Journey From Minnesota West to St Francis SD - Atlatl Hunting Anyone?

Scott Tower, in front, welcomed Jeff and I to the Traverse de Sioux Treaty site in St Peter, along with a lot of 6 legged biting relatives...the insect nation! Here is the natural prairie on the way to the Minnesota River. Scott welcomed us to his home for sandwiches and lemonade on N Mankato on Monday. Thanks Scott for a great beginning on our journey west. Fun to chat with Scott and his daughter about probiotics and gut health too!

Jeff Thurston at the Jeffers Petroglyphs welcoming sign in Dakota/Lakota.

Jeff learning to propel the darts at a buffalo some distance out with instruction by Atlatl Paula who is a teacher at the historic site. Thanks Paula!

Here is an explanation of how to use the Atlatl on the walk to the petroglyphs.

And here is the documentation that this tall guy in blue actually hit the buffalo with the atlatl assisted dart! Paula mentioned that around 12,000 years ago, this tool allowed humans, we 2 leggeds to be an upper part of the food chain. Wonder how long that will last? :-)

Leonard Hamlet Cowles - First lawyer Delaware CO OH b Jan 16, 1784 Southington CT

While at the Hollow Horn Bear sundance, I met a woman, Karen Poremski, who teaches at Ohio Wesleyan in Delaware OH, the same college my mom worked at for room and board as an assistant to the Dean of Woman during the Great Depression. So I found some of the connections again that my family has to this area. This is one of the oldest photos I found in the collection of my grandparents, Harry and Inez Glessner's possessions. My mom, Peg Glessner Weaver (1910 - 2007) reviewed the family archives with me over the last 20 years of her life as she was writing and sharing stories of her life adventures. . This looks like a legal book. According to my research, Leonard Hamlet Cowles married Nancy "Lucy" Bixby b Dec 4 1788 Washington MA, d Aug 21, 1829 in Delaware OH, on May 27, 1816. Her father, Moses was the founder of Delaware OH is 1809 after founding the Berkshire Settlement on Little Walnut Creek in 1801. The story has it, he accumulated a lot of warrants for land in Indian Country at inns he ran in WashingtonMass and the Lenox Mass. Having been a a member of the Colony Militia in 1775-77 he had a lot of connections to revolutionary times military who likewise received warrants to gather a group to go west into Ohio. I remember going to Delaware in May of 2005 and being acknowledged as a "Delaware County Pioneer" for having completed the research documenting,

Leonard Hamlet Cowles, b 16 Jan 1784 Southington CT, was the first attorney in Delaware Co OH arrived in Delaware in the new state of Ohio, in 1804, Moses Byxbe (also Bixby) in 1805. Leonard Cowles married Nancy Bixby, Moses' daughter in May of 1816 in Deleware and their duaghter, Georgiana Cowles was born on Feb 18, 1820. I visited the Oak Grove Cemetery there as well and found the Bixby and Cowles plots. Leonard Hamlet Cowles attended Yale College Law School and was a classmate of John C Calhoun of S Carolina. He was also a banking partner with Moses Bixby as a cashier and a member in 1822 of the 21st and 22nd Ohio General Assembly. His daughter Georgiana Cowles, b Feb 18, 1820 Delaware OH, d Sept 30 1907 Findlay OH, married Lewis Glessner, Sept April 8, 1838 in Delaware. Lewis, my greatgrandfather, was a farmer in Delaware CO in 1850 and sold his land in 1860 before purchasing the Hancock Co Courier in Findlay in 1861.

Phoenix - Prescott - Jerome on the way to Sedona - Lessons in Elevation

Chase, Vicki Armstrong's 11 yr old grandson from Oklahoma, and I, left for a day trip to Sedona my last day in AZ, last Wednesday. We took the route NW out of the Valley to Wickenburg then up the Weaver Mountains and Tower Mountains finally cooling off in Prescott. Here we are at the Sacred Bean I think is is called where Chase is having his palms read by a woman named Bauer who is originally from Michigan. What a nice town, with a court house square and some infamous wild west labels like "Whiskey Row". Kinda like Northfield MN, and the Jesse James Days, the marketing value of history and living into it today.

We stopped on our way to Jerome and old mining town at this overlook. Chase took this photo of me.

Here is Chase at the same location.

When we got to the mountain side town of Jerome, Chase was attracted to the Magic Store. He mentioned he liked fog so the open proceeded to demonstrate a variety of tricks, flying monkeys and all.

Here is the front of the store.

