ALL ABOARD!!

Well, it's taken me a couple of weeks to find the time to get this posted but as promised,
 here are a few highlights from our train ride on the Cass Scenic Railroad.



You don't have to be a train enthusiast or a history buff to enjoy visiting here,
but you may very well be one or both when you leave!
We have been talking about visiting this place since we lived in Kentucky
and our boys were still just little guys...about 30 years if I was to guess.
It was about a five hour drive from our home in NC and it was a very nice drive...
...for most of the way at least.

This is pretty much what the journey looked like for about an hour before we reached Cass.

And just let me warn you, there are a lot of photos so if this doesn't interest you,
please feel free to click out at any point! How will I ever know?? 😉
~
The tiny little town of Cass, West Virginia has a population of 52 at last count in 2010.
You can click on the link to find out all about it if you like...it's really quite an interesting place.
I really wish we would have had more time to explore the tiny town, itself.
The town basically consists of the train station, a few old buildings, the old company store,
and 52 company homes where the loggers/railroad workers and their families lived.

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In the early 60s the logging ceased and the railroad shut down, leaving much of the town deserted.
Today, many of these homes have been completely restored to their original condition
and are rented out to guests who visit the railroad.

Above is the old lumber mill that has been converted to various shops and such.
I failed to get a shot of the company store which is now a gift shop and restaurant
so I am borrowing one from Google.

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We arrived at the station about an hour before the train was to get there at around noon
and we enjoyed a picnic lunch I had packed on a nearby picnic table while we waited on Shay #2.
Shay, you say? You can find out all you ever wanted to know about them here.







To say the least, these Shay locomotives are pretty amazing pieces of engineering,
no pun intended...well, kinda. 😀



The time had come and the train was ready to leave the station...
...ALL ABOARD!!

Jim is all smiles as we get ready to pull out of the station...
...actually, I should say push out...the locomotive actually pushes the cars up the mountain.

Josh, our engineer (above) is a 4th generation railroad worker at Cass.
His great-grandfather actually worked as cook for the loggers back in the 1920s.
I can't even imagine the back-breaking work these men endured,
spending as much as six months away from their families up on the mountain...
cutting down huge trees, sending them down the mountain, day in and day out for over 40 years.
Josh narrated our journey both up and back down and knows this railroad like the back of his hand.

Click on the short video as we get started...I love to hear that whistle!

Slowly but surely, we started our slow trek up the mountain.



I stood up much of the time to be able to get photos from both sides.
 Our seats were at the end of the car and above is a shot of what was right below my feet.




I prayed hard that the predicted rain would be delayed and my prayers were answered!
God is so good...the views were breathtaking.

Finally, we made it to the top of Bald Knob, elevation 4,843 feet above sea level

and the third highest point in West Virginia and the Allegheny Mountains.

The observation deck does look a bit rickety but I assure you, it was quite sound.
The rustic design seems to add the charm.

The view from the top nearly took my breath away.

At the very end of the tracks sits a caboose that may be rented out for weekend camp outs.

If you are the adventurous type, you too can be left on top of Bald Knob to your own devices!

The little red caboose can sleep up to 6 adults, comes equipped with a coal stove, coal, 

kindling wood, water (not running) for drinking and another container for dishes, etc., 

microwave, small fridge, minimal electricity for lighting and keeping your phone charged.

But there's a catch...there isn't any cell phone service.

Oh, and we mustn't forget to mention the outhouse...that is of major importance.

Once the train drops you off in the afternoon, that's it...bye-bye, choo-choo!

You. Are. On. Your. Own.

This sounds really fun to me for some odd reason.

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So after spending about 30 minutes up top, it was time to make our descent down the mountain.



About half way down we stopped at Whittaker Station, what remains of the original logging camp,

where the old fire tower still stands.

Our crew took a few minutes to chill under a shade tree while others visited the facilities.

Soon it was time to give everything a quick once-over.




 This little guy should be considered our hero.
He alone, shoveled an unbelievable amount of 4-5 tons of coal to get us up the mountain!
Can you just imagine that?

Our break was over and woo-woo-woooooo...it was time to make our last leg of the journey.
It was a fabulous experience and we would love to return one day.
And maybe next time, we might even be crazy enough to stay in that caboose...
...or not.😊

Ain't No Hodgepodge High Enough

So we made it to the mountains of West Virginia and back in one piece.
It was a very lovely drive for the most part and if you are in to hairpin turns,
you would have most definitely been in your element!

Before we even made it into that part of the trip, we came upon this gorgeous waterfall,
right before we crossed over the Virginia/West Virginia line.

Falling Springs Falls, Falling Springs, Virginia

There was an overlook right off the road and as you can see, the view was breathtaking.
~
Some of you may have seen a few postings on Facebook or Instagram of our train ride.
While I'm getting that post together, here's a little preview.
Below is just one of the beautiful views taken from the train as we approached the summit.

And here is a panoramic shot of the observation platform overlooking the breathtaking vista.
The train tracks end here at the very top of Bald Knob.



John Denver wasn't kidding when he sang about it being almost heaven.
~
It was a fun trip, one we would certainly like to make again...preferably during the fall season.
Reservations would need to made well in advance so it won't be happening this year.
Anyway, it was a great little getaway!
~
So we're here for the Hodgepodge and let's get on with it...

...where Joyce asks the questions on her blog and we answer them on ours.

1. What happens to the mail at your house?

I'd say that 80% of it goes into file #13...that's what my mom used to call the trash can. It's either junk or bills most of the time, which always seem to wind up on a pile on the dining room table until I get it sorted out...and we do get a lot of junk mail.

