The Year in Travel – 2021 (Long post – may take a minute to load)

The Year in Travel – 2021 (Long post – may take a minute to load)

Adventure, Back Roads, Bike Trails, Books, Bridges, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Church Signs, Family Travel, Hiking & Biking, Hiking Trails, Indiana, Kentucky, Landscapes, Less Beaten Paths Books, Mountains, Murals, National and State Parks, Historic Sites and More, National Parks, Nature and Scenery, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Sandhill Cranes, Selfies, Sheltowee Trace, Signs and Billboards, Staycations, Street Art, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Houses, Unique Places, Unique Shops, US Highway 127, Virginia, Wanderlust, Waterfalls, Welcome Signs, West Virginia, Yard Art
What an interesting year 2021 turned out to be for me.  I started out the year with dreams of a road trip down the Florida panhandle to the southernmost point, but it didn't pan out. With COVID on the rampage, there were limitations and I didn't want to risk getting out too much.  But, I was also very heavily engaged in doing support driving for the Sheltowee Trace Association and my wife and daughter who participated in the 2021 STA Hiking Challenge, hiking sections of the 343 mile trail each month.  This took up a great deal of my time and ended up becoming the theme of my fifth Less Beaten Paths book, which was published on November 30 (see the bottom of this post for more details).  I drove…
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Visiting Muhlenberg County, Kentucky: A Visit With the Big Twigs

Visiting Muhlenberg County, Kentucky: A Visit With the Big Twigs

Adventure, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Family Travel, Giant Things, Hiking & Biking, Hiking Trails, Kentucky, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Murals, National and State Parks, Historic Sites and More, Nature and Scenery, Offbeat Places, People Shots, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, Tennessee, Travel Blogging, Travel with grandchildren, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Wall Art, Wanderlust, Welcome Signs
[caption id="attachment_33710" align="alignleft" width="300"] Sumoflam visiting with Happy Malone[/caption] This is the seventh post in my series on Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. On August 18, 2021 I was invited by Misty Deason, the owner of Apple House Mercantile and a member of the Muhlenberg County Board of Tourism, to come out for a visit.  She now carries my Less Beaten Paths books in her shop and wanted me to come out and sign them and then visit some of the major tourist attractions in this small, but unique, Kentucky county.   [caption id="attachment_33695" align="alignnone" width="700"] The Big Twigs[/caption] I had many reasons for a visit to Muhlenberg County via Misty's kind invitation.  Besides signing the books, I was most excited to visit with the county's newest giant residents in Lake Malone…
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Visiting Muhlenberg County, Kentucky: The Music and Motorsports Museums – Part II

Visiting Muhlenberg County, Kentucky: The Music and Motorsports Museums – Part II

Adventure, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Kentucky, Less Beaten Paths Books, Museums, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Unique Places, Vintage Neon
[caption id="attachment_33611" align="alignleft" width="182"] Motorsports Museum[/caption] In my previous post, I presented the Muhlenberg County Music Museum.  It is only part of the bigger picture as the entire back of the building features the Kentucky Motorsports Hall of Fame and Museum. As with the Music Museum, Dr. Freddie Mayes manages the facility.  The museum features a variety of motorsports treasures that includes most everything from racing.  Dr. Mayes said that their current garage can't handle a Monster Truck yet, but they are working on a way to display one.  The facility also includes a vintage soda shop, a number of vintage neon signs, Hall of Fame trophies and other memorabilia.   [caption id="attachment_33613" align="alignnone" width="700"] A view of the Motorsports Museum[/caption] [caption id="attachment_33612" align="alignnone" width="700"] Another view of the Motorsports…
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Visiting Muhlenberg County, Kentucky: The Music and Motorsports Museums – Part I

Visiting Muhlenberg County, Kentucky: The Music and Motorsports Museums – Part I

Adventure, Backroads Discoveries, Chet Atkins, Everly Brothers, Family Travel, Ike Everly, John Prine, Kennedy Jones, Kentucky, Merle Travis, Mose Rager, Murals, Museums, Place Names, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Staycations, Town Names, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places
[caption id="attachment_33608" align="alignleft" width="300"] Don Everly put his 1977 MG on display in the Music Museum.[/caption] Yesterday was August 21, 2021.  Famed singer and part of the Everly Brothers, Don Everly, passed away at the age of 84.  Just a few days ago I was standing next to his car and listening to Everly Brothers music at the Muhlenberg County Music Museum.  We had been discussing how Don Everly was still alive and well and living in the county. Things can change in an instant. That said, I had a fun time visiting the dual museums -- The Muhlenberg Music Museum and the Kentucky Motorsports Hall of Fame and Museum.  Both museums are housed together in a large building on First Street in Central City. My guide, Misty Deason, owner…
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Visiting Muhlenberg County, Kentucky: The House of Onyx

Visiting Muhlenberg County, Kentucky: The House of Onyx

Adventure, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Kentucky, Less Beaten Paths Books, Offbeat Places, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Staycations, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Unique Shops, Wanderlust
[caption id="attachment_33560" align="alignleft" width="255"] House of Onyx Brass Plaque[/caption] Take a drive down North Main Street in Greenville, Kentucky and you will come across a very non-descript tan brick building with a bronze plaque on the front as well as a brass name across the wall.  All they say is "House of Onyx Inc." The bronze plaque also includes an inscription with the Established 1967 and the names Fred & Shirley Rowe.   My guide, Misty Deason, the Proprietor of Apple House Mercantile, would tell me nothing about the place, but said we were going there and that I would be very surprised. I am always up for a "mysterious place" and so I was all in. [caption id="attachment_33593" align="alignright" width="300"] DFW Elite Toy Museum plaque in Haltom City, Texas[/caption] Only…
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Visiting Muhlenberg County, Kentucky: Apple House Mercantile

Visiting Muhlenberg County, Kentucky: Apple House Mercantile

Adventure, Antique Shops, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Family Travel, Kentucky, Less Beaten Paths Books, Nature and Scenery, Selfies, Sheltowee Trace, Staycations, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places
[caption id="attachment_33549" align="alignleft" width="300"] Apple House Mercantile, Central City, Kentucky[/caption] On August 18, 2021 I had the opportunity to get an in-depth visit to Muhlenberg County, Kentucky courtesy of the Misty Deason and also the some of the tour departments in the county.  I originally met Misty along the Sheltowee Trace in 2020.  She saw some of my photos from the trail and began following me on Facebook.  As she had recently opened a new tourist/gift-centric business called Apple House Mercantile in Central City ( 110 W. Everly Brothers Blvd.), she wanted to add my travel books to her inventory.  This then blossomed in an invite to visit the county to see the newly dedicated Big Twigs at Lake Malone State Park, as well as a number of other places…
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