Tree Indentification 2: Weeping Willow

I had the pleasure on Sunday to visit the Keeneland Race Track.  Even without racing it is a beautiful place to visit. In addition to seeing some horses, I saw many trees.  One species that stood out was the Weeping Willow. The tree pictured here was in a row of about six Weeping Willows clustered together near the old Keene barn.




Weeping Willow Latin Salix babylonica

 

This parking place sign gets my juices flowing for Saturday. Good luck Mr. Baffert!

Tree Identification 1: Honey Locust

One of the trees I have identified in my yard is the Honey Locust. Its Latin name is Gleditisia triacanthos and it is also known as "thorny locust" and "sweet locust."

The leaves are pinnately and bipinnately compound.

Ritter Park 2012

I've been dripping with excitement (and rain) since our trip to Ritter Park yesterday. I have to thank Steve, Denny and Pat for the opportunity to work with them and my fellow Cabell County teachers on the Forest and Rail Project. I can honestly say that I have been challenged  each and every meeting and have loved every minute.

While at the park, Steve helped us identify at least 27 different tree varieties around the park. Some were native West Virginia species and other were introduced to the state from other areas of the country and other continents. Pat helped us measure the circumference, diameter and height of trees to determine the board feet in a particular tree. Pat also worked with us on the Vernier LabQuest to evaluate the water quality in Four Pole Creek using a variety of probes.

Each opportunity to meet with this group has been a pleasure and increases my anticipation for our July outing. My knowledge of the history of West Virginia's rail and forest heritage has grown through this class and I know my students are benefiting from that knowledge!

Steve identifying and discussing Poison Ivy growing on the side of a tree.

Pat explaining how to measure distance from a tree and determine board feet.

Steve discussing the differences between the Red Spruce and  Blue Spruce trees.

Our fearless leader Denny enjoying a brief reprieve from the rain.

Kenova's Rail Heritage

I had the opportunity to visit Kenova on Easter Sunday and looked at some of its railroad heritage. I spent a fair amount of time in Kenova as a child because my grandmother and many relatives lived there. My father also worked there for a wholesale grocer and I have many fond memories. Some of them center on Dreamland Pool in the western tip of Kenova and provided some great childhood memories of splashing in the pool and at one time, going down the slide into the cool water!

Sitting outside Dreamland today is the locomotive pictured below. This locomotive has been an inigma to me. It has haunted me since I took these pictures. I have spent hours searching the internet for more information on the locomotive as there is no signage accompanying it to give its origin or history.

What I have found is that it was manufacutured by H. K. Porter. H. K. Porter manufacutured locomotive engines of this design until 1950. While there is little information that I have been able to uncover about this particular locomotive, I have learned much about non-gear driven locomotives in the process. For instance, locomotives are know by the number of trucks they have. The H. K. Porter locomotive here would be a 0-4-0 as it has no forward truck, four drivers on its center truck and no rear truck. Larger, more powerful locomotives could have five or six trucks under them. This particular locomotive would be used primarily on a short line railroad or around a small operation. 

It has a sister, also built by H. K. Porter, at the B & O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland that served St. Elizabeth Hospital. 

I also visited Virginia Point Park in Kenova to view the Norfolk Southern Bridge. While this isn't the originial bridge, it appears to be in the same location.

This shot shows the bridge from approximately a mile away. You can see it in the distance, beyond the barges.

Here is a view from the flood wall, looking into Ohio.

Lake Vesuvius

I took the opportunity on my day off to visit Lake Vesuvius in Ironton, Ohio. While there I captured pictures of the Vesuvius Iron Furnace, the dam and spillway and also some of the trees.

The Red Buds and Dogwoods seem to be stealing the show and providing most of the colors of the forest. I did see some beautiful wildlife also.  We encountered the butterfly's pictured here. My beautiful wife thought one was injured, but when they both flew away I speculate they were just trying to make a green butterfly (keep in mind I'm a social studies teacher and not a science teacher, so that seems plausible to me!). We also saw a lizard that my kids tried to catch (no luck, they were afraid to pull its tail off). Also, we saw a chipmunk and a brilliantly colored Blue Jay (a little camera shy I might add).

Just to share a little of the history of the park, the iron furnace was in operation from 1833-1906.  The dam and lake were a Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) project in 1940. This is the type of thing that interests a social studies guy like me.

I can say the day was a success. We all played in the creek, walked the trails and had a picnic. Plenty of Thacker fun for all!

Happy Easter!

Bob Withers Visit

We had the privilege tonight of hearing Bob Withers talk about railroads and their history in West Virginia. He discussed the various engines used on the steep grades of West Virginia mountains.