticed black in the treetops above me, on my right. I stopped to look and noticed there were two black cubs high in the tree…so then I thought…hmmm, where’s mama?

I looked to the left of the path and there she was, staring right at us. At that moment I couldn’t remember what I was suppose to do. We’ve been to so many parks and read so many signs telling one how to react to bears…black bears or grizzly bears… play dead for one and act big for another, but in this moment – when I needed to know – I forgot! So we stood there, and then slowly stepped backwards. The cubs climbed down the tree, walked over the path in front of us and joined their mama, all the while the mama kept her eyes on us. And we kept our eyes on her too!

When the cubs were safely with their mama we watched them scamper off into the woods and we kept going on our hike, happy to have had a safe, and memorable, encounter with the black bears.

Memorable Hikes – Bayfield, Wisconsin 2014

Continuing my Friday series on memorable hikes…

In 2014, an article in The Washington Post read “An estimated 94 percent of Lake Superior is covered with ice, enabling sightseers to visit the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore’s sea caves for the first time since 2009.”

Before 2014 I did not know there was a possibility of walking on frozen Lake Superior to visit the sea caves. We explored the sea caves while kayaking one summer, but to see them in the wintertime was intriguing. I love Lake Superior and I loved the idea of walking on it. As soon as I learned about this opportunity we recruited some friends and headed to Duluth for dinner and an overnight, and drove to Bayfield, Wisconsin the next day. A beach near Bayfield was the designated entry point for the trail to the sea caves. There were throngs of people with the same idea. It quickly became a very popular attraction that winter, which made for congested parking and long lines – but it was worth it.

We bundled up in our warm, winter gear, grabbed our hiking poles and walked out to see the beautiful dazzling ice formations, crystal caves, and icicles hanging everywhere off the cliff faces along the Apostle Island National Lakeshore. When the lake is not frozen the sea caves are very popular places for exploring with canoeists and kayakers. But at this point in time people could walk through, and crawl under, these same sea caves and it was awesome!

Memorable Hikes – Malawi, Africa 2009

Continuing my Friday series on memorable hikes…

This is about the hike that wasn’t.

Our youngest son, Tim, planned our first trip to Africa. He was living there when my husband, oldest son and myself went to visit. Tim met us at the airport as we stepped off the plane. It was so exciting to be in Africa!

A photo of a page from the photo book I made from our trip.

We met the rep from the rental car company and picked up our car. We were soon on the road starting our adventures. The first days were spent at a rustic lodge in Liwonde National Park in Malawi, Africa. We went on an exciting canoe safari and saw hippopotamus’ up close, and in this park we saw elephants in the wild for our first time (but not our last).

Our first hippo sighting from our canoes.

After a couple of nights it was time to head to the country of Mozambique to see where our son lived. However, the morning we were to leave we had trouble starting our vehicle at the lodge. After several attempts the car finally started and we drove to the park entrance. We had to turn in our permit to the park ranger and by automatic reflex we turned off the car. This time it wouldn’t start again.

Photo from our safari in Krueger National Park…there was no hiking in this park…must stay in the open-top jeep with your guide.

We called the rental company and they said they would send someone right away but of course we were a couple of hours from the city, so we each took out our books and started to read. After a while I decided I wanted to take a walk. My oldest son said he’d go along so we started walking down the road. Immediately the park ranger came running after us and said in broken English…”No! No walk…elephants.” So, of course we had to go back to the car.

Finally two mechanics showed up at the park to fix our car. Thankfully they could do it on the spot and they worked quickly. Soon we were on the road again driving to Mozambique.

A photo of a photo of the sunset we saw as we were paddling back to shore from our canoe safari.

Shortly after we arrived home to the USA I noticed an article in the newspaper about a young mom and her baby attacked by an elephant in Kenya, Africa and they died. Of course I immediately thought about our attempted hike in Liwonde National Park. I guess the ranger knew what he was talking about.

Waco, Texas

When I told others we were taking a road trip to Southern Texas many asked if I was stopping in Waco, Texas. I wondered why would we do that? I soon learned about Magnolia.

The name: Magnolia, known for it’s metal letters, among many other things.

It’s a small complex in downtown Waco with two large, historic silos, an old grain warehouse converted to a home goods store, and a small bakery in the old office. Apparently there is a popular program on cable TV called Fixer Upper that Chip and Joanna Gaines, a Texan couple, are famous for – a reality show about fixing up and “flipping” houses, with a touch of humor.

The two historic silos, on the property of, and preserved by, Magnolia. The picnic area is in the foreground. The store is on the right.

The friends we traveled with to Texas knew of Magnolia and had seen a few episodes of Fixer Upper so were intrigued to stop and see this attraction. It was very close to the 35 W exit (unlike the Salt Lick BBQ restaurant) and so we pulled off the exit early one morning on our return trip from Mission, Texas. After parking the car, we headed for the bakery first, and it was a good thing because later, as we drove away from Magnolia, the line spilled outside the bakery door and continued down the block. This is a popular place.

,,,collecting our own precepts. This sign was hanging on the bakery wall at Magnolia.

It was interesting complex and it’s always nice to get a delicious bakery treat and browse in a home store. It was certainly unique. But, I think the person who enjoyed our visit to Magnolia the most was my husband. He’s not a shopper, and he barely set foot in the store, but he was intrigued by the two historic grain silos outside, on the grounds.

Vines planted in the old conveyor bucket.

He learned this site Magnolia now owns had been a cottonseed oil mill. Although many of the original buildings were no longer standing, Gary liked to see the old silos with their rusty conveying systems. At his first job out of college, he worked in oil-seed processing with Cargill and was intimately familiar with the types of conveyors and silos left standing, so he stood their visualizing what the site looked like in its heyday of pressing oil from the cottonseed, and the handling of the seed, oil, and byproducts. It brought back lots of memories for him.

On the tables in the outdoor picnic area.

So…at this fun stop off 35W in Waco, Texas we had an interesting twist to our visit to Magnolia.

Memorable Hikes – Québec City, Canada 2016

Continuing my Friday series on memorable hikes…

In 2016 my husband and I took a road trip and met up with friends in Québec, Canada. We spent our time in Old Québec, a quaint section of the city with a European flair and a lot of history. French is the primary language spoken in all of Québec, and the signs, including road signs, are in French.

Looking out from Old Québec…the trail went along the top of the walls surrounding the city.

According to Wikepedia, Québec City is one of the oldest cities in North America. “The ramparts surrounding Old Québec are the only fortified city walls remaining in the Americas north of Mexico, and were declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1985 as the ‘Historic District of Old Québec’.”

We spent a few nights in a B&B in Old Québec. Because of the narrow streets with a lot of traffic and limited parking, it was suggested we park outside the walled city in a parking ramp, which we did. We had to travel by foot to visit what we wanted to see in this historic town; Château Frontenac Hotel, wonderful restaurants, outdoor markets, sea vistas.

The memorable hike was our walking on the city wall. The circumference of the fortified wall that surrounds Québec City is 2.8 miles. It was a leisurely hike. We stopped to enjoy sights seen from on top of the wall. It was a unique hike and a fun memory from our time in Québec.