A small piece of world history here in the Upstate

 Drivers on business I-85 in Spartanburg county are probably unaware of the important piece of history a local industry has on display at the front of their campus facing the interstate. 

 

 

Here on display are two large pieces of the Berlin Wall.  The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin.

The wall was demolished in 1989.

 

President Regan's famous statement to Gorbachev.

 

 

A step back in time..

What can I say,  I can not stand eating at a buffet style restaurant.  There is however, an exception too everything.  
Whenever we are in Santee SC, camping at Santee State Park, or attending the Santee Birding & Nature Festival, this restaurant is a must.  On any given night, you will find pulled BBQ,  shrimp and grits, chicken, and a variety of vegetables, (one of the signature items in tomato pie, a low country favorite), and a assortment of desserts.   The food will bring you here, but the atmosphere along with the food, will keep you coming back.

The four old stores or commissaries that comprise Lone Star are full of antiques, most of which were in the old buildings when they were acquired and moved to their present site. Some of the original counters and showcases are in place, and shelves are full of merchandise that had been right there in times before the Great Depression, when mules and wagons and steam locomotives represented the primary modes of transportation.  You can still buy OIL CLOTH by the yard here!

Throw in live bluegrass music in the dinning hall on Saturday nights, and it is a place that just can't be beat.

Lone Star BBQ & Mercantile

Santee South Carolina



How does your garden grow?

While driving back from the coast this weekend, we took a detour to see something I had been hearing about for years, Fryar's Topiary Garden, located in Bishopville SC.
I have seen several interviews with Mr. Fryar over the years as well as TV segments about the beautiful garden this man maintains at his home.
What makes his story so much more unique is that Mr. Fryar has had NO formal training in horticulture
While there, we were lucky enough to meet this kind soul, and have photos taken with him.
I will let the photos speak for themselves, but there is one thing within his garden I could not capture in one frame.

He has the words, Peace, Love and Goodwill largely and prodominantly outlined in his 3.5 acre yard. Mr. Fryar certainly exhibits all three.

A great article about this man can be found here.

Scouting around an old mill village.

Over the weekend, we were out scouting for an area to place a few new geocaches. I decided I would like to go have a look around the Pacolet Mills community in Spartanburg County. Since I was a child, I have always enjoyed it when we would drive through this area. I like looking at the stone work. I also love the river. The Pacolet River runs through the heart of this mill village. In 1903, this same river, tore the heart out of this community. On June 6th of that year, the river flooded. The flood was estimated to have killed 80, it left around 600 homeless, and around 4000 jobless. The textile mill was heavily damaged. Almost 700 million dollars worth of damage by todays standards.
Here is a link to the NY Times article.
The day we were there, it was spitting rain, and it just added to the beauty of the structures.









Side note:
Sunday 6/7/09: Three of our caches in the area were published.
River Horse-GC1TCNN
Victor-GC1TCQM
Buzzard's Roost-GC1TCO

Petticoats, Coffee Kettles, and such

Getting off of the main highways and traveling the backroads of rural South Carolina you see some pretty unique places and things. I carry a camera most of the time when we are out goecaching, hiking and such. Here are a couple of shots from Friday.
(I love the Holy Ghost Prayer Tower & Deliverence sign,posted below Petticoat Junction)

Poor mouthing!

I neglected to mention that also on our trip to the Cataloochee Valley, Lilly Belle' befriended a Park Ranger and then proceeded to tell her how cold she was, and that she did not think this was the appropriate weather for a puppy of her size and stature to be out in.

Apparently the Ranger agreed!