Recharging: Part 3

This is about a trip I took in October with my riding Buddy Eric. You can read Part 1 here and Part 2 here.

Whenever I go camping, I always talk about the morning coffee. It could be my favorite thing about camping. I know that seems weird, but it is sense memory. Going camping with my dad, uncle,and brother (there were other people that joined at various times, but it was at least the four of us 90% of the time), the smell of coffee was always mingled with the fresh morning dew in the morning. Before, I started drinking coffee, I would sit on the ice chest, pick out a sugary cereal, and enjoy my pick me up as the adults would enjoy there stimulating breakfast. When older, I started partaking in this ritual with coffee. From the time of a small child, you got up, without a sound, enjoyed your stimulus, and felt this sense of calm. It wasn't a calm-before-the-storm feeling, but a feeling of peace. No one really talked, and you would sit in silence allowing the natural beauty of the landscape to hold your attention. Even in large camping areas where the campsites are very close together, I am able to simply enjoy that morning. It is as though the coffee triggers that calm feeling behavioral modified all those years ago.

Here is Eric's view from his tent in the morning and enjoying his coffee.

I had told Eric that there was a path not far from our campsite to the beach on the bay side of the peninsula. After the ceremonial coffee, we decided to stroll along the beach. Actually, I took a cup with me for good measure. With the tide, many jelly fish ended a washed on the beach. They were huge.

Here is a picture of me walking across a "bridge" back to the campsite.

When we arrived back at our campsite, a Park Ranger swung by and told us to go make sure we register and pay our fee. It was pushing on 10 a.m. We put on our gear and headed to the station. I'm not sure if some one had reserved the space prior, or we waited so long to register, but the site that we were currently in was not available for another night. After a few minutes of finding spot from a poorly hand-drawn map, we picked a spot not far from where our current was located. It made the move very easy.

After moving, we headed to actual Fort Pickens. If you don't enjoy your history, you might want to scroll down. Also, for brevity, I'm going to refer to certain people and elements in there American colloquial form. 

Some quick facts about Fort Pickens:

-It was started in 1829 and completed in 1834

-It is the largest of the four forts built in the area to defend the bay/naval yard

-It took 21.5 million bricks and a plethora of slaves. 

- It was named in honor of Major General Andrew Pickens, a Revolutionary War Hero, who was referred to by Cherokees as "Wizard Owl" (I think they were making fun of him because owls are stupid, nocturnal creatures).

-Designed by French Engineer Simon Bernard

-Helped create wicked kill zones with Fort McRee and Fort Barrancas

-Imprisoned many Native Americans from varying tribes in the area, but most notably it imprisoned Apache leader Geronimo from October 1886 to May 1887.

I am not familiar with Military history, but other cultures in relation to historical context is interesting. I have mentioned in previous posts, that I had a real fascination with Native American culture. One of the things that interested me while meandering around Fort Pickens was that Geronimo (his Chiricahau name has been written as Goyahla, Goyathly, or Goyaale) who was born in the Southwest (present day New Mexico), was a prisoner at Fort Pickens for a period of time. This had me wondering, "Why would they bring Native Americans from the west to the east? Weren't European settlers pushing the native tribes onto reservations and westward?" I did a touch of surface research, and did not find a direct answer, but drew my own conclusions. A note: this is not real in-depth research. This is some Google searches and reading a couple of passages from some books. 

Fort Pickens was a fort that had been out of use from about 1850 (after Mexican-American War) until 1861 when the Union saw it as a highly defensible post during the U.S. Civil War. For about 10 years, the fort was neglected. When it was once again put in use it was reported to be dilapidated, but still a better position than the other two forts in the area. Then came the fighting with confederate soldiers. I'm sure this created more damage to the unkempt fort. 

It is difficult to summarize Geronimo's place in history. He fought against the encroaching Mexican and American armies respectively. He helped to create treaties that would be later ignored by Americans. He was a fierce warrior. He became the most famous Native American of his time due to eluding capture. There is controversy over Geronimo's surrender. I won't go into all of that, but Geronimo surrendered to the US army on September 4, 1886. He stayed at Fort Sam Houston for 6 weeks before being shipped to Fort Pickens with other Apache "prisoner's of war." This is twenty years after the end of the US Civil War. 

