Toolbox Explodes In Olympic Stadium

In Maracanã Stadium, where the opening ceremonies for the Rio Olympics are to take place, authorities discovered a suspicious toolbox.  When it was contacted by a robot sent to investigate, the toolbox blew up.  The incident has been called a "controlled explosion".  No injuries have been reported.

Read more at the Express, Yahoo! 7News, the Daily Mail and The Courier Mail.

Turkish Cleric's Birthplace To Become Restroom

Fethullah Gulen is a Turkish cleric currently living in Pennsylvania.  Called an "arch-nemesis" of President Erdogan, he has been accused of being involved in the failed coup attempt on July 15.  While Gulen does not yet face extradition, some people back in Turkey have found a way to torment him.  From Russia Today:

The birthplace of Gulen in the village of Korucuk is going to be turned into a public toilet, according to a report from local outlet Beyaz Gazete. 

The lavatory is to be built from materials coming from the house Gulen was born in. The outlet claimed the villagers themselves asked authorities for the unusual construction project in the central province of Erzurum. 

If you're a Turk and you don't like Gulen, you might soon get a chance to literally dump on him.  Read the full story.

Seven Tubs

Seven Tubs Nature Area, a.k.a. Seven Tubs Recreation Area, is publicly accessible area owned by the Pennsylvania state government, which may be reached via a side road connecting to Pennsylvania highway 115 a few miles south of Wilkes Barre.  I wanted to check the place out before returning to Maryland.  I parked in a small lot along the side road, which was closed further down, and found an unmarked trail leading to a creek.  Some exploration led me to what used to be a road along the same creek.  I never found any marked trails, so I don't believe I ever saw the natural features for which the place is named.  Although I took this hike in the morning, when it was not too hot out, I still got very sweaty from the humidity, and soon decided to head homeward.

There was one pool along the creek I found.  I suppose you could call it a tub, or maybe just a basin.

Here's a not-very-well-focused shot down the creek.

This used to be a bridge.

Here's the old road.  The creek is to the left.

If I ever return, maybe the road won't be closed, and I'll get to see if there are any trailheads beyond where I parked.

Wednesday Links

Now that I've been back in Maryland for a day, here are some things in the news:

From CBS News, one presidential candidate's daughter has a challenge for the other one's daughter.  (via The Hill)

From the Daily Mail, Donald Trump (R-NY) has some harsh words for the prosecutor of the Freddie Gray case.

From ABC News, Hillary Clinton (D-NY), who was officially nominated by her party yesterday, gets the endorsement of a former New York mayor.

From The Daily Wire,  after the Clinton nomination came the walkout.

From FrontpageMag, the Democrats put on their Mr. Bill Show.

From the Miami Herald, Trump asks Russia to find Clinton's emails.

From the New York Post, Trump criticizes Clinton's running mate, but gets confused.

From World Net Daily, a black man is shot for supporting Trump.  He is now recovering in a hospital.

From Middle East Eye, over 3,000 migrants have died crossing the Mediterranean this year.  (via Zero Hedge)

From the Express, in Germany, a refugee from Eritrea allegedly rapes a 79-year-old woman in a cemetery.

From the Evening Standard, the two Muslims who killed a French priest used nuns as human shields.

From Russia Today, the French are upset that the authorities missed the two.

From the Mirror, a children's TV show generates outrage by showing a fireman tripping over a page from the Koran.

From the Richmond Times-Dispatch, a Richmond man who started out delivering milk in a horse-drawn wagon dies at age 103.

From USA Today, the man who shot President Ronald Reagan in 1981 will be allowed to go home to his mother.

From The Next Web, Snapchat finds an interesting way to promote itself.

From The Jerusalem Post, an editorial in favor of Kurdish statehood.

And from CNN, something that I think I'll decline.

