Standing in three States!

This last road trip that Meg and I took was a series of moments where we asked ourselves "We are close so why not go?" I mean when you are on a road trip that covers six states and over 1000 miles what does it really matter if you add 20 miles here or 20 miles there. The plan started out as being to travel to St. John, Indiana and then from there we began adding stops.

For example there is a large Celtic Cross carved into a singe stone at the Blue Heron Winery in Cannelton, Indiana. But before we got there we traveled through the town of Dundee, Kentucky- home of the goat! Now you may think we stopped and noticed the town because of the strange slogan "home of the goat". But we didn't even notice that. We stopped because of this building:

Yeah, we drove past a giant abandoned school that looks like it should be on a list of haunted locations. I believe the school opened in 1931and served as the elementary and high school. I can't find when it closed but it does look to have been a while ago. It was when we were pulling out after taking this photo that we saw the sign saying Dundee was the home of the goat. The town got its start in the 1800s as mills opened up along the Rough River. Warren Hines was one of the mill owners and the town of Hines Mill got a post offie in 1846 but closed a little under thirty years later.  Then in 1898 the Dundee Post Office opened. The name change was due to the goat, well goat weather vane from Scotland. An article by Berry Craig in the Kentucky New Era October 26, 1992 explains the debt the town has to the Goat. The goat found its permanent home on top of the Masonic Lodge in 1902 and has been there ever since except for a short time when it was taken down to repair bullet holes caused by bored locals.

Also apparently there was a bank robbery as well in 1978. A 27 year old man eventually pled guilty to the robbery where he had stolen $15,000.





After crossing the Bob Cummings bridge we reached Cannelton, Indiana and the Blue Heron Winery. We pulled up to the Winery Tasting room and were greeted by Lynn Dauby, co-owner of the winery along with her husband Gary.  Lynn showed us around the main building and told us about their concerts during the summer and the cottage rentals.

Then we went inside the tasting room to try some of the wines. She asked what style we preferred and I answered a dry red wine. The first wine we tasted was my favorite it was the Twin Towers silver cap. The name is to honor Perry County's first National Historic Landmark, added to the registry in 1991. The Twin Towers are a striking feature on the large mill, one was a fire escape and the other stored water. Since it's closing the mill has been turned into a low income apartment complex.

The labels on the wine bottles match the names of the wines. On this label is a beautiful black and white picture of the old mill. My other favorite wine was a blueberry wine called Four Blue Stars in honor of their three children and son-in-law who serve in our military. I purchased a bottle of each for when we arrived home from the trip. Just a note the winery does not take credit cards so bring cash because you will want a bottle after tasting.

Lynn was also very happy to tell us about one of the most striking pieces of art on the winery property: a large hand carved Celtic Cross. The Celtic Cross with it's intricate designs has always been one of my favorites. This Cross was commissioned by Lynn and Gary and carved to perfection by self taught sculptor Gary Harris. Gary is a local artist who has created a number of other beautiful artworks including the doors seen in the photo above.   The Cross was carved by Gary in a 20'X22'X4 stone. At first it was going to be smaller but Gary asked if they could dig the stone out further. He worked faithfully six days a week no matter the weather for months. The detail work is beautiful and the lines were so smooth and straight.

Next on the list was a quick drive through the heart of Lafayette, Indiana to see a a statue of a family of farmers made of old farm equipment, mostly tractor parts. The sculpture was plainly visible on the corner of Main street and Fifth and a short distance away from some beautiful old buildings, I believe one was a court house or city hall.




Our next stop was the main reason for the trip as we visited St. John the Evangelist In St. John Indiana. More about my visit to the Church will be in a different blog that I will link here when it is completed.

