Painted Turtle, North Lake

It's turtle season! This time of year the turtles are very active as they leave the relative safety of their lakes and rivers in search of a place to lay their eggs. Just the other day at work we had a huge snapping turtle crawl out of the Pigeon River and walk right up the path behind our visitor center and lay eggs in the soil right next to the building. And, the last couple of times we've gone for a drive up in the woods, we've seen painted turtles all over the gravel logging road that passes by Turtle, Swede and North Lakes. The painted turtle shown in this photo was sunning itself on a log along the shoreline of North Lake. This log has been there for many years and each year I see several turtles sunning themselves on it. They sure are cute!

Pictured Rocks :: Miners Castle

Friday, August 5th - - It was about a 50-mile drive from the campground at Indian Lake to the western end of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. It was a beautiful day. My intent was to take a 2 ½ hour Boat Cruise along the coast of Lake Superior but I turned right at the intersection instead of left and ended up at the only “pictured rock” that is visible from shore – Miner's Castle.





The view from the overlook was magnificent! The water in the cove was so clear you could see the bottom – a sign stated that the average depth was 25 feet and it dropped off rapidly from the shoreline. If you look closely you can see some people lounging on the rocky shoreline and some were floating in the crystal clear water.





A close-up view of Miner's Castle – some of the people are more visible.



These three swimmers were almost directly below – they are there – in the middle of the photo. Can you see the canoe on the shore? It is to the left of the large clump of leaves on the right. I walked down to the lower overlook but was not impressed. There really wasn't much of a view at all from there.





Then I drove a short distance to the parking lot for Miner's Beach. Nary a spot to park and people parking where they really shouldn't have! So, not to be put off completely, I went back to the intersection and turned the other way to the parking lot for a lakeside trail. Several parking spots were available so I grabbed one of them and headed off. The trail lead to the cove shown above. It was another 1.5 miles to Miner's Beach but I stopped off here for a while. And lingered. There were only half a dozen other people there and some of them left after a while. Soon I was the only one there!





Discarding shoes and socks and rolling up the pants legs, I strolled along the water's edge. The wet sand was like walking in quicksand. It grabbed your feet and held them tight. Then the water washed over the sand and released them. Venturing out a little further into the water there was a layer of smooth rocks along the shore and walking was much easier. Never mind that the pants got wet well above the knees! It felt so good in the 80 degree sunshine!



I lingered there for several hours absorbing the sun's rays and enjoying the cooling breeze. Sorry, Carol, but there will be no photos of the Pictured Rocks from a boat - I never made it to the dock!

Fondness for the Bottle

With the excellent modern dynamo hubs that are now available on the market, it might seem that using a "bottle" generator is a hopelessly outdated and clearly inferior method of powering bicycle lights. We imagine crusty old bottle dynamos making high-pitched hissing noises, powering feeble halogen lamps. Surely such a system cannot provide sufficient illumination. At least that was my thinking, until I actually used a bike with a bottle dynamo to get around in Vienna earlier this year. It was not a totally ancient bottle, but a couple of decades old and definitely crusty from use. And to my surprise, it powered my bike lights just as well as the dynamo hub on the modern Pashley I had back in the Statesat the time.



The vintage Gazelle I now ride as my main transportation bike has a bottle generator as well - this one from the 1990s. It is well-used and worn out, but works fine - both before and after we converted the lights on this bike to LED.



While I am not suggesting that a bottle dynamo is "better" than a hub, I think that it does have some underrated virtues, and that in some cases it can make sense to use it. Consider, for example, that...



Bottle-powered lights are just as bright.Most modern bottles can handle the exact same voltage as most modern hubs (6 volts / 3 watts). This means that I can use the same LED lighting set-up with a bottle as I would with a hub. There are differences in efficiency and a few other factors, but when using a bicycle for transportation at urban speeds, I have never felt this difference.

The bottle is easy to install.If you don't yet have generator lighting on your bicycle, installing a bottle is a matter of clipping it to the fork, or to one of the rear stays, using a bracket. Installing a generator hub is considerably more difficult: You must either rebuild the front wheel around the hub, or buy a new wheel with the hub pre-installed.

