Road Trip: Another Wedding and Hawk Mountain

Two out of town weddings in three weeks! At least Chris and Mamta's wedding was closer to home, just west of Allentown, Pennsylvania, not all the way across the Keystone State and into Ohio. Last saturday morning, before the afternoon's outdoor ceremony, I had the opportunity to visit, along with the groom and several other wedding guests, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, an international center for raptor conservation. Since it seems that I have been writing a lot of “shore” and “religion” posts lately; my visit to Hawk Mountain offers me the opportunity to write a “summit” post.

Hawk Mountain was founded in 1934 but I first heard about it around ten years ago from Elaine, the mother of a young man, Doug, which either worked or volunteered there, I now do not remember which. I later heard more about Hawk Mountain and the annual migration count from Doug himself. Ever since then I have longed to visit Hawk Mountain. Last Saturday, thanks to Mamta, Chris and their wedding, my longing was fulfilled.

The Sanctuary was only a few miles from the site of the wedding. Saturday morning several people associated with the wedding boarded a school bus which took us to the site. Once there we hiked the well maintained Lookout Trail first to the South Lookout and then to the North Lookout. The top photo was taken of wedding party (that is groom Chris, standing highest) and other visitors standing atop the North Lookout.

I had not been in the preserve long before it reminded me of what I call a “Western Pennsylvania Wilderness Fragrance” even though we were in eastern, not western Pennsylvania. The aroma is probably an alchemical combination of mountain laurel, cool conglomerate quartzite rock, damp earth, and various decaying organic matter warmed by the sun. If that scent could be bottled I would buy it! It took me back decades to numerous hikes and other wilderness outings in Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands and along the Highland’s Chestnut Ridge.

In addition to the familiar smell I saw lots and lots of mountain laurel, the state flower of Pennsylvania. I also saw, and tasted, teaberry, for the first time in nearly a year. I felt rock under my feet and sun on my face. While I did not see many raptors I still enjoyed the view and the brief time we could spend at Hawk Mountain. I wish we could have stayed longer, but alas, there was a wedding waiting. The bottom photo to the right is of Mamta and Chris, and other wedding guests, at the post wedding reception.

Road Trip

For only the first or second time since my first blog post on January 5, 2009, I have gone a week without posting anything. The reason is that I have been on vacation, a vacation that included a road trip (this post) and two days of continuing education (future post).

A week ago Vicki and I packed up the car and, with Myrrhlyn in a travel kennel in the car, headed out of the city. We were destined for central Ohio where Vicki was to co-officiate at a wedding for a couple of our former students.

It was Myrrhlyn’s first road trip. He was a great traveler, throwing up only once! He seemed not to mind riding in his travel kennel and was occasionally invited out of the kennel to sit on the lap of the person in the passenger seat (photo top right).

I had forgotten that Pennsylvania is over three hundred miles from east to west, that is if one drives on Interstate 80. I-80 has at least one redeeming attribute. It is not the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Nine hours and five hundred miles later we pulled into Loudonville, Ohio, population slightly over 3,000 and our home for the next two days. Loudonville impressed me as a quintessential American small town with a slight artsy-crafty flavor. Too many closed business and boarded up buildings, however, betrayed the current recession and the fiscal plight of small town America. Loudonville, located near the Mohican River, also happens to be the canoe capital of Ohio, and it was frustrating to be there without our kayaks or the time to enjoy the river.

Bride Megan and Groom Eric (photo middle right) are both recent graduates of Davis and Elkins College, where Vicki served as Chaplain for ten years and I taught religion and philosophy as adjunct faculty her last five years at D&E. Attending Eric’s and Meghan’s wedding was like attending a small college reunion not of classmates but former students. At least four of my former students were in attendance. Even more former students Vicki knew were in attendance.

Vicki co-officiated with Chris, Meghan’s Presbyterian Pastor since the day he baptized her as an infant. The bride’s father is, by the way, the Clerk of Session of Meghan’s home Church where Chris is still Pastor. Eric and his family are also Presbyterian.

On the way home we detoured through Cleveland in order to visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Actually, it would be more correct to say that we detoured through Cleveland in order to visit the Bruce Springsteen Exhibit (photo bottom right) at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Unfortunately, driving home across Pennsylvania took just as long driving west to east as it did east to west. The Keystone State had not shrunk any during the two days we were in Ohio.

So, the above is partly while I have been silent for nearly a week. The other reason, two days of continuing education, will the subject of a future post.