Tag: Appalachian mountains

Mysterious Mountains, Ancient Walls and New Eyes

Color Photography, West Virginia

As I look at peaks and ridges of my Appalachian Mountains I have an overwhelming urge to go explore each of them. Somewhere in this group of hills and valleys is the hidden remains of an ancient empire. Long ago a stone wall was built here that stretched out for miles. The big mystery to me is what were they protecting themselves from? There’s legends of giants in the mountains. I have always had this fantasy of finding a hidden cave entrance and stepping inside to find ancient treasures and stone artworks. At one point we would walk along and find lithics. Stone age tools and points that made life possible turn up here often. The worked stone comes from all over North America. It was often used as a barter when tribes traded with each other.

There’s also the story of a scuttled brass cannon from the “War of Northern Aggression “. (American Civil War) as well as rumors of Confederate gold.

More than likely one might find old overgrown farms. When I was a kid we could find old mason jars on almost any given day of exploration. It was probably left behind by a family who canned their garden produce but in my eyes it was always an abandoned moonshine still. Not all treasures are golden. Sometimes they are rusty tin, glass or ceramic.

Whatever is out there it’s bound to be interesting. There’s a story in everything we leave behind. Old walls, broken glass or rusty barbed wire it doesn’t matter. It’s all about the lives that filled these mountains and the stories that they left behind.

A Friend’s Joyful Greetings

black and white photography, Color Photography

“Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit ’em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” That was the only time I ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do something, and I asked Miss Maudie about it. “Your father’s right,” she said. “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing except make music for us to enjoy.”

– To Kill a Mockingbird

On any given day during the warm weather you can hear the seemingly unending song of the Mockingbird. This little guy is the impressionist of the Appalachian mountains. He incorporates little bits and pieces of other bird’s songs into his call. They’re really quite easy to get started up. Just a few sharp whistles and they’re going to answer you. Not only will they answer but they will try to out do you! I’ve even heard them pick up on police sirens and car alarms. The one pictured here occasionally mimics a backup beeper from the local garbage truck! All of background noise is fair game to be turned into music by a mockingbird. Truly Atticus had it right as did Miss Maudie. The joy of being greeted with a song every morning by the mockingbird at my home and then again by a different one at my day job is hard to describe. I guess you could say that it’s like God himself is wishing you a good day.

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When Fellowship Happens

Color Photography, West Virginia

One of the things that I look forward to in the summer is when friends gather together just to hang out. We make little mini holiday as a framework. There will be Homecoming Sundays at churches and family reunions in addition to the birthday parties and anniversary celebrations all summer long. We’ve been holed up in house for winter and any excuse to get out into the sun is a good one. We see old friends and acquaintances in the parks having lunch just because it’s Tuesday or Wednesday. Mankind was meant to be social. It’s our nature to be together for at least a little while. Even the grumpy old curmudgeon wants someone to curmudge for.

Here in the Appalachian mountains of West Virginia such gatherings are often accompanied by live music. Typically a “gospel sing” will feature bluegrass style music and a potluck dinner.

Whatever the occasion or excuse it’s all about coming together in fellowship and brotherhood. All that’s needed is a warm day, chores that are finished and good friends.

The Historic Old Main

black and white photography, Summerville

The featured image for this post is the Old Main School building in Nicholas County West Virginia. This is where the notorious bat incident of 1983 took place. I mentioned it in a previous article but in short a young man that was taking a class in introductory literature misused his borderline criminal genius to add some realistic excitement during a reading of Homer. Unfortunately as an adult I’m actually held responsible for my actions today. It’s just as well, at her age the teacher probably couldn’t handle the shock. The yard you see in the foreground is one of the places where we would have lunch. In the Early 80s there would have been two or three boom boxes powered by large (by today’s standards) battery banks. You would have seen some Walkman radio/cassette payers. These bright yellow boxes were carried on the belt or in a pocket. Today we do everything on our phones but when I roamed the halls of this building a mobile phone was the size of a shoe box (or larger) and had to plugged into a car. When I attended classes here the building was heated by steam pipes and occasionally we would see large accumulations of Ice near the vents.

The historic building is one hundred and fifteen years old. It serves as a center for the arts now. Perhaps one day day I’ll see a play based on the the Odyssey there. But, I’ll bet that when the adventure gets to the river Styx they don’t have real bats for effect.

Caves of Ice and a nod to Samuel Taylor Coleridge

black and white photography

On my way to my day job I spotted this snow capped mountain. In spite of my fuss old man winter persists. Since Old Man Winter wanted another portrait I obliged him once again. (Hopefully he’ll be satisfied enough to leave this time.)

As I sat in my warm pickup truck along the Kanawha River looking up at the mountain my mind brought up the poem Samuel Taylor Coleridge‘s Kubla Kahn and I wondered if one were to take the trek up to the peak if he would find the entrance to Xanadu. Can you hear the dulcimer and the song of Mount Abora? Do want to explore the caves of ice? But alas, responsibly calls and there’s little time for adventure today. I snapped a few shots and head down river to my day job. Perhaps they’ll serve honeydew for lunch and I’ll still feel like an adventure when I clock out.