The bottle is less costly.A good dynamo hub costs around $80 on average, plus the wheelbuilding fee (or the price of a new wheel) - which can run rather high. In the EU, a decent bottle can be had for under $30, with no additional fees involved.

The bottle is independent of hub/wheel functionality.If your bottle dynamo breaks, it is not a big deal: buy another one. If your hub dynamo breaks, you will have to not only buy another one, but also rebuild the wheel or buy a new wheel.



The bottle weighs less!Surely that's an important factor for all of you out there counting grams on your roadsters and Dutch bikes?



Because my vintageGazelle's bottle has seen some wear, I will soon replace it with thisNordlicht HQ thatan acquaintance has sent from Holland - which is both a more modern, and a more classic-looking model.



And I also have this modern B&M dynamo that I acquired second-hand and plan to install either on my Bella Ciao or on my Raleigh DL-1. I am curious how these will perform in comparison to each other, as well as in comparison to the older AXA that is currently on my Gazelle - though I suspect I will not feel a difference.



I know that most of you probably prefer hubs, and I myself have excellent generator hubs on my touring bicycles. But sometimes a bottle is just a simpler solution - especially when the bicycle itself is simple. If only the choice of commercially available bottle generators was as rich in the US as it is in the Netherlands! Does anybody else out there use bottles? anybody prefer them?

Blue Snake

The first time my husband and I saw a blue snake, it took us forever to figure out what it was.

"There's no picture in this book of a blue snake. Argh!"

"The internet shows no blue snakes in Alabama. Arrrgh!"

"There's no such thing as a blue snake. Arrrrrrrgh!"

Only by reading the fine print did we realize that the Rough Green Snake (Opheodrys aestivus) turns blue after death.

The Smooth Green Snake (Opheodrys [Liochlorophis] vernalis) does the same thing, but they're a more northerly or westerly snake and are not in Alabama.

The snake's green color is made up of blue and yellow pigments in its skin. When it dies, the yellow fades more quickly, so the snake looks blue.

This one looks like he had a little run-in with the postal service. They've also been known to come out on the wrong end of duels with lawnmowers.

(And talk about holding your breath until you turn blue!)

---

This site sugguests that the snakes can also turn blue when excited.

Here's another cool pic of the snakes.

Bluewater Creek Canyon

We took a road that we had seen deer, elk, and turkey on many years before. It was rough and got rougher until we found we had come to the end of the road. We decided to step over the barbed wire fence where others had done the same before us. We walked out to the edge of a canyon and looked down, or tried to. We couldn't see the bottom. We could see many miles to the northwest beyond the canyon. The rock ledge was intriguing. There were black streaks down the almost smooth rock at one place. I wondered what could have caused the streaks like that. Had it been water falling over the ledge some time in the past when there wasn't the drought we are having now?

Suddenly we heard an eagle scream. The big bird did it over and over. And then we saw the birds flying against the side of the ledge. Knowing that they are such big birds they looked small up against the side of the huge rock wall. They disappeared but then were back to fly right over our heads. We were so interested in looking at the eagles we almost forgot to try to get some photos and the only one I got was blurred.

It was a wonderful experience to see the eagles. I think they were golden eagles. They just didn't lookright to be juvenile bald eagles that have the dark heads. We agreed thatrock wall would make the perfect place for an eagle nest but as much as we looked we couldn't see any sign of one. But we could only see the wall across from us and not the one right under our feet.







































When we got back I goggled around until I found out that the canyon was the head of Bluewater Creek Canyonthat runs into Bluewater Lake that is just west of Grants according to the Cibola National Forest website. There is a hiking trail along the creek that is about 2 miles long. I would love to be able to take the hike but old age doesn't make for goodhikes.

James Joslin :: 1837 Land Purchase

The earliest record found so far for James Joslin in Whitley County, Indiana is his purchase of land from the U. S. government on September 20, 1837 and which was patented on August 20, 1838.

In September .. a distant cousin, Richard Kutz, sent me copies of the land entry files he had received from the National Archives. The Original Patent Records can be searched and viewed online at the General Land Office Patent Search site but only the patent record is available online. The land entry file for James Joslin included the application for purchase as well as a receipt for payment.

A portion of the left side of the application for land purchase is cut off. I've added what I think it should say in square brackets. Text displayed in bold face is written on the application, the other text is printed.