From there we crossed over the border in to Crete, Illinois to visit Evil Horse Brewing and get some dinner. The brewery is dog friendly and the restaurant next door, The Loft, delivers food. We got a couple of flights to try several beers and since it was Friday in Lent we both got the Shrimp Po' boy for dinner. I loved the set up and decor at Evil Horse. There was a rustic look with lots of reclaimed wood. The night we were there live music was playing in the corner and both singer and guitarist were very talented. We did get a growler and on the lid of the growler was a sticker that gave the name of the bartender who filled it. I thought that was a nice touch. From talking to the bartenders I could tell they knew and appreciated their beers but it says something to be willing to put your name on it. As we sat there a table nearby apparently took an interest because one gentleman came over and sat with us. He asked what brought us to town. I told him I was visiting seven Churches in seven States for Lent, kind of a pilgrimage. He responded by asking if I work . .. which was a little strange but ok. Happily I told him I work four tens so I have three days off a week to road trip. Afterwards I kind of wished I had come up with a better more sarcastic answer or something but what can you do?

Now originally this was the end of the trip. We would start driving back and sleep in the car before finishing the trip home. But it was cold, we were pretty far north, so I didn't think sleeping in the car would be a good idea. And Gypsy Rover and Domino were taking turns annoying each other and needed some space. So I looked for a hotel and found a LaQuinta for a mere $68 a night. Well I couldn't pass that deal up so we drove over there to rest for the night.

Domino lying in the middle of the seat so Gypsy can't lie down. Alternatively Gypsy standing over Domino to annoy her.

Apparently, and I don't exactly know where, there was a nearby cat convention. Almost every room on the first floor had a pet and most of the rooms were cats :-) The woman at the desk had a huge stack of pet policy forms just ready to hand out. I laughed and said the two dogs live with cats so they won't cause a scene. The room was small but still enough space for us and exactly what we needed. Gypsy Rover slept with me and Domino slept with Meghan so they got a break from each other. In the morning we fed the pups and then went and had breakfast in the lobby. Since we had stopped for the night and were now totally refreshed we decided to see some of the other locations I had originally cut from the trip.

The first stop was a giant "Last Supper" at a Megachurch in Munster, IN. Originally I was going to see it at night but we were too tired and it was better to sleep and see it the next day. The front of the Church had a giant cross worked into the facade. At the top in the "arms" of the Church was the large table with Christ and the Disciples seated at it. Directly below it was a statue of Christ holding the cross.

Now that had been all that I knew of but as we drove down the street we saw a few other interesting pieces of art. First, and you may not consider it art but I do, was a Pepsi plant that had two giant cylinders that looked like a mountain dew and a pepsi can. Next was a crazy multi-colored statue. I'm not sure what he was for but he certainly stood out. Then there was an amazing journalist sitting on typewriter keys outside the office building of the local newspaper, The Times.

We had passed a couple of statues on benches and Meg assumed it was a library but when we turned around we discovered it was the Pepsi plant and the statues were sharing sodas. Once again we took advantage to show off Gypsy's sit/down stay.

Next was one of the "well we are so close we might as well go" moments. Because we were super close to Lake Michigan, one of the Great Lakes. Now if you have never seen a Great Lake I highly suggest you do. It is a Lake so large that it has waves like an ocean. I have seen both Lake Erie and Lake Ontario on a previous road trip but Meg had never seen a great lake. In this picture you can see Chicago.

Next we found three quick statues. An elephant and hippo sit randomly in front of a small building. Across the street a hobo holds balloons in front of a car repair shop.

Then we began driving across Indiana to reach a spot where we could stand in three different states... but on the way we had to make a stop because we were close by and why not? In Goshen, Indiana is a rest area along the highway that looks like a castle. Inside was Subway, McDonalds, and a pretty nice convenience store with an amazing selection of local craft beers and wines. You know I never really thought of Indiana when I thought of wine but now that I know they have a wine tour around the state I think I might have to try some more.



Next we arrived at Freemont, Indiana/Camden Township Michigan/Northwest Township Ohio and a spot where we could stand in all three states. A large stone marker erected by the Hillsdale County Historical Society stands off the road near a good spot to pull over. Then in the middle of the road is a square with an "M" that marks the spot.

Now we were kind of in Michigan but it felt like cheating to count it as visiting the state since it was just barely in the state and it was lunch time and we were hungry. So we looked up a brewery in Michigan and picked the closest one to our location that was dog friendly- Ramshackle Brewing in Jonesville, Michigan. On the way to Ramshackle, actually just a few blocks away, we stopped at a small local restaurant to pick up some food to eat at the brewery. The restaurant was Rosalie's Roadhouse. We ordered Tammy's Quesadilla as an appetizer and then Meg got Rosalita's Fajita and I got the Roadhouse Burger. I had an option of house made chips or fries. I chose fries which were good but if you ever stop in I highly highly recommend the house made chips! They only take cash so be ready for that.

