Expecting Joy!

I am an expectant wanderer. I live in anticipation of what we will do, see, and experience along the road. Depending on the specifics, those expectations can evoke wonder, joy, sadness, or dread. In short, my expectations have as much influence over my experiences as the events themselves. This week was no exception. In fact, after our ordeals of the last three weeks with Jeep repairs, inaccessible campsites, and unplanned challenges, my expectations have taken a beating. My usual way of dealing with this is to lower my expectations. I let myself float through the week, allowing the world to be what it is. A good Buddhist would argue that I finally got things right. A main tenet of their teaching says that eliminating unfulfilled expectations is the path to happiness. However, I was not a good Buddhist, and my remaining expectations about our travels paid dividends in the last week.

On Saturday, I made my usual morning cup of coffee. I carry three different coffees with me. One is a blend that we buy at HEB. It reminds me of home. A second is a store brand that adds a little variety. But the third is a blend that I pick up along the way. This latter bag is locally roasted and reflects the tastes of the area. These special roasts are generally expensive, so I only drink one in my rotation. As I made breakfast, I had to open a new coffee I picked up at Fort Michilimackinac called Mackinac Double Fudge. I had finished the last of my Yooper Fuel Coffee we bought in Munising and admitted that I was sorry to see it go. I had savored that last cup, knowing it was a perfect medium roast and would be hard to replace. The sadness, however, was tempered by my anticipation of a new taste in the Mackinac blend. My first sip was a delight. My second brought the joy of knowing that I would enjoy this coffee a couple times a week for a month or so. Yep, expectations do bring delight, especially when they follow disappointment. Saying "Hello" makes the goodbyes a little less bittersweet.

 

I am not bounding with enthusiasm every day on the road. Some days, I get itchy to move but too lazy to move very far! On Monday, we consulted Roadside America, our favorite internet site of kitschy little tourist attractions. We saw that we were within a half-hour drive of  a “Fence Made of Doors” and the “World’s Largest Cuckoo Clock.” Our expectations were not very high. Mostly, we were looking forward to a nice drive through the beautiful countryside. When we pulled into the parking lot of Rosalie's Café in Strasburg, OH, there was a line of doors. Front doors and cabinet doors lined up along the property line. Some were decorated, while others were plain. Exciting? Not really. But then we didn't expect much, so it was fun! After a few pictures, we headed out to find the World's Largest Cuckoo Clock. Expectations were low, but we were not looking for thrills, only a nice drive.

 

We pulled into Sugar Creek, Ohio, and learned it billed itself as the  “Little Switzerland of Ohio.” This was not a typical tourist town with themed attractions and stores. It was a small town with a little pizzazz. We arrived just in time for the Cuckoo Clock to chime at 2:00 PM. The delight of being "just in time" and the fun of watching it do its thing made the moment memorable. Once the clock finished, we looked around and saw an "Alpine Museum" across the street. We decided to take a walk. But just around the corner was “Esther’s Ice Cream Parlor and Bakery.” While the treats were good, Esther herself was the delight. She is a passionate ambassador for her town, and her enthusiasm is infectious. We loaded up with a cup of ice cream and a bag of treats and resumed our walk. At the end of the block, we saw Moomaw’s Garage, a long-standing business that happened to share a name with my Mother's great-grandfather. It was fun to think that they could be relatives. We found our way up the street to the Alpine Hills Museum, a delightful collection of displays and artifacts celebrating the Amish communities that fill the area. Yep, we came for a clock and found an afternoon filled with the joy of wandering. And not the least delights we had that day was Esther's Dark Chocolate Swiss Cheese Bites. Our expectations paid off big time in Sugar Creek, OH.

An Amish Kitchen

Cheese House

Swiss Cow Bells

Carpenter's Planes

Amish Bonnets for Different Ages

A Linotype

Amish Buggy

Barbershop not unlike where I got my First Haircut

Band Uniforms

Alpen Horns

 

On Tuesday, we were ready for a little walking and drove the 10 miles to The Wilderness Center. We were looking forward to a nice walk in the woods. This non-profit nature preserve caters to school groups, Master Naturalist classes, and nature clubs. They have several trails. We selected the Pond Trail and enjoyed our stroll. Along the way, I got a healthy dose of forest therapy. I felt the BP drop and the worries of the last few weeks drain away. After the walk, we went to the main building. After wandering around a bit, we discovered a comfortable, small indoor amphitheater that opened onto a beautiful bird feeding station. We spent the next half hour watching Nuthatches, Titmice, Cardinals, Blue Jays, and Hummingbirds flitting from feeder to feeder. We also enjoyed the Chipmunks who cleaned up around the feeders and occasionally ran up a pole to grab a bit of fresh seed. But the highlight was when a Black Squirrel showed up and started rummaging through the grass for tidbits. These critters were a favorite from our days in Toronto and brought back memories of watching them play in the trees around our house. The Wilderness Center offers ample reason to hold on to minimal expectations if I  allow myself to be surprised when those expectations are exceeded!

One of Marlene's great expectations for our travels is to visit all the National Parks. We drove to the Cuyahoga Valley National Park just outside of Cleveland. The Valley, cut by the Cuyahoga River, has been settled for thousands of years. However, when the industrialists of the 1800s discovered the free-flowing river cascading through the cataract, they built mills at every waterfall. They also constructed the Ohio – Erie Canal with towpaths and locks to feed the mills. During the 20^th Century, development destroyed the natural beauty of the waterfalls and marshlands. It boiled over when, in 1969, the polluted river caught fire and threatened the entire area. Despite the danger, the City of Cleveland and the State of Ohio could not muster the political will or resources to protect the area, so the US Government stepped in and started buying the land. Thus, the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area was in 1975.

Our first stop was Brandywine Falls, which was a small village around a mill a hundred years ago. Today, it is a beautiful waterfall along Brandywine Creek.

Our next stop was at The Ledges, a signature trail along a rocky outcropping on the edge of the Valley. This rugged trail includes an ice cave that shelters a colony of bats and is closed to the public. We walked roughly half of the trail before heading back to Nakai.

Ice Cave Entrance

The Ohio-Erie Canal

Our last stop, the Beaver Marsh, was an even more poignant surprise. This land had been an Auto Salvage Yard less than one hundred years earlier. Now it is the home to Cedar Waxwings, Great Blue Herons, Painted Turtles, Northern Kingbirds, Goldfinches, damselflies, dragonflies, butterflies, wildflowers, and marsh flora growing in crystal clear water, not to mention the beaver. Indeed, the delight of this last stop was the greatest surprise. It is a testament to what humans can do when we work together to heal our earth. The Beaver Marsh was not only a place of joy, it evoked hope as well.

 

Remains of a lock

Wood Ducks

Red-Tailed Hawk

Our time in Brewster, OH, had come to an end. On Thursday, we continued our southwestern trip back to Texas for the winter. Our next stop was the Hocking Hills of Ohio through the heart of the Hopewell People’s Sacred Lands. I was surprised to find out that Eastern Ohio is part of the Appalachian Plateau, part of the same geology stretching from Newfoundland to the Deep South. It was settled soon after the last Ice Age, and the Hopewell people (among others) lived here for many years, having built large cities and sacred sites with massive earthen mounds. However, the collapse of those large urban populations led to a more successful strategy of building smaller, more dispersed communities west of the Appalachian Mountains. These communities lived abundantly on these hills until the Europeans arrived, pushing them further West. The Europeans found land and climate like they had back home. They enlisted the aid of politicians to clear the land of the Indigenous people and protect them as they built new lives for themselves.

We set up in our home at Hocking Hills KOA for five nights on top of a hill overlooking the countryside. We look forward to the delights that this area holds. On Friday, I sat down to reflect on these past few days. The week has exceeded my expectations due in part to my having lowered them from the experiences of the previous two weeks. But this led to an increased joy. It also allowed wonder and hope to grow here and there along the way. It was a risk that is well worth making in the future.

Do not allow your expectations to blind your eyes to the road's delights. Do not allow what you want to see or experience to steal the reality of your daily wandering. Let surprise evoke joy as you claim the delight that comes to every expectant traveler.

Travel well, my friends.

Bob

A Hint of what is to come!