Tri-State Outdoors Magazine, Winter 2016

Back To Basics Old School Hunt The Challenge Makes It Worth It Winter 2016 • WARRICKNEWS.COM

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Ta b l e of C o nt e n ts 4 8

PINUP BAGGERS

Local business on a national stage.

WEATHERING WINTER Staying active through the winter is easier than you think.

SLEEPY NATURE

10 12

OLD SCHOOL HUNT

A CLASSIC TWIST

16 18

A DECORATIVE HISTORY

ICE BIKING

22 24

LAZY SUMMER

WINTER WOES

26 28

DREAMING OF REALITY

What happens to nature when everything slows down?

A classic Cajun dish turned new with one different ingredient.

The challenge makes it worth it.

Your guide to parenting through the winter.

BACK TO BASICS

Breaking down the fundamentals of shooting.

SMELL THE ROSES

A quick jaunt leads to a historic revelation.

30 34 36

Squirrel hunting is an opportunity to keep it old school.

It isn’t just Christmas trees that make the season festive.

A lazy summer doesn’t have to mean a fruitless winter.

A conversation lead to a new business venture

GIFTING NATURE

Gifts don’t always have to be store-bought.

PUBLISHER Gary Neal gwneal@aol.com MANAGING EDITOR Tim Young tyoung@warricknews.com PRODUCTION MANAGER Amanda Redenbaugh advertising@warricknews.com MAGAZINE EDITOR Emily May emay@warricknews.com SPECIAL CONTRIBUTORS Jhenna Conway Tom Fuller Misty Ham Bobbi Hammonds Ken McBroom Amanda Mosiman Julie Lockhart Brad Scales ADVERTISING Karen Hullett kcraig@warricknews.com Cindy Lewis cindyl@warricknews.com CIRCULATION Tammy Franz circulation@warricknews.com ACCOUNTING Kristina Morris kmorris@warricknews.com BUSINESS MANAGER Debi Neal business@warricknews.com Warrick Publishing Co. 204 W. Locust Street Boonville, Indiana 47601 (812) 897-2330

A Tri-State Media Publication

I

PinupBaggers Baggers

n just three years, Mark and Deanna Rhoades have made a name for themselves on a national stage.

Four years ago, Mark was facing health issues. The doctor prescribed a slower pace of life. So, the couple quit their trucking business and started Pinup Baggers, a motorcycle repair and fabrication shop in Newburgh.

“Motorcycles and street rods were my passion,” Mark said. “It’s what I did in my spare time.”

The shop opened in September 2012. Since then, their custom bikes have graced the covers of several national magazines and have garnered major awards. This year, they won the Master’s Show at the Sturgis Bike Rally in Sturgis, S.D. “(That) was huge for us... It came down to me and Eddie Trotta’s bike,” Mark said. “They picked my bike over his.”

This year, Mark Rhoades and his son, Drew, went on the Hot Bike Tour, sponsored by Hot Bike Magazine. While they weren’t participating in the bike build-off, they did receive some recognition for their participation in the event.

The tour took bikers on a 1,000 mile drive from Spirit Lake, Iowa, to Billings, Mont. People voted on the bikes at each stop. About 70 miles out from the final destination, John Shope had a malfunction in his back wheel, rendering his bike unridable. Drew stepped in and offered his wheel.

“John ended up winning the entire thing,” Deanna said. “They couldn’t believe it, that a 24 year old kid would be so willing to give up (his ride).”

Earlier this year, Drew was able leave his job at Flander’s Electric and join the family business, something his father sees as an even bigger responsiblity.

“He wanted to be here before then, but I was like, ‘You have a good job, you have benefits, don’t leave.’ It’s still stressful knowing he left a good job,” Mark said.

As with any business, Deanna said they’ve seen their ups and downs.

“We’ve had highs and lows in business,” she said. “Starting this one three years ago, it’s been an up and down thing. But, he’s really done good. We’ve gotten a lot of exposure over the last two and a half, three years.”

Pinup Baggers has bikes in Ohio, northern Indiana, Tennessee, Alabama, Iowa, Arizona and some a bit more local. Mark said their best advertising is the big bike rallies. Their clientele is less than 50 percent local — though they also do motorcycle repairs and maintenance, as well as sell Cross Trailers. But, the bike that won the Master’s Show at the Sturgis Rally is actually a local bike that belongs to a man in Owensboro, Ky. “He doesn’t ride it a ton, but he rode to Billings, Mont., with me and my son,” Mark said.

Deanna said that this isn’t exactly the life she pictured for herself when her and Mark got married 28 years ago. In fact, she had never driven a

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Outdoors | Winter 2016

motorcycle 20 years ago. Mark came home one day and told her she was driving to a party. He followed behind in a minivan with the children.

“He grew up on them, me not so much,” she said. “We had little dirt bikes and such we’d take down to the lake.

He talked me into riding just out of the blue one day.”

After that, the couple spent a lot of time riding. Their daughter rode behind Mark and their son rode behind Deanna. She said she still looks forward to the days she can just ride for awhile.

“I love it,” she said. “It is the biggest stress reliever. You can take off on a bike and be in your own world and it’s just you. I’m spoiled now.”

The fabrication and motorcycle shop has opened an avenue for Deanna to explore. She started selling clothing out of a popup canopy at a rally. That quickly grew into a large vendor trailer.

“I’ve always been into the ‘biker’ fashion,” she said.

“There’s a lot of girls, when I started carrying all of this, I did well with it.”

If the bikes and accessories don’t draw attention, the girls do. True to the name, the group has real, live pinups with them at the different rallies.

“It’s like playing dress up every day,” Deanna said.

The name Pinup Baggers came from the pinups of the 1930s and 1940s. Deanna said Mark had always loved the old bomber girl look, so they paired it with “bagger,” which is the style of motorcycle they love.

“We’ve met the best people,” Deanna said. “We’ve met people from all over traveling... You will meet the nicest people on a bike.”

Motorcycle fabrication has gained notoriety over the past decade or so. Mark said he’s friends with all the players in the industry, but doesn’t see his career following the same path.

“Sure, everybody dreams about it,” he said. “Do I feel like it’s a reality? Probably not. We tease all the time that if they did a TV show here it would be a drama, a comedy and a mystery. My wife is going to end up killing me one of these days.”

Deanna said that even with the positive image portrayed, there is still a stigma attached to bikers. It doesn’t necessarily bother her, though.

“If the world was all the same, it’d be boring,” she said.

“He walks in a place and he’s all tattooed and earrings and bald head and goatee, some people look at him like, ‘Oh my god...’ The biking community raises more money for charity around here than Quaker has oats. If there’s someone in need, we’re going to rally around them.”

Pinup Baggers is located at 5033 New York Street in Newburgh. It is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. It is closed on Sundays. For more information, visit pinupbaggers.com or visit them on Facebook.

----Emily May is the editor of Tri-State Outdoor Magazine and the Newburgh Magazine and is senior reporter at The Standard, a weekly newspaper in Warrick County. She can be reached at emay@warricknews.com. To see past issues of Tri-State Outdoors Magazine or Newburgh Magazine, visit warricknews.com.

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MAINTAINING BALANCE L

iving in an area where it gets very cold during the winter months, it is important to remain active. It can be difficult to make the shift from warmer weather activities to indoor activities, but there are many indoor facilities and options that can keep anyone moving. Here are some tips to remain active and fit throughout the winter months.

Joining a gym is a good option for a lot of people. It can be a great way to ensure activity throughout the year. Incorporating indoor training of some type into your exercise regimen, such as yoga, pilates, weight training or spinning, is perhaps easiest at the gym, but attendance is the only way to achieve goals.

Many gyms allow customers to join for just winter months. This is a viable option for those who prefer outside exercise during the warmer time of the year. Most health and fitness centers have a variety of indoor activities that anyone can participate in, such as volleyball, basketball, swimming, running and much more.

Choose a facility that includes all the activities that are more desirable and with a location that is easy to commit to.

Personal trainer Justin King of Anytime Fitness in Newburgh has great advice for anyone looking to start a new exercise routine. King knows how hard it can be to keep motivated and encourages individuals to seek out a personal trainer to give tips on how to achieve personal goals and determine fitness levels. King gives guidance for at-home fitness, with every day items, as well as in-the-gym fitness. “In order to reach your fitness goals, you must wake up with a plan of action and go to bed with satisfaction.�

To make an appointment with King, call 812-853-5855.

Going to the gym is not for everyone. Most people start off with lots of drive, but it fizzles out after a short period of time. Finding someone to be accountable to is a helpful tool, such as a personal trainer, spouse or friend. Joining

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group-based activities can also help keep everyone accountable. Join a fitness group that meets and not only focuses on fitness activities, but also nutrition and recipes. If one cannot be found, start one.

There are programs all over the U.S. started by individuals looking for the benefits of a healthy life and fitness routine, but do not know where to start.

Personal trainers and husband and wife team, Jeff and Kina Wald, started Portland Fit Club in Portland, Tenn., just two hours from our area. It has received national acclaim for its impact on the community. Not only is Portland Fit Club free, it is supported by a network of dedicated individuals.

“It is not so much getting the weight off, it’s learning how to keep the weight off,” Kina said. “This is so true. That’s why it is called a lifestyle change and not a diet. It is reprogramming our mind and body to living a much healthier life for the rest of our life.”

This mindset has helped an entire group reach fitness goals above and beyond their expectations.

To contact Jeff or Kina Wald about how to start a program like theirs in the area, email kwald1218@ gmail.com.

At-home programs like Daily Burn or BeachBody On Demand can be a great way to keep moving during the winter months, as well. Some of the best winter activities to engage in include free-skate ice skating or hockey at Swonder Ice Arena. Swonder Ice Arena is now open seven days a week.

Check out their hours online at www.skateswonder.com or call 812-479-0989. There are also basketball and volleyball leagues at facilities like Metro Sports Center. For more information on leagues and classes, call Metro Sports Center at 812-479-5425. Indoor swimming facilities, such as Lloyd Pool, can bring a summer activity to the winter months. Other venues that focus on indoor activities are Vertical Escapes, which has lots of climbing options from beginner to expert, and even child-friendly environments like Sky Zone, an indoor trampoline park, and Pump-it-Up, an indoor inflatable playground. Fitness is fun for the whole family.

Adjusting diet, making a healthy lifestyle change, committing to activities and sticking to it is essential. Keep it fun and embrace life one day at a time. Start a fitness movement and end the trend of obesity in America. Check out all the indoor facilities around the area that will help change unhealthy habits to healthy habits and yield extraordinary results.

----Bobbi Hammonds is a freelance journalist for the Newburgh Magazine and the vice president and media manager for JoElle Elise Design. She can be reached at BobbiHammonds@gmail.com.

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A time to

T

he winter solstice (Dec. 22) brings in the wintertide for the tri-state. During the winter months, the landscape changes as the deciduous trees seek dormancy and bare their intricate branches. Some wildlife species seem to disappear from the landscape altogether this time of the year. Many of our native wildlife species go through some type of hibernation or torpor to survive the winter, and native habitat offers protection against the elements in this sparse and cold season.

The term hibernation is widely used to describe an animal’s inactivity during winter. This inactivity differs greatly from species to species. In true hibernation, physiological changes occur in the animal’s body that causes a decline in temperature, pulse and other functions. In temporary hibernation or torpor, an animal is inactive, but there are not significant changes in the animal’s physiological conditions.

Some butterflies migrate and some butterflies hibernate. A few native butterflies in our area hibernate nearby in the winter. The Mourning Cloak, the Eastern Comma and the beautiful Question Mark butterflies retreat from the cold temperatures to the trees and brush for shelter. They gather between the crevices under tree bark or in dead trees and snags.

Natural habitat is imperative for these beneficial insects. As decorative as they may be, in general,

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Tri-State Outdoors | Winter 2016

butterfly houses are not favored by hibernating butterflies. Native trees, shrubs, leaf litter and brush piles offer protective shelter and sustainability to hibernating butterflies in cooler months.

As winter ensues, I miss the gorgeous insects. If the temperature rises on a rare winter’s day, a stray butterfly may emerge. I have seen a glimpse of a butterfly in flight during the off season. Some butterflies, including the Eastern Comma, are so well camouflaged that spotting them among the trees in a heavily wooded area is extremely difficult. Hibernating wildlife should not be disturbed.

In the warmer months, the native five-lined skinks frequent the area. In the colder months, the ground skinks go unseen, retreating into the safety of the soil. When hibernation occurs in reptiles and amphibians, it is referred to as brumation. The time spent in brumation depends on the temperature, on the availability of light, and on the species. Sometimes the brumation period lasts for months. The skinks do not go into a deep sleep during this time. As their bodies acclimate to the colder temperatures, their metabolism slows down considerably. While the skinks are brumating, they will stop eating. They can go for months without feeding, but the skinks must occasionally drink some water. Getting a drink must be a daunting task in this slowed and dormant state.

Depending on the species, bats may migrate or hibernate in the winter. When bats are hibernating in their winter shelters, they are said to be in hibernacula. Many bat species are found in Indiana, including the big brown, the big-eared, the silver-haired, the northern and the pipistrelle. These bats utilize our caves systems in the winter. The gray bat, the southeastern bat and the Indiana bat also spend winter in our caves. These three native bat species are all on the Endangered Species List. For the most part, artificial bat boxes are not necessarily the bats preferred choice. Bats are extremely beneficial mammals, and their cave habitats are fragile. Whether bats hibernate or migrate, natural habitat is vital for the bat population to survive.

On the DNR’s website, www.IN.gov, you can find information on our native bats and other non-game wildlife species that greatly benefit us. Please donate to the Indiana Non-Game Fund.

Providing and protecting natural habitat is crucial for these and other hibernating wildlife species.

Through the Indiana Wildlife Federation, you can learn more about how to provide suitable habitat to help sustain native wildlife. Contact the IWF at www. indianawildlife.org and give then your support this winter season.

----Julie Lockhart is a freelance writer and photographer. She can be reached at julielockhart13@wowway.com.

old school Keeping it

S

quirrel hunting has long been an American tradition and a tradition that many hunters grew up with. Squirrel hunting has just the right amount of action to keep a young hunter interested and more often than not, that young hunter will choose to pursue other game eventually. Squirrels are getting a break from hunters as more and more people are hunting deer and turkey or, unfortunately, not at all. I remember when opening day of squirrel season was almost like Christmas. I couldn’t wait to walk the hardwood ridges and fencerows to hunt a few squirrels and it was as exciting to me then as any deer hunt could be. I have to admit that I do a lot more deer hunting these days, but once I tag out or the deer season ends, I like to grab my grandfathers old Stevens .22 rifle and hit the woods for a day of relaxation and an old school squirrel hunt.

There is nothing more relaxing than hunting squirrels the old school way.

Open sights always makes it challenging and I like to use calls that my granddad taught me back when folks actually had conversations about squirrel hunting like in the old barber shop on the square. Those were the days. Old school squirrel hunting to me is just a great way to spend a day in the woods and hopefully bring home enough squirrels for dinner.

I pack a thermos of hot coffee, a chunk of summer sausage, some crackers and a small bottle of hot sauce and water. These items have been a tradition of mine for many years now and is a nice treat during the middle of the day when the squirrels usually take a break. I’ve been known to doze off leaning against a giant oak high on a ridge top.

I really enjoy keeping it simple on these trips like my granddad 60 years ago. It is a great way to remember those days when he was around while enjoying the very thing that made us so close. Using an old .22 rifle with open sights is just the beginning of an old school squirrel hunt. Here is a list of a few tricks my granddad taught me about hunting squirrels back in the day and hopefully you can use them on an old school squirrel hunt of your own.

The two quarters call: This is a call that I always loved to use as a kid.

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Tri-State Outdoors | Winter 2016

There are other coin calls like tapping a penny on your gun stock rapidly to get a squirrel to respond by moving enough so you can locate them for a shot. The two quarter call is one that would really get a response and not just spook the squirrel into moving like the penny does.

When you rub the two edges of a quarter together quickly the ridges make a sound like a chattering or barking squirrel. This oftentimes will actually make a squirrel leave his digging grounds, where it is hard to locate, and scurry up a tree and onto a branch to join in the chattering.

They do this to help warn other squirrels in the area. With this chattering and usually the tail flicking you can easily locate and get a good shot on the squirrel. Digging in the dirt: When I was a kid some old timer had mentioned this trick to the men in the barber shop and I couldn’t wait to try it. The crowd in the barber shop was mixed on this technique. A couple men just laughed as if the old timer was crazy while a couple others swore they had used it before to successfully hunt squirrels. It’s easy enough to do, just go into an area where you know there are squirrels. Maybe they all fled up trees when you entered the woods or you just know there are squirrels in the area. Walk into the middle of the hickory stand or wherever these squirrels reside and just dig a hole in the leaves. You can use a stick or your hand but leave the fresh dirt on top of the leaves. The squirrels are up there watching you. Now just find a comfortable position and wait. Squirrels will come to where you dug to see what you buried. I know it sounds crazy but I have to say it works and I did use it many times as a kid because I knew the farm I hunted and exactly where the squirrels lived. Kids really love trying this type of hunting because it adds something fun to the hunt.

Flicking a tail: Here is another great way to get a squirrel to move and give away its location. Using a squirrel tail from a previous old school squirrel hunt, begin to shake the tail over your head.

I like to hide behind a tree and stick the tail around so that I am hidden from the squirrels I am hunting. When a squirrel is warning other squirrels of danger they will shake their tail while chattering. This is a signal to other squirrels to be alert and, like the two quarter call, the squirrels will take a defensive stance on the nearest limb and show themselves.

The kissing call: This call will actually call squirrels into range because it sounds

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more like a baby squirrel in distress than the alert call. Using the back of your hand you just kiss repeatedly allowing as much sound to escape the sides of your mouth as possible. The sound you’re looking for is a high pitched squeal. The response is quick so be ready because the squirrel responding already thinks something has a baby squirrel and is on the lookout for danger but can’t help but coming to see if she can help. Keep your eyes open with this call because if a squirrel doesn’t respond sometimes a fox or coyote will.

Throw a stick: While this is not a call, it is an old school tactic for bagging tricky squirrels when hunting alone. I hunted several years as a youngster before my dad showed me this trick and it made perfect sense when he showed me, but I never had thought of it before. When you do get a response from a squirrel and it runs up a tree on the opposite side of your position, he knows you’re there and it can be tough to get a shot. You move slowly around the tree and he moves slowly around with you. You can’t see the squirrel but you can hear it sliding around the tree as you circle it. The way to get a shot on this squirrel is to throw a stick to the side the squirrel is and be ready for a shot as he circles around thinking the stick is you. I like to circle to the uphill side of the tree and then wait a few minutes to let the squirrel relax then toss the stick. This seems to work every time as the squirrel reacts to the stick crashing in the leaves. If you don’t wait for the squirrel to relax, it is still on high alert and will come around the tree, see you, then go back around before you can get a shot.

These are just a few old school tactics for hunting squirrels this season. It adds a little more of a challenge but is a great way to reminisce of the old times and teach younger hunters about the old ways of hunting and keep the tradition alive. I hope this season and many more to come you will dust off that old rifle or shotgun, if only for a day, and do a little old school squirrel hunting and take someone along and show them the ways so those old school ways aren’t lost in time. Happy hunting.

----Ken McBroom is a freelance outdoor writer and photographer based in Indiana. For more information please visit www.ramblingangler.com.

A new twist on a classic dish T

he first documented references to gumbo, according to Dr. Carl A. Brasseaux of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, was in 1803 when gumbo was served at a gubernatorial reception in New Orleans. Since then gumbo has become a symbol of Louisiana cooking and, like any recipe that has time to evolve, the accepted methods can become blurred from one cook to another. While many types of gumbos exist within Louisiana, just wait until an outsider gets a taste and takes it home, which is just what I did many years ago. I was living in a tent in New Iberia, La., while refurbishing helicopters for an offshore logistics company. I learned to enjoy gumbo while living in New Iberia and now want to share with you my gumbo recipe made with squirrel meat.

My first bowl of gumbo was in a restaurant in Louisiana and when the lady set it down in front of me, I remember wondering if something was wrong. I actually called her back and asked her why there were bones sticking out of my soup. She told me that was the way they made gumbo and walked away. The taste was great, so I began eating and when I wanted some chicken, I just grabbed a bone out of the gumbo. Then I got a shrimp in my mouth and crunched into the tail which had been left on as well. I enjoyed that bowl of gumbo, sort of, but vowed to make it myself without the bones and this is just one example of changing a recipe to suit your taste.

Ingredients 3 squirrels, deboned 1 pound of smoked sausage 1 tablespoon of Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning (add more to taste) 1 pinch of cayenne pepper (more if you like it hot) 1 pinch of salt (the sausage adds some on its own) 1 bunch of scallion 1 large yellow onion 1 large green pepper 1/4 cup of flour 3/4 cup vegetable oil 2 cups tomato juice

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Tri-State Outdoors | Winter 2016

Preparing the squirrel: The best way to prepare squirrels for any recipe that calls for just the meat is to slow cook them in water for at least 8 hours. I usually cook my squirrels overnight and have left them cooking even longer. You can simmer your squirrels on the stove, but a crockpot works best. Place the squirrels whole into your pot of water and cover on low heat.

Once the squirrels have cooked, remove them and set them aside to cool. When the squirrels are cool enough to handle, you can debone them. Save the broth and leave the pot on low and add the boneless squirrel meat to the broth. Add all of the seasonings at this point. This allows them to breakdown and begin the flavoring process early.

Preparing the sausage: Traditional gumbo calls for andouille sausage, which is a spicy smoked sausage, but I use a common smoked sausage. I can handle the spicy andouille sausage, but I try to keep the spiciness to a minimum for my family and add the “hot” to my serving. Although the smoked sausage is fully cooked, I still sear the sausage in a skillet with a little vegetable oil. Cut the sausage long ways, a quarter to a half inch inch thick, depending on preference. Sear the sausage in a skillet until well browned on both sides. Add the sausage to the pot with the squirrel meat. Set the skillet off the heat, but do not clean.

The Holy Trinity: The onion, celery and bell pepper was given the name “holy trinity.” The mostly Catholic French cajuns of long ago meant this allusion as a sign of respect due to the importance this trio plays in cajun cooking. My family will not touch celery even though my little girl ate chicken noodle soup with celery for years. She thought it was pickles and called it pickle soup. Had she known it was celery she would have never touched it. My substitute for celery is scallions. Chop the onion, scallion and bell pepper into small pieces and set aside.

This will be added to the roux once it’s ready.

The Roux: The roux is the foundation to a good gumbo making the broth thicker and richer.

There are many ways to prepare a roux but as long as it contains hot oil and flour you should be alright. Place the vegetable oil into the skillet with the sausage crumbles and heat to a medium high temperature. You can sprinkle a little flour into the oil and when it sizzles it is ready. Now slowly add the flour as you stir continuously making sure to scrape the sausage crumbles from the bottom of the skillet. This makes a great tasting roux and adds some color.

Some folks cook their roux for up to 45 minutes to slowly brown the roux. I only cook the roux until the flour is completely blended with the oil then I add the vegetables. The vegetables add some liquid to the roux as they release the flavorful water within and the roux continues to brown along with cooking the trio to a point of translucency. You can cook the roux more traditionally if you want and it is said that a black roux is the best. I don’t take the time to make black roux because I prefer a little lighter colored gumbo. You can also use butter, but you have to be careful as butter will scorch easier than oil.

Putting it all together: I never like to add anything cold to my gumbo after the roux is introduced, so anything you add should be warmed up first. This will prevent the possibility of the roux separating and causing a not so attractive gumbo, as the roux could clump. Add the still hot roux with vegetables slowly to the broth while stirring. Stir for a few minutes to actively blend the roux with the broth as the temperature stabilizes throughout the ingredients.

Now is the time to add the tomato juice, but first run some hot water over the jar to warm the juice. I put two cups in the list of ingredients, but I use the tomato juice to acquire the correct consistency, which is another personal preference. I will say that if you need more than the two cups to thin your gumbo to the point you like, then just add some water or chicken broth to thin it further. Bring the gumbo to a simmer and cover. The gumbo is ready to eat but the longer it simmers the better the flavors mingle and meld. Serve over rice and enjoy.

----Ken McBroom is a freelance writer and photographer based in Indiana.

Ken is an active member of the Hoosier Outdoor Writers. For more information visit www.ramblingangler. com.

Carrying on the

tradition D

ecember is right around the corner and that means temperatures will be falling down and holiday decorations will be going up. Holiday decorations always have a way of magically enhancing the festive atmosphere of all your holiday traditions. But do you ever stop to think about how holiday decorations came to be and what they mean?

This column will provide some history and information on some traditional holiday plants that brighten your home for the winter season.

First and foremost is the Christmas tree. Germany is credited with starting the Christmas tree tradition in the 16th century when Christians brought decorated trees into their homes. Some built Christmas pyramids of wood and decorated them with evergreens and candles if wood was scarce. The Christmas tree tradition was adopted slowly in early American history, but by the 1890s Christmas ornaments were arriving from Europe and Christmas tree popularity was on the rise. It was noted that Europeans used small trees about four feet in height, while Americans liked their Christmas trees to reach from floor to ceiling.

If your family likes to go shopping for the perfect fresh tree, there are several species to choose from: mainly varieties of pine, spruce and fir. Each species comes with its own pros and cons. Scotch and white pines are two of the more popular Christmas trees in Indiana. Pines are known for their soft needles and excellent needle retention.

However, in recent years, fir species have become the more popular. Fraser and Canaan firs are among the most common and are both known for their needle retention and fragrance. Both of these species also boast large, soft, waxy branches with short needles, which make them easy to decorate. In our southern portion of the state, where it’s much harder to grow some of the true fir species, spruce tends to be more popular, after Scotch and white pine.

Traditionally, spruce trees don’t hold their needles well, but if the tree is grown locally and cut fresh, consumers can help them retain their needles for three weeks or more by keeping them well-watered and away from heat.

Boughs of holly, evergreen garlands and dangling mistletoe all have a strong presence in holiday tradition. The origins of bringing evergreens indoors date back to the Greeks and Romans who believed evergreens had supernatural powers because they remained green all year round. Evergreens also symbolized the promise of spring to return. The Victorian era lavishly expanded this indoor practice with elaborate arrangements for mantelpieces and tables using boughs, ivy, laurel, yew and hemlock. In the 1800s, evergreens were used to honor and remember lost loved ones. Evergreen boughs and other greens were woven into wreaths, crosses and stars and placed on graves in cemeteries. Around holiday time, they were brought home to use as indoor decorations. The tradition of kissing under the mistletoe comes from Scandinavian mythology, which tells the story of Balder, the son of Frigga, the Norse goddess of love. He was struck dead by an arrow made of mistletoe. As his mother wept, her tears fell onto the mistletoe and turned into small, white berries. She declared that mistletoe should no longer be used to kill, but to encourage love. Holly and ivy are often used together in holiday decorations, a tradition that stems from a Middle Ages belief that holly was thought to have protective powers while ivy stood for love.

18

Tri-State Outdoors | Winter 2016

Another popular holiday plant is the beautiful poinsettia. The poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima ) was introduced into the United States in the late 1820s from its native Mexico by our first ambassador to that country, Joel Robert Poinsett. The plant was first known and probably is still best known for the bright red leaves or bracts that surround the small, yellow, true flowers. Poinsettias may be purchased in colors ranging from white and cream through the various shades of pink and red. In spite of the poinsettia’s long, tainted reputation of being a deadly house plant, it has been shown that animals do not suffer any long term ill effects when ingesting any part of the poinsettia. However, some people have shown to have a skin irritation to the plant’s milky sap. Poinsettias make a beautiful addition to home décor during the bleak winter months. They can be tricky to care for, so I have included a few tips to follow for home care.

•When you are choosing plants to buy, look for plants with bright green foliage along the stem. Poinsettias need healthy root systems to survive in the not-so-ideal conditions of any home.

•Poinsettias do best in temperatures of 60 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit with relative high humidity and maximum sunlight. Avoid drafty windows or heat outlets, as temperature fluctuations are not handled well.

•Water a poinsettia when the soil is dry to the touch or lighter in color. Remember to water thoroughly, so the water will drain from the hole in the bottom of the pot.

Hope everyone has a warm and beautifully decorated holiday season!

----Amanda Mosiman is the Purdue Extension Educator for Warrick County. She can be reached at bailey1@purdue.edu or 812897-6100.

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ld Man Winter can be a real downer for cyclists in the Midwest. Riders who want to continue cruising our local paths have many challenges ahead of them. Black ice and bone-chilling winds can take down riders in a heartbeat. Frozen toes turn into stinging thaws and the simplest prevention is to pedal faster.

There are many alternatives for fair weather riders, albeit costly or monotonous.

Some of the options do make for great days, while others can be a gamble.

Fat bikes have burst onto the bicycle scene over the past few years. With large and aggressive tires, these bikes can handle a variety of terrain. For some riders, fat bikes have opened up new options for winter riding. Areas with regular snowpack are taking advantage of the ability of these bikes to ride on groomed trails, offering an alternative to cross country skiing.

When frozen or snow-covered, our local trails are enjoyed by some regular faces.

As we continue to force the future of our sport, fat bikes are quickly becoming our seasonal rig of choice.

Gravel riding is grinding its way into the mainstream of bike culture. Many people are taking to the local back roads to enjoy the challenge and sense of adventure as they ride anywhere they please. The risks are flat tires and wanna-be Duke boys barraging the turn just in front of them.

Dino’s Gravel Grovel and Death March are both great races to test your grinding ability and there is always cyclocross racing for race fanatics. Grinding can be enjoyed on mountain bikes, but is most efficient on a gravel-specific whip. I recommend Dan’s Competition to explore your options for gravel grinders, fat bikes and many alternatives.

Travelling to ride is easily the best alternative for winter riding. For road bikers, anywhere with good weather and a friendly road and path system are strong considerations. Beach-front bike paths seem like a great idea, but beware of the pond-seekers who will be consistently crossing your path.

Off-road riders have a variety of travel options to meet their needs. Louisville’s Mega Cavern is a unique way to work on your dirt jumping skills as you ride underground for the day. Ray’s Indoor Mountain Bike Parks (Cleveland and Milwaukee) also make for a great time with their warehouses full of tracks and jump lines.

Bootleg Canyon (Las Vegas) offers shuttle access to some very challenging trails, while southern California has plenty of great options and its best dirt of the year during winter and spring. Sedona and Ocala are also great options depending on which direction you want to travel.

Taking off the winter is certainly an option. While scheduling surgeries would essentially be the only reason to do this, exercise bikes and cross training sound equally appealing. Trail work provides a nice alternative to stay active and give back to the sport.

Whether you are digging a new trail or maintaining existing ones, trail work is the best way to keep our sport moving forward.

----Brad Scales is an avid mountain biker and bike trail designer. He is owner of the Boonville Bike Club, Inc. and a board member on the Evansville Mountain Bike Association.

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Tri-State Outdoors | Winter 2016

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hile the industrious homesteaders tended their garden, canned their bounty and toiled away making sauces, pestos and dried herbs this year, I played with my goats, let weeds take over my wellintentioned garden and rode my horse more than I ever have. Now the weather is turning frigid and I’m looking at the dismal, although quite concerted, effort I put forth as the growing season wraps up. I have four large bunches of comfrey, two bunches of plantain and six medium bunches of mint happily hanging to dry from my loft. I went in to cut the marigolds (to dry for use in soaps), but saw they had grown almost five feet high straining to suck up the sun’s rays over the weeds and I decided their effort should be rewarded by leaving them be.

I didn’t get any tomatoes canned, very little jelly put up and none of my culinary herbs got cut for drying before the cold stunted and turned them an unappealing shade of brown. I haven’t fed my sourdough starter since Trump announced his run for presidency (my own private revolt, I guess) and my kefir grains have been dormant in the fridge so long they may never awake from their coma. It looks like I will be forced to get creative with spaghetti sauces, taco seasoning and soap ingredients if I am to keep up my title of “homesteader.” Maybe a couple extra loaves of bread will smooth things over with the family when they catch me secretly slipping a can of Prego in the grocery cart.

No, I can do this. I can turn things around! Here are two simple starters. Join me at Simple Hobby Homesteading (http://www.simplehobbyhomesteading.com) for plenty more winter cheat ideas!

Step 1: Spaghetti sauce. As a fantastic chef (who could barely speak English) once told me in culinary school… “First, you get yourself some tomatoes.” In particular, six cans (14.5 oz each) of the Italian seasoned tomatoes from the grocery. Few people realize that tomatoes are actually canned by companies at the height of their tastiness and they keep quite well. Put tomatoes in the blender (no need to drain) and blend until you get your desired spaghetti sauce consistency. Add to stock pot with Mrs. Wages spaghetti sauce packet (sometimes local stores carry them throughout the year with canning supplies, but you can always get them online as well) and a quarter cup of sugar. Follow cooking instructions on package. I take out how much I need for supper that night and freeze the rest in serving sizes. This sauce pairs really well with the Italian seasoned ground turkey (cook it and add to sauce) or a pound of browned hamburger. Add fresh veggies when you thaw each batch of sauce for the yummiest sauce ever!

Step 2: Taco seasoning. If you don’t have your own dried herbs because your goats ate them all or the weeds grew so fast you can’t really find your oregano, then you have a couple options. Look in the produce section of your grocery store and you might be pleasantly surprised to find they are carrying plants — real, live plants! — of common herbs. You can grow these in most any sunny window of your house through the winter! Pick your oregano and dry it for later use or throw fresh oregano in after your hamburger is browned. You can also order really great organic and flavorful dried herbs online these days. Companies like Azure Standard, Frontier Co-op, Mountain Rose and Bulk Herb Company have really wonderful quality herbs and I see a taco seasoning making party in the future for you and your friends/family! Everyone shares costs of bulk ingredients, gets together to make the seasoning, and everyone goes home with taco seasoning to last the winter! I found the recipe below years ago from Allrecipes.com and it can be doubled, tripled, quadrupled, whatever! I usually use two to three tablespoons of the prepared seasoning per pound of meat (it’s a bit of a spicy seasoning). Feel free to omit the onion powder and put fresh chopped up onion in when you brown the meat, yum!

Here’s to a cozy winter!

----Jhenna Conway is a wife, mother and homesteader. She runs The Shepherd Hobby Farm and TOP (Training Our Pack) Dog. Learn more about Jhenna, her family and her various activities at simplehobbyhomesteading.com. You can also find The Shepherd Hobby Farm on Facebook.

24

Tri-State Outdoors | Winter 2016

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through a long winter

as anyone noticed how thick the muskrat dens are around here? It may seem like a craquestion, but I assure you, it is not. If anyone has read the Laura Ingalls Wilder novel “The Long Winter,” you know a person can tell a lot by the thickness of the walls of muskrat dens. The thicker the walls, the worse the winter will be. So I repeat, how thick are the muskrat walls around here? I NEED TO KNOW! Nestled in the south of Indiana, I am far from the horrendous blizzard of 1880 in the Dakota Territory, but even in the depths of the most mild of winters of today in the Tri-State, parents are often pulling out their hair trying to find things for their kids to do. On the prowl for activities which will not only expel pent up energy but also lead to the least amount of mess and subsequent work for the parents.

I grew up in Wisconsin, the frozen tundra. Harsh winters and humid summers. In winter there was no escaping the bone chilling cold that thickened the blood in your veins and as my dad always said, “Puts hair on your chest” (a frightening thought to me at the age of eight). Our house had electric central heat, but my dad always preferred to heat with wood utilizing our wood burning furnace (always referred to as just the “wood burner” by us, but when written, “wood burner” just seems quite simplistic in name). Heating a house with wood meant many spring, summers and falls full of chopping wood, stacking wood and carrying wood.

Most of my waking moments involved doing something with wood as my grandparents heated with wood as well.

Wood would dance through my dreams and I swore I’d never heat my home with wood as an adult. Too much work! My dad offered the advice, “Even if you don’t heat with wood, make sure your kids chop wood every day. It builds a solid work ethic.” Seriously Dad? I’m going to be my kids’ friend and confidant, not their crazy slave driver.

Fast forward almost 30 years and I can say I’ve had my kids chopping wood since they were knee high to a grasshopper (even when we didn’t heat with wood). Oh, and for the last six years (since moving to Indiana), we heat the house with wood, lots and lots of marvelous wood! Being my kids’ friend… well let’s just say I’m their mom, their most eager cheerleader, disciplinarian, mentor, teacher, protector and their sounding board. I don’t need to be their friend.

When my kids misbehave or pull an attitude, I have them do push-ups. Early on I had to show them the proper form and I almost always watch to make sure they are using that proper form. In winter especially, it is important that kids are getting plenty of exercise! Bickering, eye rolling, defiance, etc. are all met with 10 to 15 pushups (my kids have been doing this for years, adjust as you need to for yours). If they mention they are sore the next day I simply suggest they look at their actions from the day before as a gauge and it’s a great reminder for

26

Tri-State Outdoors | Winter 2016

zy

them to keep their attitude in check.

This all leads up to the beginning of my long list of things you can do in winter to get your kids moving, helping out, burning off energy and enjoying the wonderful world of the outdoors!

Wood themed: Step one: Build a simple wood hanger rack with two base pieces and a long wood in between piece high enough to hang snowpants, jackets etc. This should be built to be easily placed in your bath tub when needed (pvc pipe would work too). You’ll see why later…

Gather twigs and bundle them together using twine, yarn, or whatever and use or give away as fire starters.

Go chop some wood (parents please teach and be present… this isn’t something best learned by buddies from the schoolyard).

Make firestarters with cardboard egg cartons filled with woodshavings and melted wax.

Go forth and find your own marshmallow roasting stick and whittle to a fine point (parents supervise/help) for a cozy winter campfire with s’mores! Winter campfires are the best!

Help someone load and stack their chopped wood.

Non-wood themed: Go sledding. Seriously, go do it! Make a jump or two if you’re daring.