The food was ready quickly and we brought it and the dogs over to Ramshackle Brewing. The brewery front was so narrow I actually passed it and had to circle the block. We found it on the second pass thanks to this sign out front. A sign of the times and the rising fear of the novel coronavirus, Covid-19. Inside the brewery had a few tables at the front by the window and then a bar that sat 8-10 people I think. It was definitely a small place. The walls were lined with artwork from a local artist and they were selling glasses with artwork from the same artist. Beside the bar they had a "buy it forward wall" the bartender told me to look and see if any applied to me because I could use it to get a drink. I looked but didn't really see anything but we did buy two and made one card for the next pair of twins who come in. 

Part of the reason why we chose Rosalie's was because it was 3/14 and we were looking for some place that would have pie on Pi Day. 

Meg got a piece of chocolate pie and I had a coconut pie and they were both delicious! After our lunch and splitting the flight we started on the 7 and a half hour drive home. So one cool thing that has resulted from all the road trips that I have taken is recognizing places I have been too. As we drove down 69 I remembered that we would pass the Nestle Quik Bunny by the Nestle plant, I recognized towns of names like Fort Wayne where there is an automated billboard that looks like sliced bread falling on to a plate, Hartford City where we had a paranormal investigation, and Corydon Indiana home of the Constitution Elm.

The pups fell asleep in the back seat for most of the ride home which was nice. I'd say they really seem to have bonded but Gypsy Rover started annoying Domino as soon as she woke up.  

Sadly this will be the last road trip I go on for a while as the Coronavirus has shut down a lot of the country and stopped unessential travel. I've already skipped a road trip to Arkansas and North Carolina. I also cancelled a road trip to the Florida Keys that we had been looking forward to for a long time. Hopefully as people heed warnings and testing continues this virus will be brought under control so that people can safely gather, travel, work, and just live their lives.

Referenced Road trips:
Paranormal Investigation in Hartford City
Previous Road trip in Indiana

Welcome to Jasper!

On a recent road trip, Where were they going without even knowing the way, we drove through Jasper Alabama it looked like a cute town and we decided we would come back. And I am glad we did!

Jasper is only a little over three hours away from Nashville which makes it a super easy drive, for the most part straight down I-65. We left in the late afternoon. And passed the welcome to Alabama center with the giant Saturn Rocket that was built in Huntsville, I thought about how that was a town I still need to get too.

Jasper is the county seat of Walker county and dates its founding back to the early 1800's when Lorenzo Dow, an eccentric traveling preacher, set up a trading post in the area. In 1815 the Musgrove family settled Jasper and Dr. Edward Gordon Musgrave became the first settler and first physician. In 1822 Dr. Musgrove donated the land that the town would eventually sit on and a log cabin was built to be the first court house, school, and church. The town was incorporated in 1887 and named after Revolutionary war hero William Jasper. He rose to fame after the Battle of Fort Sullivan (now called Fort Moultrie). During the battle on June 28, 1776 the fort's banner was shot and fell outside the fort. Jasper, a sergeant in the 2nd South Carolina Regiment, saw the flag fall and realized the negative effect it was having on soldiers and so jumped from the fort and retrieved it. He then made a make-shift pole to fly it from. Jasper would go on to serve under Francis Marion "Swamp Fox" where Colonel Moultrie described his work as "to harass and perplex the enemy in that state." His roving commission was to take a small group and scour supplies and information. One story tells of a time when Jasper went to the British at Savannah claiming to be a deserter and was welcomed in. He stayed for several days and took note of the army size and positioning before returning to the American side with his information. Jasper was severely injured during the Battle of Savannah and died shortly after the battle but not before he carried the flag to safety. Lots of towns have been named in his honor and there is a statue of him in Savannah and South Carolina. An image of him also appeared on the 2016 quarter.

