The illusion of fears

Shortly after leaving Nashville and driving north on #65, I crossed into Kentucky. After a few miles, I saw a sign for the Mammoth Cave National Park and was drawn to check that out. A long, windy road with forests on both sides, brought me to a lovely campground where I decided to stay for the night.

Again, I was camping in a forest, listening to the song of birds. Beside me was a family with 3 young children who invited me to their campfire that night.They were delighted by some of my stories and taught me to make Smores, amazed that I didn't know what those were:
 You toast a marshmallow over the fire, then squeeze it between 2 graham crackers on which there is a piece of chocolate and voila, a Smore! It's definitely sweet, and difficult to have only one!

I was grateful to be able to share the experience with them.

The next day was Easter and I woke up to warm sun shining through my windows. I walked over to the Visitor's centre and learned about the cave.

Mammoth cave is the longest cave in the world (over twice as long as any known cave) and so far, 400 miles of it have been explored. Geologists think there could be as many as 600 more miles to be discovered!

The cave has been designated as a World Heritage Site and also the core area of an International Biosphere Reserve.

Many forms of life can be found in this cave, including insects, lizards, fish and bats. Because of living in darkness, the fish have no eyes or pigments. Bats have become endangered due to "White-Nosed Syndrome", a disease caused by a fungus, spreading throughout the eastern US. It is not harmful to humans and so far has not been found in Mammoth Cave but precautions are taken and visitors must walk on mats containing a cleansing fluid when leaving the cave.
 Only a few miles of the cave have been developed for tours by installing low lights that are turned on and off by the guide , stairs in steep places, and a path.

Initially I wasn't sure if I would go on one of the tours, often feeling claustrophobic in small spaces. Then I thought this would be a safe way to face some of those fears and I signed up for a 2hr, 2mi tour. I mentioned my concerns to the guide and he suggested I walk near him. He told me that with fears of claustrophobia, it's really not about being in a small space that's the problem but rather, the fear of not being able to get out. 

Entrance to Mammoth Cave

The entrance and initial cavern were quite large and the way was lit as our group of about 150 people walked along a path, another guide bringing up the rear. The various rock formations were incredible and beautiful.
In some places on the ceiling, you could see names printed by early explorers. They would tie a lit candle to a long stick to make the small smudges forming the letters.

The guide informed us of the 300ft change in elevation on 
 this tour as we were walking across a grid over "The Bottomless Pit". He shone his flashlight showing us water far below.
As we progressed to deeper levels, I became quite uncomfortable, remembering to take slow deep breaths and reminding myself that this cave has been around for millions of years. When checking to see how I was doing, he told us that the cave is the safest place to be in an earthquake because it is so stable!
At one point, he turned off all lights so we could experience 100% darkness, something that most people have never encountered. I thought about how these kind of fears are an illusion. Just because it is dark, does not make it dangerous. We were with a guide in a safe place and he is in communication with people on the surface.
 It's amazing how our minds can influence how we feel! 

"Fat Man's Misery"

The next section was unexpected and had I known we would go through there, I might not have gone on that tour. There was a narrow opening to "Fat Man's Misery" which became a tight walkway, sometimes requiring me to turn sideways. That led into "Tall Man's Misery" which was a bit wider but the very low ceiling made it difficult to walk, bent over. I focused very hard on there being lots of air and on the stability of the cave, making it through without panicking. 
Facing fears really does reduce their impact!
The rest of the journey through the cave was interesting and I knew I would be able to do this tour again another time. What a great feeling!

I left the park and carried on driving north toward Detroit, the weather getting progressively colder and the vegetation less green.
After stopping for a night at a Cracker Barrel restaurant (another free place for RV's to park overnight) at
La Grange, Kentucky  and then at a Walmart at Bowling Green, Ohio, I stopped at "Maumee Bay State Park".
 It is situated on the Lake Erie shoreline SE of Toledo and about 68mi (110km) from the border into Canada.
I needed this time to sort out the receipts of things bought in US
(mostly for my RV ,such as my second solar panel). After almost 6 mos in US, I wasn't sure what I needed to claim. 

Maumee Bay State Park is a beautiful park set in meadows and marshes with a PA rate of only $14.50/night for electrical hook up. They had showers, fresh water, and a dump site available. I was fortunate to find this place since many northern parks are closed during the winter. It got close to freezing during the night but because  I had electricity, I was able to use my portable electric heater, saving on propane. 
It was good to empty my tanks too, since I had no idea where I would find a place to dump after arriving in Canada.

