Lesson 754: A Bridge

 Hello, Readers!

Last week I had to give you an abridged version of the summer

in Lesson 753:   Abridged.

This week's lesson is about A Bridge!

This one, specifically:

This is the bridge that spans the New River in West Virginia,

which is actually one of the oldest rivers in North America.

It's the famous spot of the Bridge Day festivities,

including jumps and rappelling.

The bridge is closed for traffic every year

on the third Saturday of October.  

Here's the link if you want to check it out.

I bet it is a beautiful place in the fall!

Bridge Day info CLICK HERE

The New River Gorge is 

America's newest National Park,

earning its title in the fall of 2020.

The area interested me so much,

I rounded up my gang and planned a four day field trip

to a place John Denver referred to as almost heaven.

Our first stop on our day of exploring was to the 

Canyon Rim overlook.

It was there we could view the bridge

and actually see some people walking the expanse

underneath it on the catwalk.

Two who shall remain nameless

were weak-kneed on the secure overlook.

I purchased five tickets for the .6 mile,

two hour long bridge tour,

not originally planning to do it myself.

Someone is a chip off the old block and wouldn't come.

Eloise strapped on her camera and took the walk of her life.

Nervous smiles at the start,

somewhat relaxed halfway through--

elation at the end!

Here is how high the bridge is in comparison to other structures.

Ellen and Ryan ended up buying shirts with this image on the back.

We were tethered to a cable,

to which I said in Chris Farley fashion,

be strong, little clip.

The 33rd checkpoint marked the halfway point

where our guide allowed us to sit if we wanted to.

Only the bravest among us tried it.

Instead Eloise,

who hasn't touched a handrail since March of 2020,

gripped tightly with my left,

and clicked around with my right.

In terms of birds,

I saw only a single pigeon.

I hoped these math calculations were correct,

while admiring the geometry.

I spied some whitewater rafters, too.

The other part of the gang mini golfed at 

Mountain State Mini Golf, 

which we highly recommend.

We went back three times!

This is me as I legit beat Sam!

Honest Abe!

It really was like a little piece of Heaven,

spending time in this beautiful world with people I love.

If you journey there,

make time to stop at the Grist Mill at Babcock State Park

and check out the waterfall.

Also set a side an hour to shop at Tamarack--

the interior is as cool at the exteriors.

This weekend, find what you love.

Something that brings a smile to your face that is this big.

Fellow Yellowstone fans,

I hope this brings a smile to your face--

found in a parking lot while on vacation:

Reading brings a big smile to Eloise's face,

and I believe this book is going to be one of my 

favorites of all time.

Five stars from Eloise

in the following rubric categories:

Interesting Characters

Unusual storyline

Historical time period

Good mix of humor and heartache

It has a dog--a very unusual dog

This is the book.

It deserves its own post,

so next week

 I'll write more about why I nearly underlined

the whole back half of the book!

Have a great weekend,

Eloise

PS--While on the Canyon Rim Overlook, Jack met a family from

Florida who stopped in WV on their way to Erie.

Destination point:  to ride the Ravine Flyer!

Small world.

Beautiful world.