Land Office, Fort Wayne, Ia. Sept 20 1837

I, James Joslin, [of] Delaware County, Ohio do hereby apply for purchase E ½ NW ¼ Section numbered 25 in Township numbered 32 N. of Range number 8 E. containing 80 [acres], according to the returns of the Surveyor General, for which I have agreed with the Register to [pay] at the rate of One Dollar and Twenty-five cents per acre.
for James Joslin
Price Goodrich
I, Robert Brackenridge, Register of the Land Office, do hereby certify that the lot above de-[scrib]ed, contains 80 acres, as mentioned, and that [the p]rice agreed upon is one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre.
R. Brackenridge, Register.

The interesting thing about the land entry application is that the entry was signed by Price Goodrich "for James Joslin" indicating, perhaps, that James didn't make the trip to the land office. I wonder if he even saw the land before he purchased it or did he rely on Price to select good land? Also, did you notice the abbreviation "Ia." was used for Indiana?

This record also confirms the speculation noted by Irwin Joslin in his letter to my Grandmother on July 29, 1969 that James was "of Delaware County, Ohio" indicating that he was indeed living there, at least in 1837.

The receipt for payment is also dated September 20th 1837 and it shows that James paid $100 for his 80 acres.

The land purchase was not filed in Whitley County until October 14, 1885. It was found, after an extensive search, in Whitley County Deed Book 15, page 314. Two paragraph breaks have been added to the transcription to make it a bit easier to read.

[page] 314 certificate No. 20721 } United States to James Joslin.
Filed Oct. 14" 1885 at 3 P.M.

The United States of America, To all whom these Presents shall come, Greeting: Whereas James Joslin of Delaware County, Ohio has deposited in the General Land Office of the United States a Certificate of the Register of the Land Office at Fort Wayne where by it appears that full payment has been made by the said James Joslin according to the Provisions of the Act of Congress of the 24th day of April, 1820, entitled "An Act making further provision for the sale of Public Land" for the East half of the North West Quarter of Section twenty five in Township thirty two North of Range Eight (8) East in the district of land subject to sale at Fort Wane Indiana, containing eighty acres, according to the official plat of the survey of the said Lands, returned to the General Land Office by the Surveyor General, which said tract has been purchased by the said James Joslin.

Now know Ye, That the United States of America, in consideration of the Promises, and in conformity with the Several acts of Congress in such case made and provided, Have Given and Granted and by these presents Do give and Grant unto the said James Joslin, and to his heirs, the said tract above described. To Have and To Hold the same together with all the rights, priviliges, immunities, and appurtenances of what so ever nature, thereunto belonging unto the said James Joslin and to his heirs and assigns forever.

In Testimony Whereof, I Martin Van Buren, President of the United States of America, have caused these letter to be made Patent, and the Seal of the General Land Office to be hereunto affixed. Given under my hand, at the City of Washington, the twentieth day of August in the year of Our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty eight and of the Independence of the United States the sixty third.

By the President: Martin Van Buren
By M. Van Buren Secy.
Jos. S. Wilson acting Recorder of the General Land Office
Ad interimRecorded. Vol 42 Page 127

A set of plat maps drawn from the "Original Land Entries of Whitley County, Indiana" was published in 1981 by Stuart Harter, Churubusco, Indiana. Below is the southeast portion of the drawing for Troy township. In the upper left corner of Section 25 is the land of James Joslin. Among his neighboring landowners were James Goodrich and Price Goodrich. In Section 22 is the land of Bela Goodrich and two more properties for James Goodrich. In Section 23 is the land of Ralph Goodrich which borders that of James Goodrich in section 22.

Of course, just because James Joslin purchased land in Whitley County does not necessarily mean that he ever actually lived in the county. There were land speculators back in those days too... but he wasn't one of those speculators.

Who Wants a T-Shirt?

The other day I received a couple of t-shirts from Jon Gehman (maker of the Roadster Rack I wrote about earlier). These come in funky colours and are made based on his pen and ink drawings of wacky bike cartoons. I have more t-shirts than I know what to do with, so I thought it would be fun to give them away! Here is what I got:



"Biker Chick". This t-shirt is sage green and features a drawing of a Mennonite(?) woman in a bonnet and apron, riding a step-through bicycle with a basket and baby chicks on the rear rack. (Take that, WSJ!) The size is marked "M", but I would say it is an XS-S - suitable either for ladies size 0-4, a child, or a very scrawny man. It is longish in the torso. 100% cotton.



