06/04/2010 to 06/20/2010
As trips go, this was one of our longer and most diverse. The impetus was a family wedding in Chicago and knowing us that meant we would find all sorts of stuff to see on our way.
Kansas is one of those states we usually just drive through but this time we stopped to take the tour at the Kansas Underground Salt Museum, enjoy a couple great parks, and climb on an Atomic Cannon.
In Chicago we took the Architectural River Tour and we have a new appreciation for that city and its unique buildings.
West Virginia proved to be a treasure trove of fun. From Julios Restaurant (amazing food) and Oliverios Cash N Carry in Clarksburg to The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum and Appalachian Glass in Weston there is a lot to see. We also managed to tour the Leinenkugel Brewery in Chippewa Falls, WI since we were in the hood. Eclectic more or less describes this trip.
- Kansas Underground Salt Museum
- Mushroom State Park - Marquette, KS
- Rock City - Minneapolis, KS
- Atomic Cannon - Junction City, KS
- Leinenkugel Brewery - Chippewa Falls, WI
- Chicago Architectural Boat Tour
- Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum - WV
- Humpback Covered Bridge - Covington, VA
- New River Gorge National River - WV
While researching things to do and see in Kansas we stumbled upon the Kansas Underground SaltrnMuseum. Now, we've done mineral mines, grottos, pits, caves, but never a salt mine.
If you watch "Dirty Jobs" you migh remember Mike Rowe blasting away in a salt mine; well this is that place. It is still a working mine, but a large area that is no longer worked has been transformed into a museum. Although only open for a few years the tour is great and the staff is a lot of fun.
A portion of the mine is also leased by Underground Vault & Storage. Everything from medical records and historic papers to Hollywood costumes are housed here for safe keeping.
The Museum
This is the tunnel Mike was helping blast in that "Dirty Jobs" episode
These black striations mean something in relation to how deep they drill, how tall the tunnels, and other mining stuff
After your long walk through "Mike's" tunnel you start the actual tour
Lots of old equipment from years gone by
Yes, it's quite dark but this is to give you some idea of the size of the room they've blasted out
These are the old miner's cars and the original "tourist" cars
This is an undercutter, and to get it down here it is dismantled to fit into the small bucket everyone rides in, then reassembled
Mike Rowe's car. Cars, like all other equipment, come down in pieces and are re-assembled. Once down here, they don't leave
Naturally there's a gift shop
The Batman suit worn by Val Kilmer. It's on display as a sample of the items in the Vault area
Mr. Freeze
I'm in this for scale. That is a large block of salt
This is a picture of the old fan they used in years gone by for ventilation
You get to "mine" your own salt here
The floor can heave by quite a bit. This display shows where it rose about 6 feet
We thought it was very nice of Kansas to treasure these unique sandstone formations from the Cretaceous Period. The shapes and sizes are quite varied, and the little park itself is just lovely. Had it not been 98 degrees with 98% humidity it would have been a nice place for a picnic lunch. Funny how a decade in the desert makes you a wimp.
Cute Sign
A little history about the area
I think this looks like a boat
A little cluster of rocks
I say a cow patty. What do you think?
As you can see these are rather large formations
Holy Rock Batman!
Squat is nice too
A flying saucer landing point
A large flying saucer landing site. I'm always put in for scale
I thought the park itself was just lovely
There are decades of names etched into the base of this formation
Did you know there is a Minneapolis in Kansas? And it has some great rocks. Rock City Park is another area of those marvelous sandstone formations. There is also a little Welcome Center where the friendly couple who run it will give you a cool Popsicle after you are through playing among the rocks, and believe me we needed it.
A little information about the park
The visitor's center
One of the clusters of rocks
You guessed it; I'm in it for scale
Yes, you are allowed to climb on the rocks just like a kid
More rocks
A little tipsy
Tunnel Rock
Proof you can see through the tunnel
I would not call this one of mans brightest ideas, but apparently someone thought we should have a cannon that shoots atomic shells. They figured it should be big enough to shoot these shells a long distance so they would not kill the folks that were firing them. So, in the 1950s twenty of these were built. Of the 8 that have survived, the largest is on display in Junction City, Kansas. It sits atop a rather large hill with a path that winds up through wildflowers, tanks and howitzers.
A brief history about the atomic cannon
Looking up the path to the cannon
A more conventional weapon
Yup, that is the cannon
Yes, I'm on it for scale.
The shells are good sized
The cannon sits adjacent to a meadow where cattle graze. A bit odd
Is this a long-horned steer? Where is Rowdy Yates when you need him?
