Off to Kentucky where disappointment and surprises await.

Before we go to Kentucky in search of Abe's birthplace and boyhood home, just a current update about where I am this evening and the weather report...

Moving out of Kansas was a big help to cooling down. Kansas is expecting triple digits of heat this week and if any sort of humidity accompanies the heat - fugedaboutit - time to put grandma in the ice box until the heat wave(s) goodbye. Driving into Colorado was hot but at least it cooled down in the evening and the humidity is bearable. At least until it turns into rain. Sleeping in a tent this evening with possibility of thunder showers. It was raining as I left Colorado Springs - I am 70 south of there in Colorado City, not to be confused with Old Colorado City which is next door to Colorado Springs. It is breezy - a welcomed respite but with ominous clouds hanging over the mountains with the wind is blowing in this direction. Cross your weather vanes and hope for a dry night for me.

And away we go to Kentucky...

The intent of going to Kentucky is to go to Frankfurt and visit the Capitol building, then look at Lincoln's Boyhood Home and then finally go to his Birthplace. After the visit to Kentucky then the plan is to go to Indiana and visit his Boyhood home in Southern Indiana. And then finally a surprise stop before heading back to Indy.

Along the way to Kentucky, the good ol' Rand McNally Road Atlas has a red highlight at about mile marker 25 along Interstate 65 just south of Vienna, IN. I have taken I65 north many times to Chicago and it was my final Interstate for my entry into Indianapolis. I have not taken it that many times heading South towards Kentucky.

In fact the last time I remember being on this portion of I 65 was back in high school when we traveled to Lexington, KY to play Kentucky Day School in football - that was a couple of six packs ago. But that travel log will be in the prequel to the current story.

And as another aside to traveling to high school football games. The current Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court attended a school that I would have played if I had transferred in my junior year instead of my senior year. But again I digress along ways away from my current story.

I am heading down I 65 towards Lincoln land and the red highlight is intriguing. The name on the map is Pigeon Roost State Historical Site. Now how can I pass up the opportunity to see why Indiana has an historical site for roosting pigeons. If Utah can have a statue dedicated to the Sea Gull in down town Salt Lake City, then why not a site for pigeons? It is only going to take a few minutes as the site is along the parallel State Highway 31. It will be a quick cut over at mile marker 29 and get back on at mile marker 19. Slam jam thank you Nellie and off we return to I65 headed for Frankfurt.

All very likely except when I65 is closed at mile marker 19 heading north and all of the Interstate traffic is being routed along Indiana 31 in the opposite direction trucks, cars, buses - all the normal traffic on the Interstate in now heading directly for me on a two lane road at 70 miles an hour. Perfect timing. When I get to marker for Pigeon Roost there is a break in the oncoming traffic as it is about in the middle of the detour so the traffic is spread out by now. (not enough of you have crossed your weather vanes as the skies are getting darker and the wind is picking up, but by the way Dorothy, we aren't in Kansas anymore, so we may luck out as the evening wind off the mountains may just be normal for Colorado. Yeah right.)

The first picture is of the historical marker along the side of Indiana 31. It seems there was a massacre by the Indians of the people who lived at Pigeon Roost. Who knew they had pigeons in Indiana in 1812. There were no statues to speak of - so where did the pigeons poop? And I doubt the sod busters in 1812 left any crumbs lying around - so what would the buggers eat?

The massacre in 1812 killed 15 children and 9 adults (the number of dead pigeons went unaccounted for) by the Indians who were paid off by the British to do the dastardly deeds that the British did not want to lay claim too. It seems that during the War of 1812 the British put the Indians up to no good in a couple of locals and this happened to be one of them. There is a nice monument with the names of the dead - but no pigeons to be seen. Now they have a statue to use, but I suppose they have moved on to bigger and better statues.

There is a cemetery near the massacre site that this interesting sign posted. Not sure why they named it Sodom (and it is not named such in the Rand McNally) and one wonders why the flowers would have been removed immediately after Memorial Day. There were plenty of flowers in visible in the Cemetery on the day I was there. Maybe they were left in protest of the removal of the Memorial Day flowers...

Fought the traffic to make the left turn to head on towards Kentucky. At the turn to head to I65 from Indiana 31, the local Constable was present to keep the traffic flowing in spite of the traffic signals attempt to muck up the works.

I had left Indy about 6 AM, so with the short stop at Pigeon Roost, I arrived in Louisville just in time for the morning rush hour. Lucky me. Louisville is on the south side of the Ohio Rive which means that there is a bridge that needs to be negotiated. And what is the reinvest in America plan doing - repairing roads and bridges. Not only is it rush hour, there are lane closures as well. Traffic moves at a decent snails pace and I cross the river with only short delays and I am quickly on my way to Frankfurt.