The next day, April 8, it didn't take long to drive north on I-75 to Detroit and it was quite easy to reach the Ambassador Bridge marking the border between Canada and US. 
Driving over this suspension bridge is always exciting because of its 2.3km length. This time I knew to follow the signs for cars instead of trucks ( My RV is usually a "truck" and when I returned east after buying my motorhome in Calgary, I took the truck lane and ended up in the midst of many transport trucks, finding out I should have taken the car lane! )
I reached Canadian customs without any problem. The guard was very pleasant and didn't require any receipts. I had claimed what I had bought and was over my limit but he waved me through.
It pays to be honest!

It was wonderful to see the Canadian flags and to be back in familiar territory. I love calling Canada my home!

I spent that night visiting a good friend near Windsor , then carried on to London, Ont where I had gone to school and worked and where some of my family and many friends still live.
 It is now April 13 and I am parked in the driveway of good friends, appreciating their hospitality. After I arrived, there was a lot of rain and I came down with a nasty cold. It feels terrible but then I decided to be grateful to have this time to rest!
 The weather has turned from very cold ( close to freezing at night) to warmer days. Signs of spring are visible with buds on some trees, crocuses blooming, and birds singing. How lucky I am to have the pleasure of experiencing such a long spring!

This is what awaits us here soon: 
(photos taken a few years ago.)

I plan to spend the rest of April in Ontario and then drive east to Nova Scotia, stopping to explore the Gaspe Peninsula which I have long wished to see.

The journey continues!


"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant."
                                                -Robert Louis Stevenson

"To climb steep hills requires a slow pace at first."
                                                           -William Shakespeare


A story shared by a friend:

A man was telling someone that he and his wife were about to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. 
His buddy asked him what the secret was for the success of his long marriage.
He replied that for their 25th anniversary, he took her on a trip to Italy.
"So what will you do to celebrate your 50th anniversary?" asked his buddy.
The man replied, "I'll travel back to Italy to go pick her up!"

Sprinter?

This week I heard the transition from winter to spring referred to as "Sprinter" and that is what I have been experiencing for a couple of weeks now. It's been fun watching spring unfold and then reverse again as I began to travel north, with temperatures going from cozy warm sunshine back to shivering, chilly showers. It's too bad we can't send some of this water to California which is suffering from extreme drought!

On April 2, I arrived in Nashville and was happy to have my GPS as it is a much larger city than I expected, with large expressways and heavy traffic. My odometer passed the 100,000 km mark indicating that I had driven 21000 km since I bought my motorhome just over 6 mos ago!

The recording studio was in "Music City"and was easy to find. I not only got a place to park my motorhome but one of the co-owners, Barry, got me a guest ticket to a dinner and music show.

Spring blooms in Nashville

The show was great and I enjoyed listening to a few of the old country and western songs but I also felt some disappointment since those singers could never sound the same as the original ones. I knew times had changed and that many of  those classic C+W singers are gone and yet I had hung on to my teenage fantasy of what I thought Nashville would be like, not wanting anything to have changed. Then I thought of how wanting to hang on to a previous moment in time, is missing the precious moment of that day.

     Staying at the parking lot overnight                                

The theatre I went to

felt rather uncomfortable. Initially there was loud music from several bars nearby and then, after everyone left, I was the only one in that large parking lot besides one empty car.
I moved to a hotel lot the next day after getting permission and woke up to birds singing their hearts out in a blossoming tree nearby. 
Taking a shuttle bus downtown to Broadway St, I visited the" Grand Ole Opry", only to discover that the original building is no longer there and that the show has had several homes. This one is in a large old church that was converted in 1943 and is known as "The Ryman Auditorium". The tickets were expensive and I decided that since I would not be seeing those C+W singers I loved so much , I would buy CDs of Patsy Cline and Jim Reeves instead. It felt nice to be walking around that area of the city where so many of the old stars used to sing. The shuttle driver was fun and had a sign indicating "Anyone over 80 rides free if accompanied by parents."

Downtown Nashville, the old and new buildings

The Grand Ole Opry

Arriving back to where I was parked, I walked over to the "Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Centre". Covering 5.5 acres of land and with 2881 rooms/suites on 6 floors, this hotel is the largest I have ever seen and ranks as 29th on the list of the world's largest hotels.

There were several large areas of tropical trees, plants and forests as well as waterfalls, fountains, and even a river where you could go for a boat ride! Restaurants were scattered throughout this magical place and it felt wonderful to spend time there, particularly at night with thousands of twinkling lights , all inside.