Mark Twain's Study

The legendary American writer Samuel Clemens, known as Mark Twain, is famous for writing novels and short stories set in places along the Mississippi River, and in other parts of America.  Many of his most famous works, however, were written in a small octagonal building in Elmira, New York.  The story of its origins goes back to 1870, when Clemens married Olivia Langdon, an early graduate of Elmira College.  While the Clemens family lived in Redding, Connecticut, they would spend their summers in Elmira at the property of Olivia's sister Susan Crane and her husband Theodore, which they called Quarry Farm.  In 1874, the Cranes built the study on a hill about 100 yards from their house, in part to provide Clemens with a space in which to work, and in part to avoid his cigar smoke.  At the time, the Chemung River could be seen from the study, which reminded Clemens of his childhood in Hannibal, Missouri, which was on the Mississippi.  Today, Quarry Farm is gone and the study has been incorporated into the campus of Mrs. Clemens's alma mater.

Before my family moved to Virginia, most of my childhood was spent in western New York.  I vaguely recall seeing Mark Twain's study while riding through Elmira with my father, but I don't remember ever stopping to take a closer look.  Thus, you might say that this stop on my road trip was long overdue.  The first photo is from the south, and looking uphill.

The entrance is from the west.  Through the open doorway, you can see the fireplace that forms the eastern face of the study.

On nearby College Avenue is this sign.

As seen in this shot from the southwest, the study is surrounded by trees and a light pole.

A short walk from the study brings you to a statue of Mark Twain.

Also nearby is one of Olivia.  As for the function of the conical sheath around the tree, I have no idea.

The sidewalks of the Elmira College campus have been interspersed with bits of wisdom from Samuel Clemens, such as this one near where I parked, which these days seems more relevant than ever.

More on Mark Twain's study may be found at Atlas Obscura, The Constant Rambler and Mark Twain Country.

UPDATE:  It's now October 2018, over two years after I created this post.  One piece of information has turned out to be incorrect.  The property known as Quarry Farm still exists, and is located on East Hill, which is east (as the name indicates) of the city of Elmira.  It's now on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, but is not open to the general public.  The study was moved from Quarry Farm to its present location on the campus of Elmira College in 1952.

Taughannock Falls State Park

Taughannock Falls State Park is home to its namesake waterfall, along its namesake creek.  The park is located along New York highway 89 and the west shore of Cayuga Lake, about seven miles northwest of Ithaca.  As anyone who read this blog last month might recall, I was recently in Ithaca visiting three of its waterfalls, so you could say that I was back in the area to see one more.  During that earlier trip, however, I had not yet learned about this particular waterfall.

Getting to the Ithaca area was more hazardous than I had anticipated.  Although TV reports indicated that western New York was experiencing a drought, as I got ready to check out of a hotel in Auburn, NY, a pretty intense rain was falling.  As I drove westward on U.S. highway 20, and then southward on NY-89, the rain continued, varying in intensity between light and torrential, occasionally providing some large puddles in the road.  On US-20, I passed a line of about 12 bicyclists, who were fortunately decked out in weather-appropriate outerwear.

As I came upon the park, the rain was pretty intense, so I headed into Ithaca for refueling and a quick lunch.  The rain subsided as I drove back to the park.  I even caught a few glimpses of blue sky.  By the time I arrived, the sun was out.  I was soon hiking the park's Gorge Trail toward the falls, about 3/4 mile from the parking lot.  Early in the hike, I saw this pool of water, fed by a few small cascades.

Further up the trail, I saw this step in the creek bed.  It was as if a layer of rock had been chopped away.

Here is a section of the cliff that forms the north side of the gorge.

This view shows the gorge curving toward the left.

Here's the falls, with a viewing area to the right.  The flow was rather meager, most likely due to the above-mentioned drought.  See the Democrat & Chronicle for a related story.

Near the falls was this section of the north side of the gorge.

I reached the viewing area, seen above, and took a shot of the bridge I had just crossed.  The apparent rectangular slot in the trees above the cliff is an overlook.

