Monday, August 17, 2015
From: Meridian, MS
To: Round Rock, TX
Miles: 612
The final push to get home was gong to happen today, but there would be a little 'detour' which was highly recommended by a few folks as well as Rusty....
Last night's sleep was non-existent. yet another bummer for me
We packed up the truck under cloudy skies and checked the radar. Yep, there was rain out there. It's been so long since we've seen rain, in a twisted sort of way it was kind of welcome to hopefully get into some.
By 7:45 we were on the road again headed home. And this time we opted for McD's instead of the Waffle House down the street!
Along the way back we (Rusty) decided I needed to see Vicksburg and the battlefield. All I can say is "Thank you Rusty" for doing so. I was simply blown away by the history there as well as the sense of scale for what was with little doubt a very dark period in our nation's history. Scale as in the sheer loss of life, and the minimal distances between fighting forces when in battle.
Upon arrival at the visitor center, a gun emplacement
And the other side....
In the museum, a variety of timed fuses and a cutaway view of ordinance
A Union cannon in an array. In a few more pics, you'll be able to see the scale of the battlefield. I think many of us have regularly hunted deer at greater distances.....
The monument just over the cannon barrel would be the distance to the Confederate forces. Over 3,500 rounds were tossed from this position alone during one battle
Throughout the park there were many statues and buildings dedicated to both sides. This was one of the largest from Illinois troops
Here's a sense of scale.... On the left were the Union soldiers and on the right Confederate. There's not 300 yards between the two sides and those hills between them which soldiers from both sides had to traverse.
The Shirley House which served as a smallpox quarantine house during the battle. Heavily damaged, was refurbished to this condition.
You can make out what life was like inside the Shirley House here
I thought a Confederate cannon with the Vicksburg water tower in the background was interesting
Random cannon's in the park
There were many statues like this as memorials
And I believe this one was of Grant
This bust was of the captain of the US Cairo, an "Ironclad" ship sunk in the Mississippi river
Here's the "Ironclad" under cover
And in her remaining glory
Note the reactive armor. Instead of just being heavy plate steel and relying on a 'bounce' or 'repel penetration' affect, a shell would hit this and bend the exoskeleton therefore losing energy upon impact. Kind of looks like railroad line material if you ask me....
We then drove through the cemetery. I felt strange looking for a shot, but felt this best described the sacrifices by soooo many people. Nondescript markers with simply a number for those unidentified and if so identified, the marker was inscribed. There were thousands upon thousands of these in and on the surrounding hillsides. Yes, we DID have a civil war in this great country of ours and here's just a little bit of the cost of such a war.
After the park visit, we drove through the old town of Vicksburg which was quite pleasant. Even outside of the park, you could see markers and remnants of the battle pretty much everywhere.....
Another junk food lunch at Burger King and we both concluded we were "burgered out" for this trip! So on the road again we go.....
We hit LA and everything was still so GREEN.
...and then the rain began. Radar showed them as Pop-up's or "Hit or Miss" as I like to call them
I found the town of Start, but never did find the town of End....
Approaching Bossier City/Shreveport I saw something off in the distance. Big, slow, and moving.....
Sure enough, I know Barksdale has a large fleet of the B52's and bingo - it was one.
Even with the windows up and A/C on, you could hear those eight engines whining as it flew overhead. Always a real treat to see one of these flying....
Shortly after seeing the BUFF (Big Ugly Fat Fellow) we saw a VERY welcome sign....
We ducked off to catch 79 and run it all the way home and ran into more showers.... Yay rain!
And as soon as the showers were gone, the temp started its rapid climb
Getting closer to Round Rock, all I could think was "Hi Hardy"
We were crowding dinnertime again and as mentioned, ruled out burgers, McD's, Burger King and The Waffle House. Let's go local this time in Rockdale. Pretty tasty indeed....
The sun was setting on 79 and this was turning out to be a lovely ending for this adventure
In Thorndale, I had to say "Hi" to GravelGuy (aka: Mark) too!
....and in the end as we approached the Austin/Round Rock area - a fitting image for the trip. A wonderful sunset indeed
I can't thank Rusty enough for allowing me to accompany him on this trip. I needed a trip like this at the moment. I witnessed true Father/Daughter love, saw a lot more of this great country of ours, had some shallow nonsense and whimsical as well as wonderfully deep and meaningful conversation with a true philosopher, learned some more about myself and others, and how to treat people better, and ate some good and not so good food.
Yes, three and a half days and over 2500 miles with a good friend is indeed, a good thing.
Thank you Rusty.....
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