I had messaged a couple of breweries in Jasper to ask if they were dog friendly, if they served food, and if they sold growlers with their logo on it. Both answered yes to all three so I went with the one who answered first: Twisted Barley Brewing. We parked out front and went inside. The brewery was very welcoming and we were quickly greeted. We sat down down to get the dogs settled and look over the beer selection. They had a lot of different options so we narrowed down to nine choices. We ordered the pretzel and wings from their menu. The employees had also recommended Warehouse 319 which is a local restaurant that offers carry out. We also learned that it was "nineties night" in the entertainment district where we were and that multiple bars and restaurants were participating.

So I walked over to Warehouse 319 to order their burger which comes with white cheddar cheese, bacon, tomato, lettuce, onion, and a smoked bacon aioli to go. Inside the restaurant was open with a bar at the back center and seating in a horseshoe around it. The place was already packed and lots of people were dressed up for the nineties... or maybe some eighties looks going on too but it was all for fun. There was definitely some nineties punk going on and a lot of track suits. Sweat shirts were tied around wastes and flannel was everywhere.

I walked outside to explore the town plaza while my order was cooked. I discovered they have a strange collection of painted donkeys. I'm not sure how many but I found four.

 As I walked over I saw a shop called the Cigar Box and I went inside to see if they sold Nat Sherman Cigarettes. They didn't but they had a stack of cigar boxes in the corner and they were on sale for $5 each so I bought one. Across from Warehouse 319 the light-poles in the square had speakers on them playing classics like Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire." They had a couple of Veterans' Memorials and a memorial to Law Enforcement Officers who had passed in the line of duty.

After picking up our food I went back to Twisted Barley for some great brews and burgers.

The beers were all very different and the most interesting one style wise to me was a vanilla white stout. As we sat there more and more people came in with their best 90s throwback costumes including someone on roller blades. I wish I had known about the themed night because I have a Guess Jeans shirt circa 1992.

After eating our burgers we broke into the delicious pretzel with creole mustard and honey mustard.



On the way out of town we passed an old armored vehicle- basically Jasper was full of surprises and we will be going back to this fun little town.

St. Augustine Florida

I have wanted to visit St. Augustine Florida for quite some time so when I decided I was going to repeat my Lenten resolution from last year (visiting seven Churches in seven states) it was only natural that St. Augustine Florida would be a good choice to start off this year. Actually writing about the Church will come in a later blog post and this one will focus on the road trip.

To begin with the drive is almost ten hours and Meg and my Mom were coming. Not only that but so was Gypsy Rover and my Mom's dog Domino who had just road tripped together the prior weekend as we visited Brent, Alabama. And because two dogs was so much fun we added my Uncle's dog, Bailey, who Meg and I were dog sitting.

We loaded the two pups we were responsible for into the car and drove to my Mom's condo with a plan to be on the road to Florida by 6am. The dogs and Meg sat in the back with double seat down so the dogs could easily spread out into the hatch back of our C-Max Hybrid. We started out on time but we were slowed by some snow as we drove towards Georgia and in to the mountains. I knew that St. Augustine, Florida the temps would be an amazing mid 60s range but I hadn't checked the entire route. We left Nashville at 30 degrees and ran in to the snow fairly quickly. I had been looking forward to driving into the spring from what had been some dismal cold weather. At one of the rest areas near Chattanooga I stopped to take a picture of a tulip pushed down by snow, basically how I feel about winter right now. 

The snow slowed us down enough that we had to change some of our plans for our first night in St. Augustine. Originally we were going to stop at the Church before Stations of the Cross at 6:00pm. However looking at our progress we weren't going to get there in time. So we changed our plans to go straight to our hotel and get checked in and then go visit a downtown brewery. 

Traveling with three dogs, two of which are around 40lbs, made finding a hotel difficult. Most will only allow one if any and usually they are preferred to be smaller. Using the website Bring Fido I was able to locate a reasonable hotel that allowed two dogs per room but I requested adjoining rooms if possible figuring I could open the doors between the rooms. The hotel also had a dog park but we did not use it.

