[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Now were getting out there. My first real excursion into the south. I wanted to find a way to get Memphis in as well but it just wasn’t practical. I made that first day from my home to near Munfordville, Kentucky. That was a lot of driving for one day when I pulled in at around 2 AM for a few hours of sleep in the back seat of my car. This was done in April and getting into the South then was so nice. It was warm, almost hot and I really enjoyed that. But my allergies were kicking in which made me a bit miserable.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
West Virginia
The first stop was in Lexington, Virginia to visit Stonewall Jackson’s grave and the Robert E. Lee Chapel where Lee is buried on the Washington & Lee campus. These were just quick stops but needed to stretch the legs before heading into West Virginia. Visited two civil war battlefields in West Virginia, Carnifax Ferry and Droop Mountain then onto the New River Gorge and finally into Charleston to see the West Virginia Power. Click on those links to check them out. Then made the long drive into Kentucky and made it all the way to a highway rest area near Munfordville before turning in. It was well that I was only going that far as nature was calling by then.
I wound up taking the Bluegrass Parkway from near Lexington and there was nary a car on that road. I think I saw 5 others and one was a cop that had to have been driving about 100 mph. Then as soon as I merged onto I-65 it was back to heavy traffic. That was about midnight too. Lots of trucks on that road.[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid element_width=”2″ item=”mediaGrid_BlurWithContentBlock” grid_id=”vc_gid:1588365410673-dec130cf-82d1-6″ include=”3661,3662,3664,3665,3666,3667,3668,3669,3670″][vc_column_text]
Nashville
Slept in my car for the first time ever and suffice it to say it was quite uncomfortable. I have since figured out a few tricks to make it a bit more comfy. One benefit here is that you wake up with the sun which put me on the road on a lovely misty morning in the Bluegrass state. Should have snapped a picture. Made the one hour drive down to Nashville. Never been here before.
Walked around downtown for a bit and visited the monument for the Battle of Nashville as well as the remains of Fort Negley. This is I think the largest battle of the Civil War that has no battlefield and that was because the town fathers simply wanted to forget it happened. Even the monument had to be moved to accommodate an Interstate interchange.
If I had done a little more research I could have visited so much more but I goofed. Did most of my looking around early in the morning so nothing was open. I considered at least making a driveby of the Grand Ol’ Opry but I passed. I’ll save that for next time since there will be a next time. Took in a Nashville Sounds game. I liked this place. I will be back.[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid element_width=”2″ item=”mediaGrid_BlurWithContentBlock” grid_id=”vc_gid:1588365410674-eedd6648-4d8e-2″ include=”3671,3672,3673,3674,3675,3676,3677,3678,3679,3680,3681″][vc_column_text]
Stone’s River
I actually spent most of the day in the Nashville areay down in Murfreesboro at Stone’s River, one of the bloodiest fights of the Civil War. Most of the battlefield has been lost but enough is still there. It was a Union victory in perhaps the darkest time of the war. Pictures are in the Battlefields Section. It was a lovely day, got into the upper 80s (this was early April) but my allergies were killing me here. I have since read books on both Stone’s River and Nashville so I have a better idea about what went on so I will have to go back.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
Abraham Lincoln and Louisville
Headed north back into Kentucky and passed a second night in a highway rest area (the same one just on the other side of the Interstate). I couldn’t overlook a visit to Lincoln’s birthplace near Hogdenville and since this was a Sunday there was not much else open anyway. He didn’t live there long so there wasn’t much to see, either there or at his boyhood home a few miles away. I had the place pretty much to myself, there was one other couple that came in while I was there.
Then it was on to Louisville. The Thunder over Louisville Air Show had taken place the day before so everyone was still hungover and the only thing open was the Slugger Museum which was packed. Next time, though I did take a walk around the building. I would have taken the tour but the Bats were doing team autograph day and I wanted to take that in. The Bats manager was Jim Riggleman the former Nats manager and I told him I thought he got a raw deal with them. It turns out he did. I met someone who was friends with him that collects the bobbleheads too and he told me some interesting stories.
This was also the beginning of a monster for me as a brewery is next to the stadium and I picked up a pint glass there before taking in the Bats game. I haven’t really stopped since though I did have time to have a draft but didn’t. This was the pre-Untappd days so it wouldn’t have mattered anyway for my badges there.