You get to Frankfurt by turning left at Louisville. It just so happens that this road is also using those invest in America dollars and there are more traffic delays, but they are short as most of the construction is on the way into Louisville so the people commuting were having the long delays. What fun that must be to deal with every morning. Since I have not had to worry about a commute since March - so who cares.

A couple of interesting things about the Capitol in Frankfurt. First, it is not in the center of town or even near downtown. It sits off on a bluff by itself. The Governors mansion is near and the State Office buildings are across the street - but that is all. No restaurants, coffee shops, lobbyists' offices - nothing. Nor are there any parking meters near the building. There is free parking along the streets and a parking garage built down the side of the hill to the river so that the roof parking is on the same plane as the buildings. It is a nice quiet neighborhood - and really strange compared to all the other Capitol buildings that I have seen on this trip. No parking meters, I aways thought that the meters and fee lots was the governments way to exact some revenge on the lobbyists' owners.

Maybe they don't have lobbyists in Kentucky. There are a couple of states, while unAmerican, do not allow the State law makers to be lobbied by special interests. Now where would California - and the US Congress for that matter - get to eat for free if lobbying were not allowed?! Unamerican I say!

An unexpected trip in Frankfurt lead me to the graves of Daniel Boone and his wife Rebbecca. I had not planned on stopping, but after looking at the map to find the Capitol, it appeared that Daniel's and Rebecca's grave were near the Capitol - road trip! Here is where the Rand McNally falls short. The road atlas just can not provide the level of detail for a specific city or the even the AAA state road map for that matter. However, with the excellent map skills acquired over the last 2.5 weeks (and a lot of luck and by driving the long way around the block ) we find the entrance to the cemetery and the Boones' grave. They share a large marker with Danl's name on the river side and Rebecky's name on the opposite side.

The cemetery is across the river on its bluff so it provided a wonderful opportunity to take a picture of the Capitol from across the river.

Off to find where young Abe hung with his homies...

But first, a nice surprise stop. On my way out of Frankfurt back to the Interstate to head back towards Louisville for Abeland, I spied a small sign with an arrow pointing to the left that said Wild Turkey. mmmm I mumbled aloud. Oh what the heck and off we trot.

Whilst on my way to Frankfurt I saw a billboard that said the Bourbon Trail was in the same direction I was heading. But the Rand showed no such trail so I was not sure where the Trail was nor what exactly it meant. But being on an adventure means looking for the unknown. I doubt that Lewis and Clark would have passed up such an opportunity.

Hoping that the Distillery was close to the highway I was traveling, I followed the signs. Lo and behold - dot da da da - woo hoo! When it comes to sipping whiskey, Wild Turkey has always been my favorite. Jack Daniels is nice, but I find it a bit harsh - Wild Turkey always had a smoother finish for my taste.

Luckily it is close to where I left the Kentucky State Highway so my return to the appointed route would be quick. The tour lasts an hour and takes you into the buildings as follow the entire process of making bourbon. The one thing they do not talk about much is the water. The Distillery is on a creek and the water is an important part of making bourbon, but I guess that is the secret part of the process.

We walked in and out of three buildings. Saw where the grain is delivered and the silos where it is stored. Got to see the 15,000 and 30,000 stainless steel tanks where the mash is fermented for three days. They are open at the top so we actually got to see it bubble (and nearly died from the heat the fermention process generated). The first day there is bubbling action all across the top of the tank and by the third day it has stopped. I found it amazing that it takes only three days of fermentation to make whiskey.

The best part of the tour is the distillation process. Each batch goes through two different distillations. The second one is where the liquid comes out clear. It also comes out at between 125 and 148 proof and then is later cut with more water to the appropriate alcohol content. The final part of the process, aging in oak barrels, is where the color and flavors develop.

But before being put into barrels, we were given a taste of the fiery "White Dog" as it is called. You can also call it moonshine or grain alcohol at this point. A few drops were poured into our palms for us to lap up. It went down surprisingly smooth. Maybe it was the small quantity or maybe it was the excitement of being allowed to taste it - but it was good! And also surprising, to me anyway, is that almost everyone tasted it. The ages ranged from 21 to at least the late 70's if not early 80's - and most tried it. The younger ones copped out. The older ones went for it with gusto.

After the tour we were allowed to taste two 1/2 ounce servings of the 6 bourbons that they offer. Make that 5 bourbons and 1 rye. The difference between the two being bourbon is 51 to 76 percent corn and the rye is 51 to 76 percent rye. Wheat and malted barley make-up the rest in both recipes.