My supposition is that the US used Native Americans that were deemed "war criminals" and turned them into slave labors to fix, update, and renovate Fort Pickens with minimal cost. I think it probably took longer to repair after the US Civil War because the fort was in dilapidated conditions before the bombardment. During that period of time there were improvements and more batteries installed with larger cannons as seen above with Eric. Slave labor is really cheap- just food to keep them going. Geronimo stated in his autobiography, "Here [Fort Pickens] they put me to sawing large logs. For nearly two year we were kept at hard labor in this place and did not see our families until May, 1887." The 'we' that Geronimo referred to was other Apaches, but I wonder if there were other Native Americans from that area 'helping' with upkeep and continuous restoration.

The minimal research that I have done does not state directly my thoughts on the use of Native Americans as slave labor, but there are a lot of indications that they were. I think it is important to take a critical look at how the actions of European settlers shaped our current cultural climate, and for us to recognize that our ancestors (those of us of European descent) were not always wonderful or great people. They did some horrible things, and to lose site of that is to lose site of making things better for everyone from all walks of life today.

THUS ENDS THE HISTORY PORTION

I honestly, enjoyed roaming around fort and learning more about a history that I am not as well versed. There is more to come concerning this day of leisure and fun, but this post is getting long, and I will save the rest for later.

More to come.

Until I ramble on again. . . 

Recharging: Part 2

This is about a weekend trip I took with my riding buddy Eric in October. You can read Part 1 here.

Once in Mississippi, we exited within mile two, and headed towards Highway 90. Once over Bay St. Louis, you are riding right next to the beach. As mentioned before, we had wonderful weather, and riding next to the beach was sublime. There was no feeling to ride fast or find winding roads. The bright sandy beach mingled with a relatively calm ocean juxtaposed with the steady rhythm of riding on a motorcycle was settling any lingering thoughts on previous stressful events. Traffic on Friday morning was limited and made for steady driving.

Around Long Beach, we happened upon a large group of motorcyclist out for a ride. Instead of by-passing, we joined in with this large group. First time riding with a large group of people. Eric attempted to find out where they were going, but couldn't understand due to helmets, ear plugs, and age (cheap shot). After riding with the group (I noticed a variety of different plates from the southeast), we had to make pit stop, and lost the group afterwards. It was nice while it lasted.

Once in Alabama, we took Highways 188 to 193 heading towards Dauphin Island. We found some curves to have touch of the adrenaline. For some reason, Eric and I like to ride ferries [insert inappropriate joke here]. So, part of the planning was to take the ferry from Dauphin Island to Fort Morgan, and check out Fort Morgan. I think we have ridden the majority of current operating ferries in Louisiana, and feel like we have ridden 1 or 2 more in other states. I should keep better track of our journeys. Here we are waiting for the ferry.

The ferry ride was about 35 minutes. There are observational decks on the boat to enjoy the view, but I was too busy admiring myself and my bike.

The waves were a touch choppy, and our bikes rocked back and forth. We were a little nervous they might fall over, and lifting those bikes is not fun. Although we do riding off road and there is a greater chance of dropping your bike, we try to avoid from picking them up as much as possible. However, the suspension held and no bikes fell.

On the other side was Fort Morgan, and part of the initial planning was to stop there and have a look around. With the days getting shorter, we decided to visit on our way back to ensure that we have enough time to wander around and get our history on.

The drive through the rest of Alabama and into Florida was in a single word- sublime. Clear skies, cool breeze, and pulchritudinous scenery provided a relaxing and refreshing ride.On a side note the GPS ( a favorite rider of ours refers to his as Doofus/Dingus), took us oddly through downtown Gulf Breeze. It was unnecessary, but the GPS doesn't know better. The many times that I have passed through that area, and I have never seen the quaint downtown area.

We arrived at Fort Pickens with a couple hours left of daylight. The place was packed! There were a few spots open, and it seemed everyone was getting in there last bit of camping before the temperatures really went south. Although that night, the temperatures were in the high 40s, but I love the cold.