"Go Gitcher Bike, Let's Roll!" This t-shirt is bright turquoise and features a drawing of a mischievous boy, about to take off on his 1950s banana seat cruiser. The size is marked "L", and I would say it is a ladies' L / men's M. In the picture I am cinching it at the waist, but in actuality it is loose throughout. 100% cotton.

If you'd like one of these t-shirts, please leave a comment with the funniest, or silliest, or stupidest, or cleverest bicycle-related slogan you have seen (or came up with yourself), and don't forget to mention which of the two shirts you want. I will pick a recipient for each t-shirt at the end of this weekend. Continental USA only please (unless you are willing to pay for the shipping). As some of you know, I am very bad with mailing stuff, but I promise I'll be good on this one and will try to send the shirts to their rightful owners quickly!





[Edited to add: The recipient of the green t-shirt is sarahgringa. Turquoise shirt goes to MandG. Please email your mailing address to: filigreevelo-at-yahoo-dot-com! ]

The Grand Canyon :: Moran Point & Hance Rapids

At Moran Point, I parked on the east side of the parking lot, and as I got out of the van this was what I saw! The Colorado River can be seen more frequently on the eastern side of the park because the canyon walls are not quite so steep.





Walking to the western side of the viewpoint, the view was even more breathtaking. If you look closely a little to the right of the center of the picture you can see the Hance Rapids. (Better seen if you double-click on the image to get a larger version.)





There was an area to the left and below the viewing area that provided a better view. The lighting was fantastic and really showed off the colors of the Canyon.





Zooming in a little closer... A small tour group showed up while I was there and the guide explained that the Hance Rapids were the largest in the Canyon. He said the waves were 12-15 feet high and the rapids were 200 feet across! Wherever a tributary joins the Colorado there will be rapids, partly from the debris carried into the river by the tributary.





The camera set at the maximum 30x zoom and from a slightly different angle. It looks a little “rough” but still doesn't look like the waves are all that big. Like many things in life, it's just a matter of perspective...

Wedding Day!

Jessica and I got married today! We had a beautiful ceremony filled with friends, family and love. It really was a perfect day. We'd like to extend our thanks to all those that helped make this day perfectfor us. We appreciate and love you all!



Special thanks to Timothy Young for officiating, Staci Drouillard for the incredible cake and our friend Paul for taking beautiful photos throughout the day! And a very special thanks to Carah Thomas, Rod Dockan and Al Oikari of Cook County's Most Wanted for providing the awesome music for our ceremony. You guys were incredible and we totally loved the "Joy of My Life" song... you guys are the best! Thank You :-)

New Kittens

These are the first photos of our two new kittens. We chose a gray with white feet, chest, and belly, and a black with white feet, chest, and belly and just a touch of white on the left side of her mouth that gives her a lop-sided look.

Black Suede Shoes: Review of Chrome Arnhems

Several months ago I was contacted by Chrome and asked to review a pair of shoes (my choice) from their new footwear line. This is the first review on Lovely Bicycle that was done upon manufacturer's request. In principle I am not against this practice, if the following criteria are met: (1) the product is something I could have bought for myself; (2) I like the company; and (3) it is understood that I will post an honest review even if my impression of the product is negative. I discussed this with the Chrome representative, and we agreed.

The model I chose to try were the black suede Arnhem shoes: a classic, "Chuckie-style" ankle bootie in black suede. I love suede and I love ankle boots, so the choice was a no-brainer.

Like all the other shoes in Chrome's new footwear line (4 styles in total), the Arnhems are embellished with the red Chrome logo on the side, red piping, and screaming-red soles. The look is a bit too "bike messenger chic" for what I normally wear, but I thought that if I liked the shoes I could just sharpie over all the visible red parts (sorry, Chrome!) and they would look like classic back booties - attractive, minimalist, and (hopefully) good for long, sporty rides.