I tried the Russell Reserve bourbon and the Russell Reserve Rye. We were also offered a single barrel batch, the normal Wild Turkey, the 101 proof and something called Honey Something that is mixes the bourbon with honey. Mr. Russell is the head distiller - which is basically the "wine maker" in the whiskey trade. The Russell Reserves were very smooth and quite tasty.

From this stop I learned about the Bourbon Trail. There are about a dozen distilleries on the Trail and they all offer free tours and tastings. Definitely worth a separate vacation to take the entire trail. Some of the other bourbons on the Trail are Four Roses, Buffalo Trace (of which I have been carrying a bottle since leaving Oakland for evening repasts), Jim Beam, and some other names that escape me and my actual favorite at the moment bourbon - Maker's Mark.

Maker's Mark is the bourbon that is dipped in red wax around the top of the bottle. It is a sweet bourbon (which is probably why I like it so much) and works very well in Manhattans as well as straight. Each of the locations will give you pre-printed directions to any of the other distilleries. I asked for directions to Maker's Mark, but when I realized what time it was and what I still had on my agenda for the day - I did not read the directions. I just put it in my keepsake box for a memento of my trip. Off I went to find Abe's boyhood home.

The journey back towards Louisville to Abeland was not quite an hour. This meant that I had been on the road since 6 AM and the only thing I had put into my stomach were 3 drops of moonshine, a 1/2 of rye whiskey and a very tasty 1/2 ounce of bourbon and it was already 12:30. I needed to stop for something to eat and some gas - got neither.

It just so happens that Maker's Mark is the exit before the one I was using to go to Abe's boyhood home. Hoping that the distillery would be at least in the direction I needed to go, off I went in search of Maker's Mark. Along the way, I passed through Bardstown - Stephen Foster's home town. It wasn't called Bardstown back then, but it now. I did not stop, as I was on a mission, but I did snap a few pictures of My Old Kentucky Home State Park and continued on my way.

With Wild Turkey being not far off the beaten path and Four Roses and Jim Beam in the same area, I expected that all of the distilleries would be close to the main road. Wrong again sour mash face. Maker's Mark is so far out in the middle of nowhere Kentucky, the first thing the tour guide did was congratulate everyone for finding the place. It was a beautiful day through the rolling hills of Kentucky. Top down, sun shining and on a mission. Didn't care about the time it took nor that I had not eaten anything all day. I made it in time for the 2 o'clock tour.

Wild Turkey did not allow any photographs to be taken inside any of the buildings. I think that was because the facility has been in use since the 1970's and it was a bit worn. Wild Turkey shuts down for the summer due to the heat and humidity. This was the last time that these facilities were going to be used for making Wild Turkey. In the fall they are opening a set of new facilities elsewhere on the property. It will be interesting to see if they allow pictures to be taken inside the new facilities. I will have to come back to find out.

Maker's Mark did not allow us to taste the White Dog, but they did allow us to actually stick our hands in the fermenting mash to taste the difference between 1 day old fermented mash and 3 day old fermented mash - the 3 day old was a touch sweeter. The distillation process heats the liquid to such a high temperature, that any germs added by us sticking our fingers into the mash like you would to sneak some cake batter that germs are not an issue - lucky me!

The other difference from Wild Turkey is that Maker's Mark only makes 1 bourbon. At least it did until this month. The pictures I took were of a new bourbon called 46. It will be available by the end of the year. We were not allowed to taste it or buy it as the tour guide says they were being fair to their distributors by not selling any at the distillery. They will only begin selling it when they have enough to supply everyone at the same time. Bummer man!

The difference in the process for 46, other than the taste - it will be a higher proof 94 rather than 86 - is that there will be an actual cork instead of a screw top. It will have the same red wax seal. The day of our tour the bottling line was having problems but we did get to watch them put in a cork, then another person hit the cork with a rubber mallet to set it, then the dipping process. Very cool!

In the tasting room we did taste the regular Maker's Mark and a liqueur they make with a mint taste around Kentucky Derby time. They do not make enough to distribute it outside of Kentucky. So if they let us taste that why not the new 46? Unfortunately our passioned pleas were all denied on that point. The mint stuff needed to be cold and it wasn't so it did not taste so good. But the regular Maker's Mark made up for that. As a special treat, and some extra greenbacks, you are allowed to buy a bottle of the regular Marker's Mark and dip it in the red wax. You also sign and date the bottle. I think this is to impress the dipper, but also it can not be sold as a regular bottle in case you screw up the dipping the process. Fun all the same.