After checking in we drove to the Historic Downtown and parked a block or so away from the Church in a small lot with an attendant. The weather was perfect so we looked forward to stretching our legs and walking the dogs around town a little bit. I had checked in with a few local breweries to see if they were dog friendly and one was right next door to the Church which had seemed perfect when I thought that we were going to the Church the first night. However I have terrible luck as has been covered in a previous blog post so while they may have normally allowed a pup in, and definitely do in their other larger location, they were having a private event and could not allow in any dogs.  We didn't get to drink there but the place looked real nice and the staff was welcoming. They also recommended we try Dog Rose Brewing which was just a short walk away in the Lincolnville area of St. Augustine. 

As we walked around we passed several building that were part of Flagler College. The school is named for Henry Flagler (1830-1913). He was born in New York but as a young teen moved to Ohio to start working and by his mid twenties he was a partner in the store he worked in. Henry was a good business man and by 1861 he had already begun collecting a small fortune equaling $50,000. In 1867 Flagler joined with John D Rockefeller and Samuel Andrews to form Rockefeller, Andrews, and Flagler Oil which became Standard Oil Company, a company whose success Rockefeller credited to Flagler. In 1878 Mary Flagler, Henry's wife, became ill with tuberculosis and doctors recommended a trip to Florida. Mary sadly passed a way a few years later leaving Henry Flagler with a very poor opinion of St. Augustine. However after forming a new company aimed at developing Florida Flagler returned in 1883 with his second wife to Honeymoon with John Rockefeller. In 1885 Henry bought stake in the railroad business when he purchased the Jacksonville, St. Augustine, and Halifax River Railroad as well as land in St. Augustine. On his plot of land he built the Ponce de Leon Hotel with an aim to provide 'modern' comforts while keeping in mind the historical architecture of the area; after all he wanted to celebrate the historical value of "America's oldest city." In 1968 the Ponce de Leon Hotel became the corner stone of Flagler college, a Liberal Arts college with over 30 majors.

Everywhere we turned it seemed like there was a historical marker or placard which makes sense for "America's oldest city" or more correctly the oldest continually inhabited European settlement. The city was founded and claimed in the name of Spain by Pedro Menendez de Aviles who named the city St. Augustine because his crew had first spotted land on August 28th, the feast day of St. Augustine. For two hundred years the city served as the capital of Spanish Florida until it became the capital of British East Florida, until it returned to Spain, and then finally the capital of the Florida territory when it was ceded to America in 1819 (Florida did not become a state until March 3, 1845). I hadn't really thought about all the history the city had witnessed.

Most of the buildings we passed were beautiful examples of Spanish Renaissance style. It was dark but we still stopped multiple times to enjoy different buildings and sights. When we reached Dog Rose I ordered a flight of their beers and a bag of dog treats for the pups. I also asked the bartender for any recommendations to eat in the area. She asked the time and then recommended the Bantam Chef, which closed in a little less than half an hour. The restaurant was in an adorable little house and proudly displayed on their menu their "Famous fish sandwich" so it only made sense to order that and I added a basket (fries and cole slaw). Now I'm not usually a big flounder fan but this was so good! You could tell how fresh the ingredients were and for the price I had soooo much fish on the sandwich!

On the way out we bought a growler filled with their Lincolnville Lager to take home and enjoy later.

Yelp review of Dogrose Brewing.
Yelp review of Bantam Chef.

 Then we drove back to the hotel to get some sleep before we returned to the historic area during the day to more properly explore. Our first stop was at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Augustine, the entire reason for the trip.

In college my junior year we had what was called the "Junior Project" in our second semester. Basically you picked someone (in my case a philosopher) and researched their works and analyzed their writings and then would spend an hour being questioned on it by at least three members of the faculty. Well the philosopher I had studied was St. Augustine. I will write more about the actual Church in the blog post when I discuss all seven trips. 

While my Mom and I were in the Church Meg had waited in the car with the dogs in the Church parking lot. When we came out  Meg joined us to walk around town a little bit.

Right across the street was the Monumento a la Constitutión 1813, a simple column monument. The column was built in honor of the Spanish Parliament in Cádiz writing the first Spanish Constitution. There was a royal decree for all Spanish towns to name their main plaza La Plaza de la Constitución and to erect a monument in it's honor. As the capital of the Spanish Colony  the residents quickly created their monument. However on September 15, 1814 just one year after the monument was constructed word came that the new government had been overthrown by the monarchy and the monuments were to be torn down. Across the ocean from Spain and unwilling to undue their hard work the St. Augustine government did not tear down theirs and today it maybe the only unaltered monument still existing from that original decree. 

