Category Archives: Blog
Dam removal, here and along the Klamath River
Starting in 2011 with Ryerson Woods Dam, many of the low dams along the upper Des Plaines River have been removed — they hinder a healthy ecosystem, endanger kayakers, and don’t serve a purpose. There’s more on these dam removals here.
A bigger project has been happening on the Klamath in the Pacific Northwest, where much larger dams have been removed. It appears that chinook salmon are returning. Enjoy the peaceful tinkling sounds of the flowing river.
Cloud over I-90 in Indiana
Late October color at Promontory Point
Sunset before invisible Perseids at Indiana Dunes State Park
August 10, 2024
The Perseids never became visible thanks to cloud cover that moved in with the evening, but at least sunset gave off a nice glow and showed off the downtown Chicago skyline.
Historic railroad stations of the United States
On March 9, 2023, the United States Postal Service issued a set of stamps that, like “Backyard Games,” evoke Americana: “Historic Railroad Stations of the United States. “
Noteworthy railroad stations began brightening the American landscape by the 1870s and, although many fell to the wrecking ball once they had outlived their original purpose, hundreds survived. This issuance of five different stamps features five architectural gems that continue to play an important role in their community.
Each stamp in the pane of 20 is an illustration of a single station: the 1874 Tamaqua Station in Tamaqua, Pennsylvania; the 1875 Point of Rocks Station in Point of Rocks, Maryland; the 1901 Main Street Station in Richmond, Virginia; the 1918 Santa Fe Station in San Bernardino, California; or the 1933 Union Terminal in Cincinnati, Ohio. The pane resembles a page in an old-fashioned photo album, with the title “Historic Railroad Stations of the United States” and drawings of a train and a one-ride ticket in the header.
These aren’t grand urban stations. They’re less ostentatious gems of architecture, with charming, warm, and welcoming exteriors, perfect for the tired train traveler.
These stations continue to play a role in their communities today.
- Tamaqua: Heritage center and cultural and economic hub
- Point of Rocks: MARC passenger trains
- Main Street: Urban, multimodal transportation hub, with Amtrak, Megabus, GRTC and the Pulse, bikeshare and a connector to the Virginia Capital Trail; also an event venue
- San Bernardino Santa Fe Depot: Serves Metrolink and Amtrak (Southwest Chief)
- Union Terminal: Cincinnati Museum Center
I haven’t been in many train stations. The grand waiting room at Union Station is, well, grand. It’s also a hike to any of the trains, and the rest of the station is a dim, confusing maze (and seems to be under constant reconfiguring or renovation).
The Pittsburgh station is below street level and doesn’t have a distinctive exterior that I know of. Because of train schedules, I’ve seen it mostly in hours of darkness. It has a lot of seating, maybe because there’s a gap between the Capitol Limited and the Pennsylvanian with many people waiting for the connection. It’s also utilitarian, with some lockers, a few vending machines, and a TV hung near the ceiling. Conveniently, it’s across the way from the Greyhound station, for those times train equipment or schedules fail.
I have only a handful of train station photos, taken from Amtrak trains when I think of it. Most of them remain active Amtrak stations. The old Ann Arbor station, however, was converted into an upscale restaurant called the Gandy Dancer. For years I had a strange idea about what a Gandy dancer was, but found out it’s slang for early railroad workers, the American equivalent of “navvies.” Wikipedia has a section on the term’s etymology. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gandy_dancer
The present Ann Arbor station is an efficient but cheerless box similar to the Pittsburgh station. It’s so without distinction I don’t think I’ve bothered to take a photo of its interior.
Somehow I don’t think the newer station will be preserved as a restaurant or anything else.
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Wolf Lake, Maple Tree Inn, Brew Caboose
After a visit to Wolf Lake, where J and I saw the usual mute swans and Canada geese, we headed to Homewood for a mid-afternoon lunch at Maple Tree Inn, formerly Cottage on Dixie (which I still miss, although it closed in 2019). On the way through Homewood, I spotted the remains of a big tree being hauled off, then noticed many torn-up trees and limbs. There’d been a record-breaking 27 tornadoes in the area the Monday before, July 15, and an EF-1 had hit Homewood. Too close.