And Deborah's car and Chase with the view to the valley floor from downtown Jerome :-)

Canyon de Chelly - Connections to Dine' bike'yah

When Deborah and I were sharing under the cottonwoods at the Thunderbird about how important it was to get back to Phoenix and the Valley for the completion of her Landmark Advanced Course, we decided to visit the Visitors Center and see how much of the Canyon we could see from above. Here we were first greeted by a younger Henry man, dressed in the garb of a National Park employee whom I asked about the Henry that is the silver smith. Soon Gary Henry appeared who shared his story about Ansel Adams and photos of his Mom and sister in a book a friend got in the UK. Here Deborah, Gary and I chatted about his work as we negotiated a purchase. I felt really grounded here watching the film, Canyon Voices that is shown to all visitors. Grateful I got a copy of the 21 minute DVD to share with friends and family back home.

Gary Henry and me outside of the visitors center. The beautiful silver and turquoise art for wearing, reminds me of the work that the Glessner grandparents picked up for Peg along the Santa Fe. When I wear it, I feel connected to my ancestors and this wonderful land and people. Thanks to Susan Weaver for giving me a copy of The Navajo Nation, a visitors guide by Patrick and Joan Lavin 2008 that I read prior to this trip. It has a great overview of culture, history and some of the language. Ya' a't e'e'h (hello) A he' hee' (thank you) were the only ones I tried. It is a tonal language like Mandarin Chinese, both beautiful to listen to and I am aware that I am an early learner.

Younger Dine' vendor with his rock painting art on the south rim of the canyon. He was telling some of the stories of his people here.

Overlook for the White House where visitors can be seen on a tour below.

More of a close up view. Some of the trees were introduced non native species that are now being cut back according to the dad I was talking to.

Here a Dine' father was supporting his son to walk the 1 1/2 mile trail to take water to his grandma who lives below. He pointed out her dwelling and the sheep. Fun to think about returning in cooler weather and perhaps camping in the area.

Painted Desert to Canyon de Chelly AZ

Here is one of the stops explaining the geology of the Painted Desert on the road in the Petrified Forest National Park.

The colors of the desert changed all along the route as we travelled north.

Here is the adobe looking overview where once the Fred Harvey crew served 35 cent beers overlooking the Painted Desert. The flag was flying half mast today as we learned Senator Byrd had just passed. This perhaps was one of the sites the Santa Fe and Fred Harvey concessions visited during the era of the Indian Detours.

Inside the building is some if the Hopi art that still adorns the walls. Sadly the National Park Service does not serve any food these days.

Here is a photo of how the building was built first from the petrified trees and later, according to the story in the Park literature, the WPA or CCC groups of the 1930's covered the original work to look like standard local adobe. This is some of the exposed work on the side that faces west down below.

After a quick stop at the Hubbell Trading Post we stopped at the Thunderbird Lodge inside Canyon de Chelly National Park where we spent the night. Here, below the cottonwood trees in a refreshing morning breezed we shared coffee and stories with folks who were lining up to take the tours into the canyon. I chatted with the Dine' guides about the best ways to make the trip back to Phoenix for our Tuesday night commitment at Landmark Education and here we decided to drive the south rim and take a scenic drive through the reservation to Holbrook and then to Flagstaff on our way back to the Valley.

La Posada in Winslow to Painted Desert AZ

Deborah and I drove directly through the night after the Landmark Advanced Course directly to Winslow. Here is how the gate facing old Route 66 to the south appeared when I awoke Monday morning.

Here is the original front door to the La Posada when most folks came from the Santa Fe passenger service from the south. This Mary Coulter architectural gem as been nicely restored and Paul a linguistics educator from Pittsburgh PA who was raised in the area and a young man from eastern PA whose dad and granddad have been in the railroading business shared stories with me prior to having my wonderful breakfast.

Ah the great food and coffee served in the Turquoise Room at the La Posada by the modern equivalent of the Harvey Girls. Wonderful ambiance and service. Remindful of the "good old days" of the Fred Harvey system and the Santa Fe of the early 20th Century.

Here is the garden by the west wing of La Posada that was a great oasis surrounded by hollyhocks.

While walking through the Turquoise Room I met George Welsh and his mom, Verna, here with her walker pictured with Deborah Aurianivar my friend who lives in Phoenix. Verna was one of the original Harvery Girls who moved from rural Kansas to work here in 1939. She met her husband here and stayed in Winslow. Grateful for the living history we continue to co-create.

Here I am living out the lyrics of the Eagles "Standing on a Corner in Winslow Arizona" with this attractive musician in bronze with the woman in the pickup watching. interesting this is now an important tourist attraction from the famous 70's music.

We then drove east to the south entrance of the Petrified Forest National Park. Here are some of the big tree fossils next to the visitors center. I learned that the Petrified forest is a sub part of the Painted Desert which covered a wide cresent in the desert here. My grandparents and their trips on the Santa Fe and visits to Phoenix planted the seeds for my curiosity.