I thought it would be easy. I really did. If I got a week of easy posts in, I'd have the momentum needed to get through the "tough part" when we'd have two residences and a lot of commutes. Well, we elected to spend Saturday at the railroad.
Connersville, IN is home to the Whitewater Valley Railroad. The old train line runs between Connersville's downtown train depot and an old lock in Metamora, in almost constant view of the river and canal. The ride drops you off for a 2 hour layover in the old canal town, which is advertised something like Roscoe Village in Coshocton, OH or Nashville, IN. The publicity advertises an old canal town with some historic exhibits and boutique shops. I actually thought we'd have a tough time seeing everything or fighting crowds inn the perfect weekend.
I thought we'd find somewhere to get fresh-made ice cream or cookies or something. Instead, there were signs for a brand I'd not seen before where there wasn't a For Sale sign, anyway. So no luck on that front. But the balance was that the 100 or so passengers on the train accounted for close to half of the day's tourist population. So what was open was pretty accessible to our 3 year old and the umbrella stroller bound toddler.
Three highlights of Metamora:
1) Words & Images</p>
This is a little old book store listed in the directory as an antique shop. What beconned us was it's side show as a toy train store. Some of the engines they sell go for more than $200. The proprietor reminded me of Tim West, a pipe maker in Columbus, OH. Very knowlegable and frank. I think that if you weren't expressing interest in one of his few hobbies, conversation would nearly impossible. Lots of fun for us, though.
2) Ice Cream
Of course, I have no idea where it came from, but we got the obligatory ice. Cream at a store filled to capacity with antique cookie jars. Deborah got Duncan a chocolate cone. His first as far as we know. He quickly got bored wither the ice cream and started eating his cake cone. "What a mess!" he exclaimed, a cigar store indian for frozen treats.
3) The Grist Mill
Metamora's reason for being is a huge stone grist mill. In the 1830s, the grist mill took grain from canal traffic and made it into useful flour, grits, and meal for sale and consumption. In the 20th century, IDNR bought the mill as a historic living museum and established a canal boat ride. They take corn and grind it into meal throughout the day. They also sell that and we took a bag home. More on that through the next week.
So the missed opportunity was that our trip caused the toast and cereal we had for breakfast to be the easiest to trace to the source. Golden Grahams, while complying with Michael Pollan's rule of not coloring milk, is probably made from Midwestern wheat and corn in a factory somewhere in the Midwest. Our toast might be easier to stalk. Some Aunt Millie's bread is made at Perfection Bakery in Fort Wayne. We'll just take an incomplete and pretend that it was from there.
And yes, our other meals were mass market chain fast food. If its good enough for Amish...
Connersville, IN is home to the Whitewater Valley Railroad. The old train line runs between Connersville's downtown train depot and an old lock in Metamora, in almost constant view of the river and canal. The ride drops you off for a 2 hour layover in the old canal town, which is advertised something like Roscoe Village in Coshocton, OH or Nashville, IN. The publicity advertises an old canal town with some historic exhibits and boutique shops. I actually thought we'd have a tough time seeing everything or fighting crowds inn the perfect weekend.
I thought we'd find somewhere to get fresh-made ice cream or cookies or something. Instead, there were signs for a brand I'd not seen before where there wasn't a For Sale sign, anyway. So no luck on that front. But the balance was that the 100 or so passengers on the train accounted for close to half of the day's tourist population. So what was open was pretty accessible to our 3 year old and the umbrella stroller bound toddler.
Three highlights of Metamora:
1) Words & Images</p>
This is a little old book store listed in the directory as an antique shop. What beconned us was it's side show as a toy train store. Some of the engines they sell go for more than $200. The proprietor reminded me of Tim West, a pipe maker in Columbus, OH. Very knowlegable and frank. I think that if you weren't expressing interest in one of his few hobbies, conversation would nearly impossible. Lots of fun for us, though.
2) Ice Cream
Of course, I have no idea where it came from, but we got the obligatory ice. Cream at a store filled to capacity with antique cookie jars. Deborah got Duncan a chocolate cone. His first as far as we know. He quickly got bored wither the ice cream and started eating his cake cone. "What a mess!" he exclaimed, a cigar store indian for frozen treats.
3) The Grist Mill
Metamora's reason for being is a huge stone grist mill. In the 1830s, the grist mill took grain from canal traffic and made it into useful flour, grits, and meal for sale and consumption. In the 20th century, IDNR bought the mill as a historic living museum and established a canal boat ride. They take corn and grind it into meal throughout the day. They also sell that and we took a bag home. More on that through the next week.
So the missed opportunity was that our trip caused the toast and cereal we had for breakfast to be the easiest to trace to the source. Golden Grahams, while complying with Michael Pollan's rule of not coloring milk, is probably made from Midwestern wheat and corn in a factory somewhere in the Midwest. Our toast might be easier to stalk. Some Aunt Millie's bread is made at Perfection Bakery in Fort Wayne. We'll just take an incomplete and pretend that it was from there.
And yes, our other meals were mass market chain fast food. If its good enough for Amish...
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