After several years of talk, we finally made it to the caboose at Flossmoor Station. As a child, I always watched for the caboose at the end of a train, and was disappointed when I found out they were to be phased out. I liked the idea of an ice cream caboose — one excellent use for these relics from our railroad past.
The caboose used to be dedicated to ice cream, if I remember correctly, but now it’s officially the “Brew Caboose Taproom and Ice Cream Parlor” (albeit missing the parlor). That may explain the later and possibly longer hours. I also found out there’s a wee dog park behind the caboose.
With the caboose, a sundae, and people and dog watching, it was a good way to spend a weekend afternoon.
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Tom Baker and Lalla Ward’s Prime Computer adverts
I’ve been watching most available Doctor Who episodes since “An Unearthly Child” and am on Season 18, the last with Fourth Doctor Tom Baker and Lalla Ward’s Romana. I just found out about these adverts for Prime Computer. They aired only in Australia and were written by Baker, presumably prior to the dissolution of his relationship with Lalla Ward. Interactive indeed.
Hotel and ground squirrels at Illinois Beach State Park
July 14, 2024
I was curious about the reopened hotel at Illinois Beach State Park, so went there for a drink and appetizer — with a lengthy detour to the souvenir shop. The lobby still feels empty, and I wonder if there will be any renovation work. It was hard to tell if there’s work in progress, stalled, or not yet begun. There also weren’t many people around, but there might not be mid-afternoon.
The restaurant was also uncrowded. By mid-drink, the only other patron, several tables away, began a monologue on a slight pretext and went on for at least 20 minutes or more — almost nonstop. I can’t tell you about what because I tuned out the barrage of words. There may have been a “how times have changed” theme. Later, the staff apologized, but of course not their fault. Some people need someone to hear them, I suppose.
We didn’t have a lot of time left and I wasn’t up to walking, so we drove around for a bit. Illinois Beach State Park is the only place where I’ve seen 13-lined ground squirrels. The first time there was one in the shorter grass alongside the road. I always hoped to see them again — and now I have.
This time they were in the grass around the parking lots. They popped up like midwestern meerkats. I didn’t count their lines.
For dinner, we went to Stone Creek Grill in Winthrop Harbor, which has the outdoorsy vibe I love.
As long as a canoe doesn’t fall on my head.
Some rocks, Ann Arbor, Michigan
June 23, 2024
I thought to check Atlas Obscura to see if there were any oddities of interest nearby. I found out there is a colorful banded rock down the street that’s across from the bed and breakfast. Since every University of Michigan building along the way seems to have benches in front, I was able to get there without difficulty (with several breathers).
Before I did, however, I found a sculpture of interest, also listed in Atlas Obscura — Arriving Home (2007) by Dennis Oppenheim. When I saw it, my first thought was: If I step through it, what will happen to Edith Keeler? (Yes, I know the Guardian of Forever is an irregular shape, but in the moment I wasn’t that literal.)
When I arrived at the rock’s location, I found other rocks. All glacial erratics? They were of different shapes, sizes, and compositions. Unfortunately, I thought, a class that had added to the collection had had the rock’s surface carved with their year. A sign or plaque would have been better. Alas.
I found the banded rock I was seeking. It wasn’t called out as special or unusual — it was one rock among some rocks.1 I wouldn’t have minded taking it and some others home with me, if it were possible to lug boulders onto an Amtrak train.
This Ann Arbor District Library page has a bit more about the collection at 1100 North University, known as “Rock Specimens on the Lawn.” It makes me regret I didn’t become a geologist (or don’t have the mental makeup to have become one).
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1 Apologies to Michael L. I know “some rocks” are always in groups of three, but I beg indulgence.