There was also a Civil Rights Memorial in honor of Andrew Young's walk in St. Augustine. On June 9th, 1964 with the nation deep in debate of Civil Rights and what that meant for all races Andrew Young lead a march that started in Lincolnville and planned to end at the Plaza. However an angry white mob waited in the plaza. Having been sent by Martin Luther King Mr. Young did not let them deter him and walked into the plaza. He was severely beaten but those with him stayed true to their belief of non-violence. That moment certainly played a large role in stopping the filibuster on the Civil Rights Act which was finally signed on July 2nd, 1964 by then President Lyndon Johnson.

Next we walked along the beautiful Matanzas River to the Castillo de San Marcos, the oldest masonry fort in the Continental US. It has protected the harbor since 1695 and was designed by Ignacio Daza. Construction of the fort began in 1672 after buccaneer Robert Searles attacked and destroyed St. Augustine and the original wooden fort in 1668. Throughout the city's history the fort changed hands and names multiple times. In 1924 the fort was declared a National Monument and in 1933 for the first time in 251 years it ceased to act as a military base. It has survived two sieges and use as a prison during the American Revolution. Three signers of the Declaration of Independence were held there: Thomas Heywood Jr, Arthur Middleton, and Edward Rutledge.

We continued around the fort to the old city gates which once marked the entrance into St. Augustine.

We then began to make our way back to the car by walking thought the historic district. It was filled with beautiful architecture, historic markers, small stores, and restaurants. One neat sight was the oldest wooden school house in the USA.






When we got back to the car to start the long drive home I decided to stop at the coffee shop, The Kookaburra, a few doors down from the Basilica for a drink. Inside was small with just enough room for the counter and a small line. The counter by the way had Australian coins inlayed inside it which was super neat. I tried the honey badger (honey, cinnamon, and vanilla latte) and Meg had a Mocha Nut (chocolate and coconut) latte. One thing I liked was that as they were making the coffee they added some of the flavoring to the espresso and some of it was added to the milk so that as it frothed and heated the flavoring would blend. It certainly made for a nice drink. Also the lid had an opening in the center to allow the aroma of the coffee to escape and add to the drink experience.

We had two last sights in St. Augustine, a drive over the Bridge of Lions and the St. Augustine Lighthouse. The Lighthouse was built in the 1870s and is the oldest brick structure in St. Augustine. The bridge of lions got that name because of the two Carrara marble Medici lion statues modeled on the ones found in the Loggia dei Lanzi in Florence, Italy. The statues were made by Romanelli Studios in Florence and were gifts by Dr. Andrew Anderson who spent the latter part of his life donating works of art for public spaces.

We were going to stop by the Fountain of Youth Archeological Park but it was already getting later in the day and we really wanted to hit the park so we tabled that for a later visit.

The drive home was going super well filled with calling out yellow car and random conversations. Then my Mom asked us about stickers she had been seeing around Nashville with a 3, sun, and "A" on a light blue background. We discovered it was a highway in Florida and a line of beers at Grayton Beer Company. So we looked up where it was and realized it would add about three hours to the drive. And when you are already driving for the night why not add some more? Also it was Feb 29th, Leap Day, and what better way to use bonus hours on a day that doesn't even exist three out of four years than on a random road trip addition. So we detoured for dinner and a flight at Grayton beer company and we were not disappointed! We had the pretzel and spent grain bread with a honey butter, stout butter, and a sea salt and cracked pepper butter. I ordered the burger and for dessert we had a slice of key lime pie... not to mention a flight of beers. The 1890 founders ale and 30A rose were my favorites!

In total our road trip looked like this and was totally worth the long hours for all the great sites and history we saw, the delicious beers, and awesome conversation!

Where were they going without even knowing the way

Back out of all this now too much for us,

Back in a time made simple by the loss

Of detail, burned, dissolved, and broken off

Like graveyard marble sculpture in the weather,

There is a house that is no more a house

Upon a farm that is no mare a farm

And in a town that is no more a town. 