They also gave us a piece of bourbon candy after our tastings. So now all that I have had to eat is 4 1/2 ounce shots of bourbon and a piece of chocolate bourbon candy and it is about 3:30 in the afternoon. Knowing that the govment closes early, I had to find a map (provided at the visitor center), find my our of the middle of nowhere Kentucky to another part of the middle of nowhere Kentucky before 4. Luck held on 2 counts - the first was that Maker's Mark is actually close to Lincoln's Boyhood home and the second bit of luck was that they have extended hours in the summer.

Before we leave the Bourbon Trail we need to bring the Lobbyists back into the room to discuss what is bourbon actually. Of course the government was involved but I bet dollars to doughnuts that some lobbyist wrote the definition and law for the Kentucky representative (or Senator).

Bourbon is an alcohol made from grain that is 51 to 76 percent corn. Has a proof of 125 to 150 before aging. Is aged in barrells that can only be used once and that are charred to a certain level of char. And it has to be manufactured in the USA. Some of these percentages may be off but there is a rule for each of these items.

The barrells after they have been used the one time are sent to Scotland and used in the making of scotch. And then after they are used in the making of scotch some of them are sent off to help make a different liquor. All of the barrells are pre-spoken for so you can not buy a barrell from the distillery. That point was made many times in both tours. The barrells are made from American oak - mostly white oak. One distillery uses red, but I forget which (hiccup) one.

Lincoln's boyhood home is on the actual piece of farm property that his father owned. It is on the old Cumberland Road. They do not have the original home, but they do have his best friend's cabin. This cabin is about 40% original which is amazing since it is made of logs and mud. It is about 10 feet by 12 feet with a loft - just like Lincoln's cabin - must have been the local building codes that kept them the same size.

This home is where Lincoln almost drowned in Knob Creek. You walk down a path to the creek probably a path that Lincoln took a hundred times. They also have a demonstration farm growing crops similar to the ones his mother and father would have grown. There was a group of children from a summer Y program there at the same time, marveling at the size of the cabin and the wide open spaces to run around in - much like I was doing.

Then it was a mad dash off to the birthplace 15 miles down the road. This is where the disappoint really reared its ugly head. The Park District means well and they actually took over the building and property from a private group that could not support the maintenance any longer. But what is at the birth home is a granite building with what was thought to be the original cabin inside of the bigger building. But 6 years ago they discovered that the cabin they have been preserving all these years is not in fact the Lincoln cabin. They now have a representative replica of the Lincoln birth cabin protected within the granite building.

The bigger building is closed for renovations for the next 4 to 6 weeks (they keep finding more issues with the building so the repairs are taking longer). They do have steps down to the well where the family got its water. The place just did not feel right. The granite building sits on the hill top where it is thought the original house stood, but it looks like one of the monument buildings built in DC - it just does not strike me as being Lincoln.

I have been to the Lincoln Memorial a couple of times in DC. It is very impressive. A great sculpture in an open building that you can visit 24 hours a day. Somehow I did not get the feeling that the building at his birth place fit. Maybe it was expecting something else, but the entire place felt sterile and lonely. Just didn't fit Lincoln.

It is not about 5 and I still have not eaten and while I know it will be closed by the time I get there, I want to go to the Indiana boyhood home location. It is a two hour drive from the Kentucky location, and I will get to Louisville for the afternoon commute but thankfully I have to head West as well as North so I get to miss the I65 bridge by going West while in Kentucky and crossing the river via a different bridge. Made better time to a better place.

The Indiana Boyhood home location is a much better place to visit. While there is a stone monument to Lincoln the Park Service has created a working farm on the actual 100 acres that Thomas Lincoln owned and worked. The actual home location is outlined in bronze but the land has some buildings that include a home, a barn and a few other buildings as well. Since I was there so late I am not sure exactly what all the buildings were, but I know it felt more like Lincoln - a site with people and animals not just a sterile granite edifice.

With all the people gone, the rabbits had the run of the crops. Saw at least a half dozen different rabbits taking full advantage of opportunities. There were also some sheep, and a cow and other farm implements left to fend for themselves after quitting time.

Across the highway is the Abe Lincoln State Park where you can camp. Maybe they offer evening programs in the State Park as well which is why the living farm was so desserted of humans. And down the road from all the Abe stuff is - Santa Claus, IN. A nice way to end the day - and finally get something to eat. I did find a Cliff Bar in my car about 5:30 on my way to Indiana, but it did feel good to get something solid in my stomach before the drive home. Even if it was a Subway with Santa...

Thanks for traveling along with me this far. The next post will be the beginning of the trip back to California from St. Louis. And thank you for the weather - it appears to be clearing but the wind has picked up. We will hope it remains dry for the rest of the evening.

Michael