Sometimes I know exactly where I am going. In that case it’s easy, pick a route and go.
More often I have an idea where I’d like to end up, and generally speaking a direction to go.
.
Once in a while I just follow the front wheel and see where it takes me.
Mysterious Stonehenge. The very name conjures up visions of Druids and Kings and mysterious powers. I'm glad to finally get to see it right here in South Central Washington.
What? Stonehenge in Washington state, not England? This is thought to be a relatively exact copy of what the one in England looked like when it was all there.
This was built by Sam Hill, a wildly successful businessman and Son-in-Law of Jim Hill, owner of the Great Northern Railway. Sam Hill was a Quaker and pacifist who built this replica as a memorial to the men from Klickitat County that were killed in WWI.
As it happens, I have a great, great uncle (my greatgrandmother's brother) who was killed in WWI but he lived right across the river in Wasco County Oregon. So far as I know he is not remembered anyplace but a single cross in France.
This replica is made of cast concrete and if you don't look too closely it actually looks like hewn stone. The dimensions and alignment to the compass is precisely that of the original. It is even very close to the proper Latitude.
All in all it is an impressive monument to the folly of war. This is only a small part of the money that Sam Hill poured into the Columbia River Gorge. His Father-in-Laws railroad runs between Stonehenge and the river, and he built a mansion about 3 miles away that is now a fairly impressive art museum.
Sam Hill loved the area, and his tomb is just over the edge of the shelf from Stonehenge, which is probably his most famous project. But the Columbia River Highway, a completely paved road, was probably his best legacy. It's still in use and an incredibly beautiful drive.
This is the view from Stonehenge downstream on the Columbia. That bridge is what brought my Great Great Grandfather to the area. He arrived as an engineer on the project and decided to stay so he homesteaded in Wasco County, Oregon. They raised 13 children there, one of which was my Great Grandmother who lived to 98 so I got to know her fairly well. I've heard stories of the region.
Thanks for coming along for the ride.
All words and photographs in this post are mine. For better or worse
You want some real motorcycle travel? Check out Velimir. That’s some kind of motorcycle writing.
Adsactly is a society for freethinking people. Interested? Click Here to join our Discord channel.
In the bottom of the page type in: adsactly-witness and select vote.
All small letters and without the @ sign
Or give us a direct vote here
Thank you!
Your post has been selected as #adsactlyspostoftheday :)
Join us in our Discord channel here to drop your post in our post promotion page, and make sure to use the @adsactly tag in the post itself.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Beautiful environment.... Hope you enjoyed ur trip
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Thank you, I'm glad you liked it. And I'm not anywhere near home yet :)
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
That is pretty cool. Too bad it isn't as green there too make it look even more like the real thing. Awesome photos.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
It gets even cooler than that. I watched my first total eclipse of the sun there in 1979 I was actually up the road 3 miles because there were so many crazies there, but what a cool place to see an eclipse.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Well, that's an interesting place to visit for anyone, but if you have a bit of family history in the area as well it's even more magical! Awesome trip you're making Tom, whoa, I'm glad you're enjoying yourself these weeks.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Awwwww. Thanks Soyrosa.
It is truly my 'ancestral homeland'. That part of earth that I know the best and it's related to me through family that has lived and died there.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
That's astonishing! I wonder how he did it - when he travelled to England, did he take photos and measurements, or actual casts of the stones? I don't think you'd be allowed to do that today! He sounds like a fascinating character.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
He was a real character! I'm sure he had enough pull to get all the measurements he needed from official sources. The whole thing is cast concrete made to look like the stones. It's pretty impressive, and was done in the 1920s.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Congratulations! This post has been chosen as one of the daily Whistle Stops for The STEEM Engine!
You can see your post's place along the track here: The Daily Whistle Stops, Issue 197 (7/16/18)
The STEEM Engine is an initiative dedicated to promoting meaningful engagement across Steemit. Find out more about us and join us today.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
I guess when you have the kind of money old Sam Hill had you could build anything you wanted, I don't think a replica of Stonehenge would have ever made my" to build " list though. I could think of a lot of other things that would though.
Those are some nice shots of the river from that spot for sure, very scenic indeed.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Yep, old Sam had a couple of bucks. Nothing like his Father-in-Law Jim Hill, but he made a fair piece of money in the Pacific Northwest. He just loved the River and this area in particular. He developed a road paving system that is related to what we use today. In the days when there were a lot more horses than cars.
Sam was a pacifist. He traveled to Europe and saw the carnage of war and the 'other' Stonehenge in the same trip. I'm guessing those two things are related.