Build snow forts and have a snowball fight.

Stomp through the ice of very shallow puddles/ streams while wearing waterproof boots. Seriously, few things are as gratifying as stomping through ice!

Make snow ice cream (there are a million recipes online).

Bundle up and take a family walk after dinner. Bring flashlights as the sun goes down.

Make snow angels. Do it! Grab a ladder and take a picture from above of each angel.

Make and hang bird feeders (pinecone with a lard/ peanut butter mixture) slathered on and rolled in birdseed.

Build a snowman. Better yet, a snow family!

Photo session with your pets outside. Make sure to brush them pretty first!

Take a hike! In the woods is best so you can find animal tracks.

Winter scavenger hunt (think squirrels, ice, brown leaf, yellow snow… be creative!).

When everyone is done getting all snowy outside have them take off their stuff in the bathroom and hang everything to dry on your rack that you put in the bathtub (no puddles to step in and with the exhaust fan Talk Tu rkey on it all dries rather quickly).

W ith T with dee Winter on, folks, winter on!

Tim Cron, Owner r season im... there are accidents ----m in “rut” aro volving them. ore Don’t u n d to hav Jhenna Conway is a wife, mother and fixed, bri e your n will give g it to Tim to fi car homesteader. She runs The Shepherd x and he you a fr Body Work/Glass Work from Po ee turkey or ha Hobby Farm and TOP (Training Our Pack) sey’s M m arket!

Expires RANCE 1-31-1 FREE Dog. Learn more about Jhenna, her family On All Types Of Vehicles INSU WORK 6 ES AT M W TI EL ES COME and her various activities at simplehobbyCall us today! homesteading.com. You can also find The Shepherd Hobby Farm on Facebook.

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28

Tri-State Outdoors | Winter 2016

dream reality

Turning a

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into

riving home one day, John and Melissa Rudolph started a conversation about not having adequate indoor gun range facility options in Evansville. John, being a certified NRA instructor, took that idea and started laying out the foundation of what would become Uncle Rudy’s. With Melissa on board, the couple took their dream and created a reality.

Uncle Rudy’s Indoor Firing Range is a state-of-theart, modern facility. It has an easy-to-find location, just in front of the Tri-State Athletic Club on Evansville’s east side. John “Rudy” and Melissa Rudolph wanted to create a friendly, fresh environment so that customers can comfortably practice their accuracy all year round and have a blast playing a wide range of target games, participating in archery or taking a turn at the virtual gun range.

Uncle Rudy’s Indoor Firing Range carries all the supplies anyone needs, even for a novice who has never shot a firearm before. They have a wide range of rental firearms, loaner eye wear, ear protection, archery supplies and ammunition. Uncle Rudy’s takes pride in their extraordinary environment, top-notch staff and assortment of classes they have to offer.

Uncle Rudy’s Indoor Firing Range classes teach everything from gun cleaning and drawing from a holster to NRA FIRST steps pistol safety. They strive to make everyone feel secure and educated while at their facility.

Every range has different house rules and customers will find that Uncle Rudy’s Indoor Firing Range takes pride in their safety measures. Upon arrival, every customer goes through the same waiver process, reading through all the safety guidelines and precautions and viewing a safety video, even those who have had the pleasure of using this first-class facility before. For safety purposes, ranges have very little tolerance for people who do not want to follow the rules. Read them thoroughly and do not hesitate to ask questions. Like all things in the firearm world, it is the customer’s responsibility to learn the rules.

“Whether you’re an expert shooter or just getting started, it’s our goal to make you feel welcome,” John Rudolph said. “If you know of any way we can improve your experience at our facility, please let us know.”

Indoor ranges, such as Uncle Rudy’s, are an affordable and accommodating destination for firearms owners who want to learn to shoot, join a fun league and do some serious target practice. Join John and Melissa Rudolph for a day of entertainment and learning.

----Bobbi Hammonds is a freelance journalist for the Newburgh Magazine and the vice president and media manager for JoElle Elise Design. She can be reached at BobbiHammonds@gmail.com.

30

Tri-State Outdoors | Winter 2016

BACK

TO

S

hooting is fun and can be more so with proper fundamentals. A thorough grasp of marksmanship basics will make shooting a more enjoyable experience by providing the shooter knowledge of what factors determine where their shots land. Marksmanship fundamentals will assist the shooter by providing solid groundwork and understanding that will allow the shooter to learn more advanced techniques and use them effectively. What are advanced techniques but simply applying fundamentals under more duress?

The National Rifle Association breaks the list down into six categories. I’ll explain each one briefly and discuss them in depth in further articles.

Position: Also known as stance, we use the term position to convey that you may not always be standing. Positions for shooting include standing, seated bench rest, kneeling and laying prone on the ground. And among those basic descriptions are further variances. The connection between all positions is that you must be stable and relaxed and not compromising the other fundamentals.

Grip: Focusing on the pistol, your grip should be strong enough to maintain control of the pistol during the firing sequence, but not so tight that you are tiring quickly or shaking the pistol. Grip as hard as you can, then back it off slightly.

Specific grip positions include the semi-automatic thumbs-forward grip and the revolver captive thumb grip. There are quite a number of grip variations out there, but those two are generally the most widely-used by professionals and are therefore the most widely taught.

Sight: Three subcategories define the sight fundamental: eye dominance, sight alignment and sight focus. Eye dominance is understanding which of your two eyes controls your hands to align your pistol to the target. Sight alignment, based on understanding your eye dominance, is gathering the target, your front sight and your rear sight all into a straight and even line. Sight focus demands that your primary focus is on the front sight, while the rear sight and target remain out of focus.

Breathing: A lot could be said of specific breathing techniques, but the degree of their application will vary based on application. One common idea among all activities ranging from shooting to sports to science lab experiments is that you must breathe while you do it. Don’t hold your breath, just breathe naturally. Holding your breath will cause you more problems than what is gained. If you had to pick an ideal spot to finish your trigger pull, it would occur at the natural respiratory pause right before you begin to inhale.

Trigger squeeze: So many different words have been used to describe the ac-

tion of moving the trigger to the rear of the firearm: press, pull, depress, push. All this in the effort not to convey the wrong idea. The goal of a proper trigger squeeze is to move the trigger in such a way that no other fundamental is disturbed, specifically the sight alignment. The fingers and bones of the hand act like levers and levers move in a radial direction, but if you involve them all the correct way, you can get the ideal result — straight movement to the rear. Avoid a trigger squeeze that moves the firearm.