2. Something you always splurge on? Any guilt associated with the splurge?

Although I don't get them on a regular basis (Lord only knows I should), pedicures are something I have just recently started getting. Hey, I was 60 years old before I ever had my first one so no guilt trip here! I probably wouldn't have even gotten that first one if my daughter-in-love hadn't kidnapped me and held me captive in the salon chair. Like many things, we don't know what we've been missing until the day we experience it, right? It was the guilt for spending all that $$ on something as frivolous as a pedi that kept me away from getting that first one but no more. And you want to know something else....shhhh, don't tell anyone...I've never had a manicure... yet....only the homemade kind....shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...

3. There are many, but what are two important questions you think every bride and groom should ask/answer before they plan their walk down the aisle?

If I was going to do it all over again, knowing what I know now, the first and most important question (in my opinion) would be about what kind of relationship your prospective spouse had with the Lord. Every other thing can be worked out if God is center-stage. We finally got there but not without much pain and suffering. It's also of the utmost importance to know where each other stand on the issue of having children...if, when and how many.

4. What's the best advice your father ever gave you?

It didn't take long at all to come up with this answer. I remember well, sitting around the supper table when I was probably 18...it seemed that an acquaintance of my dad's had seen me leaving a local bar/night club one evening and told him so. Instead of raking me over the coals, he quite casually and very lovingly mentioned that he knew what I had been up to. He then followed it by a sentence that went something like this, "Honey...those aren't the kinds of places that any young lady should be going." That was it. Did I always take his advice? Well....maybe not right away but I never could forget his sound advice and the loving tone to his otherwise gruff voice and sharp edges. I'm thankful that I got that out of my system. Just tryin' to keep it real, folks.

5. Your favorite movie where a father features heavily in the storyline?

I'm sure there are other answers I could give but the one that stands out to me, actually, there two because they are recent movies that I've seen. One would be Mack, the father in "The Shack" and more recently the father of Bart Millard, the lead singer of Mercy Me (played wonderfully by Dennis Quaid) in "I Can Only Imagine". Both men...completely transformed by the power of God's love.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Until next time, hodgepodgers...

Hodgepodging Motherhood

 If it's Wednesday, it must be Hodgepodge!

I hope your week is going well.
The beautiful weather continues but we need some rain to wash away the yellow dust.
I did hear that 90s are predicted for this weekend...am not ready for that
but unfortunately, spring is pretty short-lived here in the south.

So as the spring quickly is turning into summer,
we are in the midst of setting up some travel plans starting in June.
It's a trip that has been our bucket list for over 25 years.
It's not the Grand Canyon (although I'd love to go there), it's not Hawaii (especially not now!),
and it's not anywhere in Europe (although Ireland is on my bucket list).
Give up?
It's the Cass Scenic Railroad in West Virginia!

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We heard about this place years and years ago when we lived in KY and always wanted to go.
Through the years we've talked about it a lot but just never made it there.

The trains are original Shay steam locomotives from back in the logging days of the 1920s.
The railroad, along with the logging town of Cass itself, which is where you board the train,
was acquired by the parks system after all logging operations were shut down in 1960.

Here's a short video of the view from the top of Bald Knob, the final destination,
and the third highest point in West Virginia and the Allegany Mountains.

It takes about 4.5 hours for the round trip to go up 11 miles to the top and back down.
That is one slow train, y'all!
All the better to take in and capture some breathtaking scenery from the open-air cars.
It may not be a tropical paradise but it doesn't take much to thrill us simple folk!

We have a couple of other trips in the planning stages for later on this summer.
But now it's time for the Hodgepodge...

...where Joyce asks the questions and we answer them on our blogs.

1. What are your ingredients for a perfect Saturday?

My ingredient list would be different depending where I am, but for a perfect Saturday at home it would look something like this...
~housework caught up
~blue skies with big puffy clouds
~temps in the mid 70s
~lots of yard sales (with great finds)
~a nap on the porch
~grilled something-or-other with corn on the cob...followed by strawberry shortcake

2. What skill do you wish more people took the time to learn?

Kindness. Plain and simple.

3. What's something you ate as a child you can't stand now as an adult?

I can't think of anything that I liked as a kid that I don't like now but surely, there must be something. For me, it's more about what I couldn't stand as a child that I love eating now, like vegetables for instance. We always had a big garden every summer just loaded with all kinds of wonderful produce. I wanted no part of those veggies...MAN, what was I thinking? Now that I have gotten smarter, I crave them!

4. Something parenting has taught you? If you're not a parent tell us one important lesson you learned from your own parents.

Wow, this is hard to actually put into words. Becoming a parent is such a life-changing experience and as a parent I feel I am always learning...still today. When I became a parent, life was just not about ME anymore. The days of making it all about me...my wants and desires...were replaced by the knowledge that I was actually responsible for sustaining the life of that little one that I had been given. Even though the fathers are involved (hopefully) as they should be, the mother's role is unique and none can take her place.

Forty years ago I never dreamed being a parent would be so challenging. My firstborn will be thirty-nine this month and goodness, what a ride it's been! Never have I feared more, never have loved more...and God has always been right there, making me stronger with each new trial and ever so grateful for each new triumph.


5. Share a favorite quote or saying about mothers or motherhood.

I couldn't just pick one...

They will always be our babies.

Lord knows I have failed in many ways over the years but thank goodness He was always there to show me a better way...many times even learning lessons from my boys, themselves.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I'd give just about anything to see her again.