We just thought this guy was so pretty and a contrast to the hill of weapons
A shot down the very winding path that goes up to the cannon. You will get a little work-out
On our way from Minneapolis to Chicago we pass not too far from Chippewa Falls so we made a little detour and took the Leinie Tour. Chippewa Falls is a lovely little town, and the Leinenkugel Brewery fits right in. You start at the Leinie Lodge, where you are given tickets for your tour and tasting. The outside may be quaint but inside the facility is state of the art. After the tour you can shop and redeem your tasting coupons for generous samples their various beers.
Remember what Ben Franklin said; "Beer is proof God loves us and wants us to be happy". Ben was very wise.
The Leinie Lodge
The brewery, bottling facility and office
It was nice to see the old facilities are still in use
The workmanship on the windows is artwork in itself
The offices
The original spring house
Chicago is known for award winning architecture, so we thought we would take an architectural boat tour since we were already near the downtown area. The weather was very overcast and dark so our pictures do not do justice to the diversity and beauty of these buildings. These are not your usual glass and steel boxes but works of art.
I have done my best to name a few of the buildings we took pictures of, and if I get any of them wrong I am sure my Chicago friends will set me straight.
The Navy Pier
The Navy Pier - it is quite a busy place with a little bit of everything
As you can see it was very overcast, misty, and cloudy
Even with the mist hanging over the buildings it is a pretty skyline from the Pier
Our fellow cruisers
The Aqua is the one on the right with the "waves" and the Aon Center is the one on the left
A shot back up the river. The one in the center with the gold top is the former Carbon and Carbide Building, now the Hard Rock Hotel
The Chicago Board of Trade
The Hard Rock, and behind it is the Two Prudential Plaza with the point and the Aon Center behind that
The Merchandise Mart. It is huge
The curved building is the River City Apartments. There are quite a few residential dwellings along the river
Some nice shots down the river
These are the River Cottages. The guide said no one knows what they are valued for because since they were built and occupied in 1990 not one has gone back on the market.
As you can see the buildings are very diverse in form, color and structure
The blue topped building is The Regatta and the Shoreham is to the right way back there
The Tribune Tower. I'm looking for Batman on the spires
The Trump Tower is the glass structure in the center
Looking past the Wabash Ave Bridge
A lunatic asylum. Yes, that is correct. It is just amazing what you can find to see on the internet.
This place was once known as the Weston State Hospital. Built between 1858 and 1881 it was one of the very first hospitals for the mentally ill (or unwanted wives dumped by husbands) that believed in treating patients with care and respect and providing bright cheery rooms with windows.
Our docent, Sue, had been a nurse at the facility from about 1967 until it closed in 1994. Also, one of the other men on the tour was a local who regaled us with tales from his youth and family members who worked at the hospital.
A little historic information
This is what you see from the sidewalk out front looking onto the grounds
The first impression is this is more like a castle or mansion than a lunatic asylum
This is the largest hand cut sandstone building in the country
This is only one section. There are more wings in the back and to the side
The view of the front garden from the steps. The patients would stroll the grounds for exercise and fresh air.
The Irish stonemasons carved these gargoyles for good luck
This is a replication of the supervisors office
A shot of one of the halls. You can see they have taken off layers of paint to get down to the original colors
A patients room. Usually there were two beds to a room. Notice the windows
The halls were as colorful as the rooms. Some had pink paint with pink flowered wallpaper. Others were shades of blue or yellow
One of the nursing stations
More bright colors
In the morgue. And yes, on a school tour one boy shut another up in this "cooler". Good thing the door still works
This was a ward. There were lots of windows in here as well
This was a patient sitting room. I need to stress how radical this room was at the time of the hospital construction
More gargoyles in the back
The hospital was self-sufficient in the early days, so many utility buildings are found in the back
This was the dangerous patient wing. Still very colorful, even though some patients were violent
A replica of a doctors apartment. These apartments were quite spacious and accommodated families very nicely
View from the window of a doctors apartment
This was a sweet surprise. As we were driving along we saw a sign for Humpback Covered Bridge, so we took a detour to go see it. It sits in a pretty little park and was a nice place to stop for a break.
It's just lovely
A good shot of the hump
Unfortunately there is a ton of graffiti all over the inside
I'm standing along the little creek that is spanned by the bridge
This is the first "national river park" we have ever visited. We did not have much time but we did make a couple of stops just to get an idea of what the park offered.
As one of the oldest rivers on our continent it has seen a lot of history, from Clovis points to 20th century mining man has left his mark on this area. We have also marked it as a place to explore more thoroughly on our next visit East.
New River Gorge
Grandview - a grand view of New River
The CSX Railroad hugs the river
I guess this is a pretty "grand" view
Next stop was Sandstone Falls
When we pulled up we saw these bright blue things hanging from the trees
Seems they are part of a trap system for the Emerald Ash Borer
I think the view is a little impaired by the lovely trees
The water does flow at a pretty good pace; lots of foam and noise
Zoom lenses are just great