Follow through: nearly every sport and action has a follow through as a focus of fundamentals. For pistol shooting, before the shot is fired, we’ll have set up and used all our previous fundamentals. Once the shot breaks, release the trigger only so far forward that the action resets, but maintain the trigger take-up. Reacquire your sight picture and get ready for the follow up shot. For every shot taken, there should be a before and after sight picture.

Next time you’re at the range for some casual shooting, try working in a few of these fundamentals and see if you can improve your shots. Consider taking a fundamentals class or lesson from a local instructor and see if you can improve your skills. Shooting is fun, but shooting well makes every cartridge fired a more worthwhile experience.

----Tom Fuller is a mechanical designer with PCI Skanska and an NRA certified pistol instructor and range safety officer. He is available for private and class instruction at Uncle Rudy’s Indoor Firing Range.

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o matter what holiday one chooses to celebrate, the Agentenough for wonder of the winter season is reason celebrating thankfulness kindness towards one 3050 Warrickand Drive, Boonville another. With that in mind, however, it is difficult to think about purchasing when soCell: many of us are struggling Bus:gifts 897-0590 431-4396 to purchase necessities. Everyone depends on nourishing food, clean water and soil and proper shelter. Nature transcends economic status, race, religion, politics and cultures. It is the one thing that connects all of us.

Here are a few simple and fairly inexpensive gift ideas to keep us appreciating nature and a love of outdoor activities. If several individual gifts are needed, try some bulb plantings. Small clay flower pots and bags of flower bulbs are very reasonably priced this time of the year at most garden centers and some craft stores. For smaller flower pots, choose tiny sized bulbs such as hyacinths, tulips or crocuses. Larger bulbs require a deeper planting depth. There are usually several flower bulbs in each bag. Depending on how many gifts are needed, one bag of bulbs may be all that is needed. Follow the indoor growing instructions for forcing usually on the packages for every type of bulb. Basically, forcing requires placing the potted bulbs in a cool dark place to root, after which the bulbs are brought to a place with heat and kept in a shaded area until the stem is established. The pot is then moved to a sunny spot. Partially fill each small pot with soil, placing one to three bulbs per pot. Cover the bulbs with soil leaving a little space at the rim of the pot. Tie a thin piece or pieces of raffia around the center of the flower pot or just below the rim for decoration.

An easy gift for the gardener is to fill a medium to large terra cotta flower pot with a pair of gardening gloves, small hand tools and some seed packets. Most of these items will also be on sale. Another way to go is to fill the flower pot with dried herbs, peppers or canned preserves from your own garden.

For the hunting and or fishing enthusiast make a personalized gift bucket. Line a mid-sized galvanized pail with green and tan tissue paper. Sometimes tissue

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beef jerky and their favorite bottled beverage. Put bags of homemade muffins and/or cookies in the pail along with some hot chocolate mix. Another simple idea is to stuff the pail with a bag of your favorite fish seasoning, a bottle of your favorite sauce and your favorite fish recipe.

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by Larry J. Schweiger the Owner CEO of the National Wildlife DEAN STALLION Federation.american-taxidermy.com Support The Nature Conservancy’s efforts in Indiana by checking out “Ways of Giving” on the website at www. nature.org/indiana. The website offers on-line shopping that includes dragonfly earrings, hummingbird brooch, shirts, jackets and more.

Gift cards are available through the Sierra Club Hoosier Chapter at http://hoosier2.sierraclub.org or call (317) 822-3750.

There is wonderful information on the DNR’s website at www.in.gov/dnr on how we can help fight hunger by supporting the Sportsman’s Benevolence Fund, the Buy 5, Feeding Get 1 FREE Farmers and Hunters the Hungry program and 1 2 3 4 5 FREE Sportsmen Against Hunger. make a donation and See store for Please details help feed someone today.

3799 SR 62 W. • BOONVILLE, IN All the best in the New Year to the readers of Outdoor 812-897-2509 News. Give thethebodyboutiquedayspa.com gift of nature.

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don’t have to tell you that Mammoth Cave National Park is home to the world-famous Mammoth Cave, the record holder for longest cave system. Mammoth Cave National Park is also home to a lot of mystery and sadness, brought on by the government forming the park and forcing more than 600 families out of their homes. Add the the famous Kentucky cave wars, the death of Floyd Collins in sand cave and countless cemeteries and you’ll find that sometimes preservation and “moving forward” are not always without painful consequences.

There were several communities that have all but vanished, save for a church or a marker. There are only shadows and spirits left in this area where thriving communities once were. If one has a close eye, you can still see the depression of the old roads, nature having reclaimed what was taken when this area was settled.

At least one of these areas was taken by disease, the cemetery beside the church having evidenced that. One can feel a certain energy or sadness as you walk along the trails and travel the back roads. At one point, a spectacle was amidst as the greatest cave explorer ever known, Floyd Collins, was helplessly trapped as he was searching for a new entrance to the cave. Newspapers, reporters, vendors and spectators piled in to see what had become a national show. There was so much debate over which way was best to rescue Collins that time was slipping away.

Days later, rescue crews finally dug to Collins only to find him dead. His theory of a new entrance would later prove a success.

Collins story doesn’t end there. After his death and burial, rights to Collins land — and, apparently, his body — were sold and Collins was exhumed and placed in a glass top coffin and put on display at the entrance of the cave.

Pretty terrible, eh? Wait. To top it all off, Collins body was stolen only to be found later, missing a leg. Ironically, it was his leg that was caught under a rock that led to his untimely demise. Floyd Collins now rests in a cemetery located within the park.

I had driven down Flint Ridge road in the park, and at first glance it would seem that nothing of great significance was there, save for the church and cemetery where Floyd Collins is buried. Upon looking on one of the park maps, I noted that there was a Crystal Cave but there was not much else. Curiosity having captured the best of me, I stopped at the little gravel road that seemed to line up with the map. There was no label, no road sign, no hint of anything interesting here either. Still, I parked off to the side as the only visible sign said no parking, do not block gate. After roughly two miles of hiking, however, two rough, old buildings became visible. A crudely painted sign upon one of the buildings marked it as Floyd Collins house! Of course! Floyd Collins owned Crystal Cave but wanted a cave entrance with better access. A cave that would make him famous. Little did he know, his fame would come at the greatest cost.

So much magic and wonder and less than a gas tank away.

----Misty Ham is an avid outdoorsman and a lover of all things fiber. She is the owner and operator of Half Naked Ewe supply store. Contact her at www.facebook.com/Dawnnikolecrafts.

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