I took this telephoto shot of the top of the falls.

After I hiked back to the parking lot, I saw these two bridges, over which passes NY-89.  Taughannock Creek passes under the left bridge.  Under the right bridge, you can see a bit of Cayuga Lake in the background.

The name "Taughannock" looks like it could be a variant of "Tunkhannock", the name of a place in Pennsylvania along the Susquehanna River, but I don't know if the two names are related.  For more information, go to Taughannock Falls and NY Falls.

After finishing the hike, I returned to Ithaca and then went southward on NY-13.  Unlike Taughannock Falls, my next destination was a place I that had previously known about and seen at least once a long time ago.

Ganondagan

Located within Victor, New York, Ganondagan was one place I visited in 2010 while on a historical and archaeological tour.  During my New York childhood, I had pretty much grown up learning about the Iroquois and their dealings with European colonists.  The 2010 tour was a pretty good refresher course.

I decided that Ganondagan would be a stop on my recent road trip.  As I approached the place, I noticed that there were cars parked along the nearby roads.  After I did the same with my car, I walked into the visitors center (and through its full parking lot) and learned that there was a festival going on.  I payed the admission fee and then walked around the site and learned (or maybe re-learned) that it had been inhabited by people of the Seneca tribe, the westernmost of the five founding tribes of the Iroquois Confederacy, until it was destroyed in 1687 by a French army invading from Canada.

I soon recognized the reconstructed long house, which had been there in 2010.  Here's its south side and east end.

Here's the north side and some visitors walking out of the west end.

These statues of a Seneca family, and the visitors center, in the background, were not there in 2010.

A mile or so west of the main site is Fort Hill.  Once used to store corn, this place was called Gadayanduk, which means "there was a fort here".  A trail leads from a small parking lot to the top of the hill, where it meets a trail extending back to the main site.  The top is a relatively flat area of about 40 acres, of which the next picture shows merely a part.

Here's part of the trail leading up from the parking lot.

For more about Ganondagan, go to Visit Finger Lakes and New York State Parks.

Kinzua Bridge

My latest road trip, like several earlier ones, took me through Pennsylvania into New York, and then back into Pennsylvania.  The next few posts will show some places in New York.

The Kinzua Bridge was a railroad viaduct that spanned Kinzua Creek and its canyon, a few miles northeast of Mt. Jewett, Pennsylvania.  It was first built in 1882, taken out of service in 1959, sold to the Pennsylvania government in 1963, and used as the feature attraction of a state park.  In 2003, after restoration had begun, much of it was ripped down by a tornado.  In 2011, the remaining portion, still connecting to the south side of the canyon, was converted into a pedestrian skywalk.  Here's the south end of the skywalk.

The next shot shows the whole length of the skywalk, and a still-standing trestle on the north side of the creek.

The skywalk includes these tracks.  The reason for two sets of rails is that if a railroad car were to derail from the outer rail, its wheels might be caught be the inner rail, thus preventing it from going over the side.  Yes, I did walk to the end.

In this shot, you can see a collapsed trestle below the end of the skywalk.

Collapsed girders extend between the skywalk and the remainder of the bridge on the north side of the canyon.

After I took the above pictures, it was time to get sweaty.  The park includes a trail down to the creek, and a wooden bridge to the other side.  From there, I looked back up at the skywalk, where I had walked a few minutes earlier.

A collapsed trestle looms above Kinzua Creek.

More collapsed trestles lie in front of the remainder of the bridge to the north.

These collapsed trestles are on the north side of the creek, as I look southward.  The trestles still standing support the skywalk.

For more on the Kinzua Bridge, go to Allegheny National Forest Visitors Bureau and Smethport History.  Smethport is a town about 10 miles northeast of the bridge.

