LUKNJA – MAGIC UNVEILED WALKING IN THE SHADOW OF TRIGLAV.

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The majestic North Face of Triglav towering above the upper Vrata Valley.

Triglav is the mountain defining Slovenia.  The three-headed mountain – Triglav means three heads – is so beloved, it takes center stage on the nation’s flag (Quick aside – Slovenia is one of eight countries with mountains on their flags and one of three featuring a three headed peak –San Marino and Slovakia are the other two.  Costa Rica has three peaks on its flag, but they are separate mountains, actually representing different mountain chains, Slovakia’s three bumps also represent three separate chains.). A hike to Luknja in the shadow of the giant mountain can unveil magic on an incredible scale at nor too hard a physical cost, not always an easy sale on Slovene mountain trails.

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HIGHEST OF THE HIGH SIERRA

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Mt Whitney rises above the jumbled rocks of the Alabama Hills like the scene from Gladiator.

Mt Whitney is the goal of many who search out adventure and challenge in the High Sierra. It is the highest peak – 14,498 feet – in not only these mountains, but all the summits in the states south of Alaska beating out Colorado’s Mt Elbert by 65 feet and its neighbor to the south, Mt Harvard by 78 feet. Being the highest is a magnet.  A magnet means too many people and the result is the Mt Whitney lottery system.

But the crest of the High Sierra is so much beyond Whitney. There is a lifetime of peaks waiting for you here. The views are incredible and so can be the efforts to attain them.

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KARAVANKE – FORGOTTEN MOUNTAINS OF SLOVENIA

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Mountain haze shared with cows atop Dovška Baba with Visoki Kurjek ahead on the Karavanke crest

The geography of Slovenia’s greatest mountain range, the Julian Alps is a confused mess. Mapmakers are much more at home with the Karavanke.  This chain extends for about 75 miles – 120 kilometers – in a west to east fashion geographically separating the Drava and Sava river valleys.  They form a border between Slovenia and Austria. The Karawanke continue the function of the Carnic Alps separating Italy and Austria further to the west.  As a border, the Karawanke have served that purpose since at least Roman times.

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SITE OF THE NEW MILLENNIUM – INDEPENDENCE, MISSOURI?

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“Dream of the Temple that Might Be” Earnest Webbe based on a dream of Joseph Smith III.

The last posts spun off of study and visits I made following German American religious communes in the American 19th century in anticipation of the New Millennium. My own family history encompasses the solidly American religious phenomenon of Joseph Smith’s Mormon movement. The German American efforts petered out for various reasons – communism and celibacy being major factors. Both groups were convinced that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ was at hand. Both groups were convinced that, as the Elect, they would help usher in the New Age. The main difference is that the followers of Joseph Smith knew Jesus would return to the World in Independence, Missouri. They had it straight from the source.

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ABMC AND AMERICA’S GREAT WAR – RETAINING THE PAST

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93rd anniversary of Belleau Woods; seen from top of chapel at Aisne-Marne ABMC Cemtery – U.S. 1st Marine Division Public Affairs Office

World War One was a reluctant push onto the global stage for the United States.  The country involved itself only with the last nineteen months of the war.  A slow starter, it took a year before meaningful numbers of American troops began to reach the European theater.  The summer of 1918 saw the development of a new army which learned the lessons the European citizen armies had already earned over almost four years of brutal industrialized killing. Remembrance would come later, enter the ABMC.

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SAM HILL – NEW WORLD STONEHENGE DREAMER

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An appropriately masked guitarist makes music at the altar stone of Stonehenge

To say Samuel Hill lived a fascinating life is almost an understatement.  A frenetic Quaker, Sam’s life is magnificently on display online where you can find his excellent biography Sam Hill, The Prince of Castle Nowhere written by John Tuhy.  Among his many interests was his participation in the Good Roads movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  Hill was instrumental in the development of both the Pacific Highway, a route linking the three Coastal States to each other from Canada to Mexico.  He pushed for the development of a true coastal highway paralleling the Pacific Highway – today’s US 101 – as well.  But Hill is best known for his role in the development of the Columbia River Gorge Highway, now over a hundred years old.

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SHEPPERD’S DELL – MAGIC, AWE, WONDER BUT, NO SHEEP

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Falls and bridge at Shepperd’s Dell.

Magic is a word overused in the Columbia Gorge.  Magic, awe, wonder all terms liberally employed by visitors and writers when trying to describe the majesty of the Gorge.  One of those sites spectacularly earning such accolades is Shepperd’s Dell.

Shepperd’s Dell is one of those places I never seem to have time to stop for.  There is very little parking – always full on the weekends – and only a small waterfall to be fleetingly glanced at as you cross over a bridge.  The Dell lies along one of the most scenic stretches of the Historic Columbia River Highway – HCRH – a true highlight between Multnomah Falls and Crown Point.

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FINALLY, THE RIVER! LAST MILES ON THE OREGON TRAIL

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Watering at McDonald's Crossing
Watering down on the John Day River at McDonald’s Crossing.

Just a few miles before the potentially difficult crossing of the Deschutes River, Pioneers – also known as Overlanders – got their first glance of the mighty Columbia River.  A little over 1900 miles lay between Independence and Oregon City, the beginning and terminus of the Oregon Trail.  Until 1846, the end of contiguous overland journey was not at Oregon City. The end of the wagon journey ended at Wascopam Mission. The mission would later give rise to the town of The Dalles, milepost 1819.

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APPLICATION OF FULL THROTTLE IN WATERFALL ALLEY

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multnomah falls
King of Waterfall Alley – Multnomah Falls.

Seasons change. Fall brings a return of rains seeming endless, at times. Late summer streams replenish aggressively. Waterfall Alley resumes its magical aura. Falls dwindled by summer drought flash into prominence once again. Where you once could get a photo easily at the bottom of a falls, now means getting very wet from the same spot.

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ROCK OF THE MARNE – ULYSSES GRANT MCALEXANDER

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The Centenary of World War One has come and gone.  A few books published, but mostly, no special remembrances occurred that garnered much attention here in the U.S. compared to Europe.  Of course, the First World War affected Europe much harsher and for a much longer period than the United States.  The war dragged on for a little over four long years Over There with America only involved for a little more than the last year and a half. One American who did stand out was Ulysses G. McAlexander, nicknamed “Rock of the Marne” for his leadership in one of the earliest battles American forces did fight.

Ulysses Grant McAlexander late in WWI as a brigadier general.
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