However, my hopes were not realised and I never got to try the Chrome Arnhem shoes, because, tragically, they are not made in my size. I asked for a "size 7", naively expecting to get a women's 7. But the sizes are men's only, and so the 7 I received was the equivalent of a women's 9. There was nothing smaller. Turning tragedy into an opportunity to play "dress-up" with the Co-Habitant, I went to my local bike shop, Open Bicycle, and exchanged the size 7 for an 11, so that he could try the shoes instead.

I must tell you that the Co-Habitant resisted this idea. The shoes were not his style. Plus they initially felt "weird" when I coaxed him into trying on a pair (I think they have a bit of a "reverse heel"). But he did like the soft, luxurious feel of the suede, and the craftsmanship struck him as high quality. His other shoes are all falling apart. And so, hesitantly, he decided to give the Chrome Arnhems a try - the main motivator being that they would spare him, at least temporarily, from another dreaded shopping trip.

A month and a half later, he happily wears the shoes almost daily, and is making me terribly jealous with his comments about all their wonderful attributes. This is the truth, and it is quite funny that he likes them so much given that he initially refused to even put them on. Here is the break-down of his impressions:

On the bike: The Co-Habitant likes to ride his bicycles fast and he does not wear toe clips. Therefore he appreciates a shoe with a stiff, grippy sole. According to him, the Chrome Arnhem shoes take the concept of "stiff grippy sole" and enhance it exponentially. In these shoes, he feels that he is able to apply significantly more power to the pedals than in any of his other shoes, which include dress shoes, casual shoes, and workboots - all of which have soles that he thought were sufficiently stiff and grippy until he tried the Chromes. In terms of grippiness, he finds the shoes to be virtually slip-less in all but the wettest weather.

Off the bike: As far as walking goes, he says that the shoes get more comfortable over time and that, more than anything, it takes a little while to get used them. The position (angle?) in which they put his feet felt unusual to him at first, but once he got used to it, he found it comfortable. At work he sometimes has to spend 12 hour shifts mostly on his feet, and the shoes accommodate this just fine.

In Rain and Snow: One surprising thing about the Chrome Arnhem shoes, is that the suede is fairly water resistant, as well as roadsalt resistant. I thought for sure the shoes would get ruined if the Co-Habitant wore them in the snow and slush, but they seem to be doing fine. We did not treat the suede with anything, so this is how they came from the factory. A nice surprise, and it is good to have shoes that you can wear both during warm and cold seasons.

Aesthetics: The Co-Habitant likes the feel of the shoes so much, that he is willing to deal with the red soles and the logos (when his pants are rolled all the way down, only the red piping remains visible). Still, the look is not ideal. I think that Chrome should seriously consider releasing a more subdued version. This would make the shoes stylistically suitable for a greater number of cyclists. They could even be worn as dress shoes to the office - the nice suede is certainly luxurious enough. Not all of us are bike messengers or want to look like bike messengers. Just a thought!

In conclusion, Chrome Arnhem shoes are well made, great for cycling, and can be worn in the winter. The two major complaints are the limited appeal of the current "colourway", and the lack of women's sizes. The latter is pretty upsetting, given how much the Co-Habitant likes his shoes. If Chrome ever releases the Arnhems in a size to fit my women's size 7 feet, I will gladly buy a pair... And yes, I will take a sharpie to it!

What's Old and Green with Herons All Over?

... and made in Nottingham? Why yes, it's a vintage Raleigh!

There was an old dusty bicycle lying around in my parents' garage when I was growing up. I had nearly forgotten it until they mentioned it recently. I asked my father to take some photos, not expecting anything special. Well, these are the photos he sent!

I don't want to get my hopes up, but from the pictures the bicycle appears to be restorable. Look at that beautiful head badge!

The brakes and the 3-speed gear shift (which I hope is the original Sturmey-Archer) look like they might be functional.

The chain ring with the herons design! Of course the rusted out chain will need to be replaced.

Decals are largely intact. The model can be identified as the Lady's Sports. Going by the information here, I am thinking it is late 60's-early'70s.

Saddle is the Brooks B72, most likely original.

So... It looks like I have a vintage bicycle to restore! And just over a week ago, I was commenting on how much I loved green vintage Raleighs on Chic Cyclist's blog. Coincidence?... Or the universe smiling upon my bicycle obsession? Hmmm!...