Day Two, My Trip Across the Mountains

For years now, I have traveled across the Allegheny Mountains to visit my parents. Whether it was flying in from the Gulf Coast and then crossing the hills or traveling from our home in Maryland, we've had a long, focused drive to get there. There was beautiful scenery and interesting things to see and do along the way, but because spending time with my parents was always more important than taking time out to see the sights we pressed forward without much stopping. But this year is different. With no more on our agenda than a family reunion on Saturday, Ward and I are going to traverse the state and see some of those things we have wanted to see for years now. And maybe find somethings to see that we didn't know about.

Day Two:
Family, Friends, and Findings

Today was the event that was the impetus for our vacation: my family reunion. It was held at this little hilltop church.  Our reunion originally started when I was a little girl and my father and his siblings and families would gather at my grandparent's farm to celebrate my grandmother's birthday.  It has changed a lot over the years as the family has changed. The reunion was bittersweet today since this was the first year without any from my father's generation. The last sibling passed away a few months ago.

But a good time was still had by all as we caught up with each other, laughed at family stories, and of course, enjoyed great food.

After the reunion, we crossed the Ohio River to visit a high school friend, Julie, in Marietta, Ohio.

We took her somethings from my mother that Julie might use 

for creations she makes from old objects. Above is a lamp she made. 

See if  you can identify where the different parts came from.

After visiting Julie, we had a little time so we decided to explore Marietta and took a walk on the River Trail. Marietta is a town of about 14,000 that is located at the confluence of the Muskingum and Ohio Rivers. The trail follows the Muskingum River and the garden club had several nice plantings along the way.

Also, along the trail, we saw several historical markers and displays such as the pilot house from the Tell City steamboat. If you want to know more about it, you can read below.

Then we walked around the historic district downtown and saw
interesting architecture including the county courthouse you see here.

Until next time...