Seldom Seen Coal Mine

Sometime last fall, I spotted Seldom Seen Coal Mine on a map, but haven't gotten around to visiting the place until today.  It's located near Patton, PA and is reached via a side road connecting to state highway 36.  Before taking the tour into the mine, I walked around the topside facilities.  We visitors rode into the mine on railcars similar to the yellow ones in this picture.

This is the hoist house....

....which houses this hoist.

Behind the hoist house was this machine.

As you can tell from the "high voltage" signs, this is the power house.

I didn't try to take any pictures inside the mine, due to the relative darkness.  After riding on a small train of railcars (as seen in the first picture), we put on our hardhats and walked some distance with the tour guide up to the "face", where coal was exposed.  There was quite a bit of equipment in the adjacent area, called the "room", which the guide then explained.  Several young members of the entourage were allowed to take a small pick ax, strike the "face", and take home a souvenir piece of coal.  In a way, I envied these youngsters, not because they got to mine some coal, but because young small people don't have to worry about low ceilings.

Terrorists Strike Mall In Munich, Germany

In Munich, eight people have been killed in an apparent terror attack at the Olympia shopping mall and a nearby McDonalds.  Three suspected gunmen are at large.  Authorities have locked down various transit lines, such as commuter trains and trams.  No group has yet claimed responsibility.

Read more at The Telegraph, BBC News, Reuters, Deutsche Welle and Russia Today.

UPDATE:  According to BBC, DW and RT, a ninth person has been found dead.  Authorities are trying to determine if this person was one of the perpetrators.

UPDATE 2:  There is now reported to have been only one gunman, an 18-year-old Iranian who had been living in Munich for two years.  Ten people have been killed, including the gunman, who reportedly shot himself.  Read more at the Daily Mail.

Bulls Run In Baltimore

In West Baltimore, two bulls escaped from a slaughterhouse and then ran around a residential neighborhood, before being captured by police at around 10:20 a.m.  Fortunately, Baltimore's version of "The Running Of The Bulls" did not result in any injuries, either bovine or human.  I wonder, though, how much literal bull[bleep] was left behind by the two escapees.

Read more at CBS Baltimore, the North Baltimore Patch, WBAL, The Baltimore Sun and Fox45.

The Writer Behind The Speech

In the wake of accusations that would-be FLOTUS Melania Trump plagiarized from a speech by current FLOTUS Michelle Obama, the writer of Trump's speech has gotten into the public eye.  Various media sources have tracked down and reported information about Meredith McIver, who served as Trump's speechwriter.  Among the details:

She has been a member of the "Trump Organization" since 2001.

She has co-written five books with Donald Trump, and has written her own poems and short stories.

She was a ballet dancer, attending ballet school on a Ford Foundation scholarship.

She graduated with honors from University of Utah, majoring in English.

She is a registered Democrat.  Therefore, I'd say that Ms. McIver remembering words from Ms. Obama is not outside the realm of plausibility.

Read more at The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Daily News, and the Independent.

Beware The Polish Boar!

My ancestral country of Poland, whose king drove the Turks away from Vienna back in 1683, has been unwilling to accept any Muslim migrants from the Middle East.  It now appears that they might have inadvertently found a way to dissuade any from entering, if the scare given these beach-goers in the Baltic seaside town of Karwia is any indication.  The caption on the top left translates as "Boar attacks people on the beach!"

Read more about this strange incident at UPI, the Metro and the Daily Mail.

The GOP Convention And Other Stories

The Republican National Convention started last night, with appearances by a number of featured speakers.  Here are some related stories, and other things in the news:

Former NY Mayor Rudy Giuliani defends Donald Trump's character.

Sheriff David Clarke's speech included a swipe at Trump's presumptive opponent.

After giving his speech, Antonio Sabato calls President Obama "absolutely" a Muslim.

A politician who shares his name with a species of amphibian claims to have suggested Mike Pence as Trump's running mate.

Victor David Hanson sets forth "ten reasons why Trump could win".