Waterfall inside hotel

I was ready to leave the city after 2 days and it took me a while to decide whether to continue east or to go north toward Canada. When I got to the highway turn-off, I went north with no idea of where to stop that night. I knew I would find a place and shortly after that, I discovered another fascinating place to stay and an unexpected good experience.
That will make a good topic for my next blog!

A friend gave me this riddle: What is most difficult to open? (answer will follow at the end)
"Underneath even the most annoying behaviour, is a frustrated person who is crying out for compassion."
-Richard Carlson, author of "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff."
"Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage
to lose sight of the shore."
-Andre Gide, French author
Answer to riddle:
A closed mind.

                                                                                                       

The Lure of Music

Petit Jean State Park , just west of Little Rock Arkansas, was a relaxing place to rest for a few days. After a 1/2hr drive up a mountain road, I came to the park and its forest of large pine trees. Along the entrance were groups of daffodils in full bloom  and interspersed among the pines were flowering wild pear trees. The songs of many birds added to the peaceful atmosphere.                                                            

    At first it looked like I would not be able to get a 
campsite due spring break for the schools and the campsites had been reserved weeks ahead. Luckily there was a last minute cancellation while I was waiting and I got a site for 5 days ! It was glorious to have so much time in such a wonderful place, to rest, go for hikes on their many trails, or catch up on e-mails at a lodge nearby.

The park is named after a French girl who, in the 1700's, disguised herself as a boy to secretly travel with her fiance to the New World and this mountain. He had refused her to come with him due to the dangers of going to an unknown land and promised he would send for her after checking it out. Her disguise was so good he didn't recognize her and the other sailors named her Petit Jean due to her small size. On the night before leaving  to return to France, she became critically ill and her identity was discovered. She begged him to forgive her and requested that she be buried on that mountain that she loved so much.Her grave site is now visited by many travelers.

There are several well traveled hiking trails throughout the park, often following Cedar Creek which resulted from Cedar Falls, a 95ft waterfall and popular attraction.

Cedar Creek

While at the park, I met many very nice people who lived in nearby towns or cities and wanted to spend time camping with their children. It was delightful to watch the children playing in the forest and listening to the music of their laughter.
Quite a few visitors camped in tents and it must have been cold for them during the night unless they had a tent heater.
The days were warm enough for T-shirts.
One day there was a thunderstorm, my first heavy rain in a long time. I was happy to get my RV washed!

On March 30, I travelled about 4hrs on to Memphis,Tennessee (pop just over 1/2 million) with the worst traffic I have yet encountered. The highway was busy enough with numerous large trucks (and some motorhomes!) and construction , that I decided not to drive into Memphis to visit Graceland (the former home of Elvis, sigh!)
As I had nothing else arranged for a place to park for the night I was going to stay at a Walmart on the outskirts of the city. A security guard informed me that parking there overnight was illegal and told me I could park at Sam's parking lot across the road. I've noted that some Walmarts now don't allow overnight parking for RV's or trucks due to their parking lots being owned by private companies. I was grateful to have a place to park!

The next day, I continued my journey, stopping at a McDonalds to use their free wifi to check on campgrounds along the way. I found a PA (Passport America) RV park , about 4hrs east.
The countryside had been rolling hills with some flat stretches and large fields bordered by forests.
As I drove eastward, I was watching spring unfold as if in slow motion : more blossoming bushes and trees appeared, the grass became greener and had a more lush appearance, young leaves were appearing on the trees and clumps of daffodils could be seen around some mailboxes. After the snow and ice of winter, the magic of spring never ceases to amaze me!

When I arrived at Tanbark campground, I was welcomed like a part of the family. The manager Gena, showed me to my site and gave me information about the park and the area.
Because I have PA membership, it cost me $12.50/night for full hookups, free wifi, laundry facilities and showers! I so love getting a good deal, particularly if it's also a pleasant, quiet, and well maintained park. Several people live here full time in their motor homes or trailers. For $250/mo plus electricity, it's an inexpensive way to live!
Tomorrow, I will go back on the road for the 1hr drive to Nashville, a place I have wanted to visit since hearing country and western music when I was a teen ager....Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, Jim Reeves...
Gena made some phone calls and arranged for me to park overnight at her brother's recording studio across from Grand Ole Opry. Oh, I think I can hear the music already!


Some astronomy facts:
In the upper left shoulder of the constellation Orion is the bright star Betelgeuse. It is a supergiant red star 1 million times brighter and  1000 times larger than the sun. It is calculated to be as big as the radius of Jupiter's orbit around the sun!
(from "Understanding the Universe: An introduction to Astronomy" by Alex Filippenko)

"Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better." - Albert Einstein

"The clearest way into the universe is through  -a forest wilderness" - John Muir, Botanist