The road there, if you'll let a guide direct you

Who only has at heart your getting lost,

May seem as if it should have been a quarry-

Great monolithic knees the former town

Long since gave up pretense of keeping covered.

-Robert Frost Directive

I don't remember anymore where the idea came from... I think I heard something on NPR that made me think about people relying on GPS and not knowing anymore how to read/use maps. So tangentially related to that idea I thought of going on a road trip where I had to take at least three highways and travel about two hours each time to end up... somewhere. Then once there I could look up what was in the area to explore. It would make me explore or learn about some place to which I never would have thought of going. 

Thursday a co-worker asked what we were doing this weekend and we said nothing because we were dog sitting my Mom's dog. He was surprised and responded that we are always going places. So after leaving the bar, when all the best decisions are made, we decided to try out this road trip idea. We already would have Gypsy Rover so we needed dog friendly locations anyway why would one more dog change things. 

One of the greatest things about Nashville is the amount of large interstate highways that circle it. We have so many starting points. This trip we started out by traveling south on I-65 towards Alabama. That would at least get us a good distance to start with. At the Alabama border we stopped to stretch and walk the dogs and see the Saturn 1B rocket that greets visitors to "Sweet Home Alabama."  I've already known about this for awhile and every time I pass by I stop and check it out because it is awesome. The rocket was developed in Huntsville, Alabama and 9 of the 12 rockets were used to support the Apollo and other missions.

As we approached exit 328 I saw a sign that it was Jesse Owens Memorial Parkway. Since we were close to two hours I asked Meg if she wanted to switch highways and she agreed. So we exited and turned right to travel west on the Jesse Owens Memorial Highway, Highway 36, which took us through the town of Hartselle, self titled "The City of Southern Hospitality." We drove through their downtown area which definitely looks like a great spot to walk around and enjoy the different small businesses that lined the road. It is the second largest city in Morgan county and dates its founding back to 1870 when the citizens moved a half mile to its current location so the Alabama Railroad could put a stop there. The town became official in 1873 when a post office was opened and the town was named for George Hartselle, one of the owners of the railroad. 

As I was trying to look up why it is called the "City of Southern Hospitality" I discovered that the town was the location of an infamous and still unsolved bank robbery. On the morning of March 15th (beware the Ides of March), 1926 possibly as many as 15 individuals robbed the bank of over $15,000 in gold and deposits. It was early in the morning when the robbers lined the wall with explosives and cut the town telephone lines to prevent people from calling for help. Several townspeople were taken hostage and one, a local dentist named Dr J.D. Johnston was injured. The whole event took over three hours and, despite the hard work of several different agencies, the robbery was never solved. 

Now for the most part the point of the trip is getting to a new destination so I wanted to keep random stops to a minimum but since we were on the Jesse Owens Memorial Highway I decided to stop at the Jesse Owens Museum and Memorial. James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens was born in Alabama on September 12, 1913, and passed away in Arizona March 31, 1980. As a teenager he began to be noticed for his remarkable abilities in Track and Field; after high school he attended Ohio State University. In 1935 at Ann Arbor Michigan at the Big Ten Championships Owens achieved a feat that has been described by sports reporters as "the greatest 45 minutes ever in sports."  

At 3:15 Jesse ran the 100 yard dash in 9.4 seconds to tie the world record. 

At 3:25 in the long jump Jesse leaped 26-8 1/4 feet setting a world record that lasted for 25 years.

At 3:34 He ran the 220 yard dash in 20.3 seconds setting a new record.

At 4:00 Jesse ran the 220 low hurdles in 22.6 seconds breaking 23 seconds for the first time in the event.

A year later Jesse traveled to Germany to compete in the Olympics in Track and Field. He won the gold in long jump with a final jump of 26-5 1/2 feet, set an Olympic record for the 200 meter dash in 20.7 seconds, was part of the 4x100 relay team that set a world record of 39.8 seconds that would stand for 20 years, and his fourth gold medal was from the 100 meter dash. 