Some people found parts of Melania Trump's speech vaguely familiar.

On the other hand, one person defends Mrs. Trump.

Another prominent Republican says that he might fire her speechwriter.

A Republican ad-maker criticizes the "cult of the stupid".

Indonesia's most wanted terrorist is killed in a gunfight.

In France, a man named Mohamed attacks a woman and her daughters for being "dressed too lightly".

In Pakistan, a Christian girl is forced into an Islamic marriage, and her father is killed.

Also in Pakistan, a man dies after his arms, nose and lips are chopped off.

In Gaza, 30,000 children attend military camps run by Hamas.

In Pennsylvania, a man uses a rock to smash a police car's window.

A member of the European Parliament wants to ban the EU's member countries from opting out of its rules.

In Europe, Google throws its money around.

The IDF will "re-examine" its relationship with an "anti-gay" rabbi.

Archaeologists say that African rock art is dying.

In the Rogue One poster, the Death Star is not impossibly large.

Weird Al will play at the Hollywood Bowl.

And last but not least, 24 sports photos.

Odds And Ends From The Road

To bring my latest travelogue to a close, here are some things I saw on the road in New Mexico, between places I stopped to visit.

A rest area on Interstate 25 included this stone marker for the Santa Fe Trail.

Just above a door in the building behind the marker, some birds had built their nest.

Just off New Mexico highway 68, near its junction with NM-75, is this stone hill with a shrine in front and two crosses on top.  NM-68 runs between Taos and Española.  I had to drive its entire length, about 44 miles, to arrive at Taos from Albuquerque, and to go between Taos and Bandelier.

Also along NM-68 was this marker, indicating that a U.S. Geological Survey station was nearby.  The hills behind it are on the far side of the Rio Grande.

Here's the station itself, which had the purpose of gauging the Rio Grande, which you can see a bit of below.

Finally, after passing this thing several times while driving on NM-68, I had to take a picture of what used to be a tractor, mounted on three metal poles, next to the whimsical intersection of This and That.  It's located between the above-mentioned junction of NM-68 and NM-75, and the town of Rinconada.

I took the last picture on my way back to the Albuquerque airport, after checking out of my accommodations in Taos.  Thus ends my travelogue of New Mexico and Colorado, but I know that sooner or later, I'll be back on the road again.

Kit Carson's Home

Christopher "Kit" Carson purchased a house in Taos in 1843, where he lived with his third wife, the former Josefa Jaramillo until 1867.  Today, it is a museum, located close to the center of Taos.  The first picture is from the house's bedroom, which includes a bench, a fireplace, and a cradle.

The house's parlor includes a sewing machine.  Josefa Carson had one of the first sewing machines in New Mexico territory.  This one is a more recent model.

The house's courtyard includes an adobe stove and a table with benches.

The courtyard also includes another bench and an old wheel.

Besides the museum's website, linked above, there's also some information at Taos(dot)org.

A Little Bit Of Taos

Since I stayed in Taos for a week, I would be remiss not to take some pictures of the place, especially since my accommodations were just a short walk from the town's center.  If I had otherwise had to drive to downtown Taos, here's one place where I would not have been allowed to park, because I am not a bear.

Taos Plaza, an open area surrounded mainly by shops, includes this veterans memorial.

The plaza also includes this statue of Padre Antonio Jose Martinez.

Off to one side of Taos Plaza is this sculpture.

I also walked through Kit Carson Park, which I would call a two-stage park.  Here's one stage, which appears to be suitable for rock concerts.

The other stage appears for suitable for plays, or as the artwork suggests, folk music and dances.

One of the local stores had this mural painted on one side.

Besides serving as commander of Fort Garland in Colorado, Kit Carson also lived in Taos, which is why the park is named after him.  About two years ago, there was an effort to rename the park, because like just about every other paleface, his conduct toward American Indians was not exactly saintly, but as far as I could tell, the park still bears his name.