After the game (well, during it but the final was like 18-5 and the backup catcher had to come in and pitch so I could get away easily I made a brief detour into Indiana to visit Corydon, the only Civil War battle fought in Indiana. Took a bit to find the park but fortunately the town is not that big. I also made a driveby of Fort Knox.[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid element_width=”2″ item=”mediaGrid_BlurWithContentBlock” grid_id=”vc_gid:1588365410675-e4325a4f-6c57-5″ include=”3682,3683,3684,3685,3686,3687,3688,3689,3690,3691,3692,3693,3694,3695,3696,3697″][vc_column_text]
Mammoth Cave
Opened my Monday at Mammoth Cave. Obviously not a lot of pictures here but you could take pictures in the cave, just without a flash. Did the historical tour as it was the quickest and the first to leave for the day. I had other plans for the day so that was necessary and the time zone change would be a problem as I headed back into the Eastern Time Zone so I lost an hour.[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid element_width=”2″ item=”mediaGrid_BlurWithContentBlock” grid_id=”vc_gid:1588365410675-f137c4d6-f947-8″ include=”3699,3700,3701,3702,3703,3704,3698″][vc_column_text]
Perryville Battlefield
I wanted to get here as fast as I could and losing the hour changing time zones was a problem. This was largest Civil War battle to be fought in Kentucky and the terrain is much as it was back then but you have to walk it. While coming here I ran into a jam on the Bluegrass Parkway, someone’s car caught fire and I sat there for over an hour waiting for it to be put out. I had food in my car so it wasn’t that bad but I didn’t have as much time here as I would have liked. You have to walk the battlefield as there is no driving tour, so I tried to get as much in as I could, or at least thought I had time to see.
Perryville is also not really near anything, sure its sort of near Harrodsburg but not really and I wanted to be in Cincy for the game. Had I known getting into Cincy would have been as easy as it was I would have stayed longer. Traffic at rush hour was almost nil which was a shock. I got there plenty early and rush hour traffic kept flowing, what can I say? Pictures of Perryville are on the Battlefield Page.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
Cincinnati
There was one common theme for my stay here: Cold! It didn’t get above 40 for any of the games but at least one was sunny.
There really wasn’t much to do in Cincy and I really wasn’t planning on spending a lot of time in the city but Mother Nature had other plans for me. I am sure I could have found something to do had I looked but I didn’t think I was going to be in town for more than one day other than for the games. Pictures for the Reds games are here.
Visited William H. Taft’s house, went up in the Carew Tower and went up onto Devou Mountain but that was about it. I did have some Skyline Chili on a coney dog at the game. I was also the one fool eating ice cream there since I wanted the ice cream helmet. Baseball traveling is not all fortune and glory.[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid element_width=”2″ item=”mediaGrid_BlurWithContentBlock” grid_id=”vc_gid:1588365410676-beb92e0f-2e27-3″ include=”3705,3706,3707,3708,3709,3710,3711,3712,3713,3714,3715,3716,3717,3718,3719,3721,3722,3723,3725″][vc_column_text]
Indianapolis
Part of the reason that I was not planning much in Cincy was because I saw that the Indy Indians (the Pirates’ AAA team) were home for a morning game while I was in town so I headed up. It rained hard in Cincy the night before and the game wound up being suspended after the 7th. That rain turned to snow in Indiana and I wasn’t turning around at that point. The Indians game was PPD, which I didn’t find until I walked up to Victory Field. Of course I was already in town so I tried to make the best of it but there wasn’t much to see in Indy either. It was cold though.
I did feel special since I park in the VIP lot at the football stadium. I just wasn’t going to a football game so I didn’t have to pay football prices.[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid element_width=”2″ item=”mediaGrid_BlurWithContentBlock” grid_id=”vc_gid:1588365410677-45752da3-6dea-4″ include=”3726,3727,3728,3729,3730,3731,3732,3733,3734,3735,3736,3737,3738,3739″][vc_btn title=”Back to My Travels” style=”3d” align=”center” button_block=”true” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Ftheworldneedsmorekevin.com%2Fmy-travels%2F|||”][vc_column_text]
Cincy to Columbus
The final game in Cincy was a day matinee so that allowed me to skip town early and that was made earlier since Johnny Cueto mowed down the Bucs. I did have plans for the drive home and there was lots to see on the drive, just very little open. Took in US Grant’s birthplace (this was open!), his boyhood home (closed) and schoolhouse (closed), the Hopewell Culture NHS (grounds are always open) outside of Chillicothe, William T. Sherman’s house in Lancaster (closed) and the Phil Sheridan monument in Somerset.
The person at Grant’s birthplace said that the people who work his schoolhouse and boyhood home live near there and if they see you walking around they would come down and let you in. Guess they didn’t see me. Sherman’s house was open but only for a few hours in the afternoon and I had to make the drive to Pittsburgh so I couldn’t tour it.
Then into Columbus for a walk around. Knowing that I had time to kill I looked to see if anything was in Zanesville and I found out that William Hazlett, who commanded the Union battery on Little Round Top, was buried there and as luck would have it I would be driving right by it coming from Somerset. I pulled in and without knowing where he was buried resolved to find it and amazingly I did in only a few minutes. I still can’t believe that. Should have stopped in at Neil Armostrong’s birthplace too since I got into Pittsburgh in plenty of time but oh well. Took in the Pirates game that night and headed home.[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid element_width=”2″ item=”mediaGrid_BlurWithContentBlock” grid_id=”vc_gid:1588365410678-e89dbd66-a5f1-0″ include=”3740,3741,3742,3743,3744,3745,3746,3747,3748,3749,3750,3751,3752,3753,3754,3755,3756,3757,3758,3759″][/vc_column][/vc_row]