Jesse's feat at those Olympics is one of the greatest moments in sports because it is one of the times when a sporting event was more than just that event or game. At that moment in Germany with tension and the Nazi party rising Jesse's victories were victories against the Nazi ideal. Jesse's victories and story also highlighted the need for the Civil Rights movement in America. Jesse had had to work his way through college because as an African American he wasn't eligible for many of the scholarships that were offered. He came home to a parade honoring the US Olympic team's success and had to take a freight elevator at the back of the Waldorf because he wasn't allowed in the front door. In an interview Jesse said:

"When I came back to my native country, after all the stories about Hitler, I couldn't ride in the front of the bus, ... I had to go to the back door, I couldn't live where I wanted. I wasn't invited to shake hands with Hitler, but I wasn't invited to the White House to shake hands with the President, either."

In 1976 President Ford awarded Jesse the Medal of Freedom and posthumously in 1990 President Bush awarded Jesse the Congressional Medal of Honor calling his victory in 1936, "an unrivaled athletic triumph, but more than that, a triumph for all humanity."

Beneath the statue was a plaque that read:

"Jesse Owens

Olympic Champion

1936

Athlete and humanitarian whose inspiration personifies the spirit and promise of America."

We left the memorial and drove past the Oakville Indian Mound a testament to over 14,000 years of human life before returning to 36 west. 

After we had been on 36 west for a little over 32 minutes the road ended, something I hadn't thought too much about. So we turned on to 33 South and considered 36 as yielding its remaining time to the new highway. We drove through the beautiful Bankhead National Forest. Technically 33 South yielded its last remaining time to 19th street in Jasper, Alabama, before we switched to 5 South, our third highway. 

5 South got a little dicey but somehow we stayed on it as it joined with 11 South, 20 West, and 59 South. And then each of those highways separated and we were alone on 5 South. And that is how we got to Brent, Alabama.

Brent was founded in 1898 along the Gulf, Mobile, and Ohio Railroad line and was named for a Bibb county surveyor Brent H. Armstrong. On May 27th, 1973, a series of tornados wrecked havoc across the South including one F4 which destroyed most of the town. That tornado was on the ground for 139 miles making it the longest track by a tornado in Alabama. 

The trip was successful in my mind. I never would have traveled to Brent, Alabama, if not for this. At most it would have become a familiar name if I saw it enough times on a highway sign. I never would have known about the record setting tornado or the story of resilience of a town coming together to heal and rebuild. We also might have never taken a trip on the Jesse Owens Memorial Highway or know how close we were to his Memorial and Museum, and we never would have taken the beautiful scenic drive through the Bankhead National Forest. This is as close as I can piece together the actual path of our trip. 

Now that we had finished the trip and discovered the history of Brent I began to search out other attractions/breweries/restaurants in the area. I used the website Bring Fido to try and find some dog friendly locations and I found three: Black Warrior Brewing, Druid City Brewing, and Wilhagans restaurant. 

First we went to Black Warrior Brewing to try some of their brews. The brewery is so dog friendly that they had a water bowl for dogs and they make their own dog treats using their spent grain from the brewing process. We each bought a flight to try several of their beers and pick a growler to take home and a bag of treats for the pups. Here is my review on Yelp.

After leaving Black Warrior we went looking for something to eat and stopped at Wilhagans for their broccoli cheese bites which were amazing (disclaimer we ate some before I took the picture) and  really good burgers. We took the food with us to Druid City Brewing to eat. Meg ate her burger first while I held on to the dogs and she told me the burger was delicious and very flavorful. When we switched and I bit into the burger I exclaimed that she was right the burger was delicious and several people at Druid City saw the burger and asked us where it was from so hopefully they get some more business for it.

Druid City brewing is a small brewery and they had trivia starting so we ate quickly to make more room. Meg had a porter and I had their ale because I asked what was most popular. The beers were good and the place had a neat atmosphere including a record player behind the bar and records from which to choose.

Finally we had one last stop before we headed home and that was a McDonalds in Northport, AL. Now that may seem like a long way to go for McDonalds but Meg wanted to try the new shamrock Oreo McFlurry, which was delicious, and Ronal Reagan once ate at that McDonalds.

Not bad for a random road trip when we didn't know where we were going.