After setting up camp, instead of forging for our own wood, we decided to purchase pre-cut wood at the little story very close to the campsite. How to you transport wood on a motorcycle? Stacking and bungee cords- that's how. However, on previous trips, I have used duct tape.

The first night of camping we consumed some dried backpacking food. On a previous trip, Eric and I found out that one of these packs of food is enough for two people. We figured it out as we were both eating our own bags and became full with plenty left in the bag. Using our higher level skills of cognition ( we both have Master level degrees), we were able to deduce (read) that the packs clearly stated that it contains two 14 oz serving sizes. These are made for people that are exerting a lot of energy, and are very filling. I can eat a lot (I once ate 5 omelettes with 4 eggs per omelette and wanted more, but was forcible cut off), and have been called Mikey or Trash Compactor to give you an idea of my ability to consume large quantities of food per sitting. I was only able to eat half of one of those bags after a very full day of riding. With this previously found information of quantity, we shared a single bag of Kathamandu Curry with a glass of scotch per usual celebration.

Here is Eric prepping the meal.  

Catching some great shows on Caveman TV:

More to come.

Until I ramble on again. . . 

Recharging: Part 1

Where to begin a story can be difficult. Do I start this tale from when Eric's girlfriend (the fabulous Brandy) sent me a text (because he was driving) about having a motorcycle trip weekend? Do I start from the preparations of the trip and why we chose the direction to head? Do I start from the day of the trip? Do I start from the end and work my way backwards? Do I go Memento style and jump around?

I'll start here:

Combining an old love with a new love has proven to be an experience that proverbial recharges my batteries. I know you wonder, "Rob, why do you need to recharge your batteries so often. I mean I don't get to, and I have more headaches than you- you bum." My response is everyone needs to engage in self care on a regular and basis, and I'm sorry you don't get to as often due to responsibilities. Make a concerted effort to take care of yourself so the everyday stressors are set to 5 instead of 11. My juvenile response is, "Don't be jealous!"

 I have been camping from a very young age, and it is one of my favorite things to do. There is nothing like sitting around the fire (also known as Caveman TV) and oscillating between conversations and comfortable silence. Even large national campgrounds, there is a sense of privacy and respect for the natural beauty, which equates to people actually being respectful of their neighbors. The infinity of the sky is awe inspiring. I'm not much of an astronomer, but outer space is cool. Also, coffee never taste better than when it is brewed after a night in the sleeping bag.

 I find complete tranquility in the late evenings and early mornings of camping. I believe this is a perfect counterbalance to riding a motorcycle.

On top of Gizmo, I have solitude, but feel connected because there is not much between you, the pavement, and cars. Senses tend to run high while maneuvering around turns and the flow of traffic. There is excitement, concentration, and technical challenge while riding a motorcycle. On a side note, I will never understand not wearing full gear and driving reckless. Florida has no helmet laws and we say many people riding topless (top of their head, naughty person). It is infectious riding a motorcycle.

Combining motorcycle riding and camping has the additive effect of minimizing what you can bring. I have side panniers that hold 39L and 25L respectively; plus two waterproof bags that can be strapped down, as noted above. When packing, you have to consider length of stay, weight, bulk, and necessity. It is a big puzzle to work on. Honestly, I'm already planning my next couple of camping trips (the perk of limited responsibilities and attachments).

It had been a tedious period leading up to my weekend getaway, but I was excited. We decide to go to Florida for our trip. Part of the reason is that Florida is a short drive away, there are some beautiful stretches of road, and I had not been to Fort Pickens for camping since 2002 with my brother and dad. The other reason is that after riding in Florida, I had ridden in all the southeastern states on my motorcycle: Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida was last on that list.

We left Baton Rouge in the morning, and we could not have asked for better weather. It was cool with a slight breeze. As previously stated, I ride in full gear all the time, and riding through traffic in summer it can be less fun, but this weather it is no bother to move slow. The first leg of our journey was I-12 (the dreaded tarmac/pavement), which is just straight. Once we hit Mississippi, it was time to get off the interstate and enjoy more picturesque roads.

More to come.

Until I ramble on again. . .