Little Fox Archaeologist

Hello Blog Pals,
I received a call from the museum's director wanting me to document some historical places around the state.  A purest would say it's more of a sociology task but if the check clears this fox doesn't really care.

Yes, Odie is the museum's director.


Back in the day, there was a show on TV called Northern Exposure.  It was set in Cecily, Alaska and the premise was the state of Alaska paid for his medical school and in return he had to practice medicine anywhere the state placed him and in this case it was Cecily, Alaska.  The "real" Cecily is set in a town called Roslyn, Washington.

My job is to go to the town where they filmed shots for Cecily and document it for the museum.

One of the main scenes in the show was a moose walking around town.

Check one task off of my list for the museum.  The mural is in great shape. 

Other famous scenes from the TV show took place in the towns radio station.  A philosophical ex- conhad a popular morning show in the town. 

Well, I could not get into the station but I found it. 

The bar was a local hangout in town and many scenes were filmed.  I had my archaeological assistant (Sequoia) with me so going into the bar was not an option but I did find the bar. 

Outside of bar.

Even though Northern Exposure was the main show filmed in Roslyn, other shows have used the town as a backdrop.  The man in the high castle is partially filmed in Roslyn.  Before TV, Roslyn was an active mining community home to many European immigrants from 1850 to 1960ish when they stopped mining.  Now, the town makes it money from tourism (many lakes, many hikes, many ski resorts nearby).

I feel I have documented the town for the museum, now it's time to see the curator for my check.

Cincinnati Adventures

Hi Blog Pals,
My time in Cincinnati is winding down.  Perhaps some of you might remember a TV show that took place in Cincinnati.  

I am off on a walking tour.  This little book has been really helpful in planning my adventures in Cincinnati.

Time to explore the city. This statue is in a nice place called Hyde Park. 

Next to Hyde Park is Ault Park.  Ault Park has a huge field, a nice pavilion, and plenty of community gardens. 

The view from the pavilion is awesome.  They have fireworks on Independence Day, it would be a great place to watch them.

Time to explore the community gardens.

This one is nice. 

More pretty flowers. 

Time to leave Ault Park and head downtown to where the baseball stadium is. These stairs are huge.

On the other side of the stairs they have fountains. 

Cincinnati was once nicknamed Porkopolis because the farmers used to send their pigs to slaughter in Cincinnati and sometimes they would drive their cattle down the middle of downtown Cincinnati. 

To get the best views you have to cross the Ohio river into Newport, KY.  A bridge dedicated to walkers only.  Sounds perfect for me. 

I made it back to Newport, KY.

During the 1800s there were so many steamboats on the Ohio River.  They still have some boats that take tourists on the river.  They were right, the best views of downtown Cincinnati are on the Kentucky side.

Speaking of steamboats they had a fox sized model in a local park.

Oh my, this is a lending library.  What a creative idea.  I wonder if they have anything by John Grisham?

Cincinnati and Newport Kentucky were awesome places to explore on foot.  One more bridge to cross over to get back to the Cincinnati side.  

Goodness, I look good against this bridge. Downtown doesn't look too bad either :)

Kentucky Adventures

Hi Gang,
Little Fox here.  After hiking 36 miles my roommates told me my next adventure involved exploring the great state of Kentucky.  I don't know much about the state except they are known for their fried chicken.

Speaking of Colonel Sanders apparently he didn't start out his career in the fried chicken business.  During the 40s he had a restaurant and a motel in Corbin, KY.

According to this sign, this location is the birthplace of a legend.  I will say that the colonel does fry up a good piece of chicken.

 Here's an overview of the motel and the cafe.

 Inside the museum they had all sorts of displays (and a KFC franchise in case you get hungry).  If I can find any money in this cash register I will treat my roommates to dinner.

 Colonel Sanders is looking relaxed. 

 Wow, the prices have gone up in the last 40 years. 

 Fancy silverware and recipes cards highlight this showcase.

 Colonel Sanders was a good cook and his food was known all over town.  This is a sample of the kitchen where he worked and maybe even developed his famous chicken.

 It was a great museum but it's time to leave the museum and head north to Ohio.

 Which state am I in now?

 I decided to stay in Kentucky for a while and visit a distillery.  Kentucky is known for it's bourbon and other distilled beverages.  This is an urban distillery so they are able to produce lots of different beverages in town.  First bottles are gin.

Something called Rye Mash

 The distillery is located right next to a big liquor store.  Location is everything.

 Fun flavors of alcohol.  I want a sample of the prickly pear please.

 Little fox, big bottle of alcohol.

A great trip to Kentucky.  So much to do and so much to see this little fox is tired.  No, I doubt my tiredness involves the large amount of fried chicken and alcohol I consumed today.

Waterfalls

The Great Smoky Mountains has lots of mountains to explore but there are also lots of waterfalls, historic sites, and a few restaurants to explore too.
There are a few bears at my lodging and they gave me some tips of places to visit.

Any good national park trip starts at the visitors center.

At the visitors center I learned that there are bears in the park.  

I should probably watch out for bears on this trail.  

The falls are beary pretty. 

After Laurel Falls it's time for me to see another falls.  Abram Falls in the park is a great place. It was a good hike to the falls and if I might say so myself a good place for lunch.

After the waterfalls I decided to explore other historic sites.  At Cades Cove, they have a historic mill, old buildings, and a settlement.

Millstones for grinding corn into cornmeal.

Water provides the energy for the mills. 

Amazing how a nice peaceful river can power all of these mills and machinery.

Time to explore the city.  There are bears everywhere here.  I love it.

A great museum.  Over 20,000 salt and pepper shakers on display. 

 This is overwhelming.

Who is this handsome fella?

All of this exploring takes a toll on a fox. Perhaps a light snack might help me out.

A little pancake ought to tide me over.