Thanks for stopping by. I have more than a few pictures of the river in the gorge that will show up pretty soon.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
The architectural design is fascinating, it is a very good photo, you are very fortunate to be able to travel and see this design
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Well, the design is pretty ancient, but the execution is pretty darn impressive. I am incredibly fortunate to be able to travel and see stuff like this.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
You are very fortunate that you can travel and know this type of architectural structure, I would like to do the same but unfortunately I am in Venezuela, and well as most of the world will know the situation of the country does not lend itself to doing that kind of thing @bigtom13
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
I have never heard of this place, but wow how cool is that thanks for sharinf with us
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
It's just astounding to me. This is just an impressive piece and it's located in the sparsely populated Columbia River Gorge. It's a long ways to anywhere, and on the wrong side of the river for 'real traffic' but still gets quite a few visitors. I'd guess 50 people came and went during the time I was there.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
@bigtom13 its kind of a shame that such a cool place has so few visitors
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Wow, these pictures are amazing! Ive always wanted to go to stone hedge, I hear the energy around it is something else. I don't know what it is about stuff like this that really intrigues me, I guess I feel it has a story to tell that one day we may unlock.. Thanks for sharing..
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
I would really like to be there for sun up on a solstice. I have visited other sites on those days, but never this one. I'm guessing that even this replica would feel pretty special.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
You have done it again a great story and your perception is as always spot on. The only thing missing is a side car for your buddy Sam.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
I am visiting Sam in his jail cell. Actually mighty nice digs in the UP of Michigan. Or damn near to it. It's actually Wisconsin. But close.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
That's so rad Tom, so was Sam Hill from Celtic decent, I mean why build a Stonehenge?
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
I do not know if he claimed to be Celtic. I think he just built it because he could, and to draw people to 'his' area. I also built the first paved road in the US, and it's still used for a gravity race for grown ups :)
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
This is very cool. Thanks for sharing! This would be awesome to get out and visit at some point in my life. The whole area looks beautiful based on your pictures.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
I grew up in that part of the world, and the attachment I feel for it is significant. I love the desert, and it is my adopted home, but this area I know intimately.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
I've been wanting to visit the Washington/Oregon area for a long time.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Fascinating, I had absolutely no idea this place existed!! I love learning about US History. Thanks for sharing the post, and great photos! Need to put this place on my bucket list! :)
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
It's a pretty magical place. The siting of it is so accurate that scholars take solar and star measurements there to try to figure out the math behind the original.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
oh really? that is so amazing!! :)
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
This is an exciting view of a place I've never heard of before, despite the fact I spend most of my TV life on the travel channel... thanks for sharing!!!
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
To my way of thinking, it and the corresponding Museum should be more famous. It's really remote, the nearest city of any size is 60 miles away or more.
Good to see you. Don't shoot!
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
What a cool replica of the real thing!! I live that it was built as a memorial for fallen soldiers. I can imagine it is a great tourist attraction. I would come just for that view of the river from up there. So picturesque!! The places that front wheel and Connie will take you. The freedom and adventure of the open road continues!! Keep taking is on that ride my friend.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Oh. I really couldn't figure out how to work it in to the post, but I watched my first total eclipse of the sun there in 1979. Pretty cool viewing area, I was there with a whole lot of people...
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
that sounds so trippy x
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
@bigtom I love family history, well done, it is so nice to talk about the things family did. It is history for posterity
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Thank you. It's part of the fabric that makes up the quilt of an ordinary American family. I have always loved the family lore, and I really do like to be able to pass it on.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
@bigtom excelent keep doing so
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
World of Photography
>Visit the website<
You have earned 6.50 XP for sharing your photo!
Daily photos: 1/2
Daily comments: 0/5
Multiplier: 1.30
Block time: 2018-07-14T20:03:03
Total XP: 119.45/200.00
Total Photos: 19
Total comments: 9
Total contest wins: 0
Follow: @photocontests
Join the Discord channel: click!
Play and win SBD: @fairlotto
Daily Steem Statistics: @dailysteemreport
Learn how to program Steem-Python applications: @steempytutorials
Developed and sponsored by: @juliank
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Congratulations @bigtom13! You have completed the following achievement on Steemit and have been rewarded with new badge(s) :
Click on the badge to view your Board of Honor.
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word
STOPDo not miss the last post from @steemitboard:
SteemitBoard World Cup Contest - The results, the winners and the prizes
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Wow, I would have never expected to see StoneHenge in Washington!!!
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit