Quote from: D'Amalie on May 22, 2025, 10:23:04 AMI'm in love with the castles that aren't ruins!  Many more of them in Germany.

Quite a few in the UK, too.

I

Quote from: Sephirah on May 22, 2025, 05:57:22 PMQuite a few in the UK, too.

used to visit Rochester castle often as a child when I lived there. It was a 25 or so minute bus ride from what I can remember.

Quote from: ChrissyRyan on May 22, 2025, 05:36:04 PMLori,

Why are the best places for visitors to go see and experience in South Dakota?
Including hiking venues is fine of course.


Chrissy

Most people come here to see Mount Rushmore. It is impressive, but I encourage people to see Mt. Rushmore, then go see Crazy Horse Mountain. The Crazy Horse Memorial dwarfs Mt. Rushmore by a lot. They have a nice video to watch that documents the history of the memorial that has been under construction by the same family for decades, and still is not finished.

To get an idea of the size, the memorial features Crazy Horse sitting on horseback with his finger pointing. You can fit the entire Mount Rushmore carving in the head of Crazy Horse. The Crazy Horse Memorial is entirely funded by donations. No taxpayer money is used.

For hiking, biking, and horseback riding, the Mickelson Trail is a local favorite. It is a 109-mile greenway through the Black Hills of South Dakota, converted from a former rail line. The trail features over 100 bridges and four tunnels. Since it is a former rail line, the bridges are the original wooden trestles that have had the gaps filled in, and the inclines and declines of the path are gentle enough for all to enjoy.

In the northern Hills is Deadwood, which still looks like a scene from the wild west. The town hosts saloons and casinos. Some of the old saloons still have the original bars in them, dating back to the 1800s. Many have bullet holes in them from the days of the Wild West. Mount Moriah Cemetery on Mount Moriah in Deadwood is the burial place of Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane, Seth Bullock, and other notable figures of the Wild West.

Also in the north is the town of Lead (pronounced Leed), which has the old Homestake Gold Mine. The Homestake Mine was over 8,000 feet deep (2,438 m) and was one of the top gold producers in the U.S. It was the largest and deepest gold mine in the Western Hemisphere. The mine produced more than forty million troy ounces (43,900,000 oz; 1,240,000 kg) of gold during its lifetime. This is about 2,500 cubic feet (71 m3) or a volume of gold roughly equal to 18,677 US gallons. The mine closed in 2002 and is now the home of the  Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory (DUSEL).

Back in the 1960s, experiments were done in the depths of the mine to study solar neutrinos. In 2007, after the mine was closed, the experiments continued, and more research is being done there today. Tours are available. If you are claustrophobic, you can see the large pit of the Homestake Mine across the road from the Mining Museum (in Lead).

At the south end of the Black Hills is the town of Hot Springs. It got its name from the warm mineral springs that bubble up from the ground in the area. I think there are seven, but most are on private property. There is one down by a riverwalk along Fall River. (The river doesn't freeze in winter due to all the hot water.) There is another that was in a restaurant, but I don't recall the name.

Evan's Plunge and Moccassin Springs are available to visit. Evan's Plunge has a long history of people soaking in the healing mineral baths from the springs. The VA hospital and Old Soldiers Home up on the hill contracted with Evan's Plunge to bring veterans down for a nice soak in the mineral baths as part of their hydrotherapy programs.

The downtown area of Hot Springs has interesting architecture. All of the old buildings were constructed using blocks of stone from the local red limestone rocks. The roadway was very narrow and made a 90-degree turn, so the city decided to widen the roadway. Sadly, some of those great buildings were sacrificed for the construction.

There are many smaller attractions around in the various towns. At Hill City, you can tour a gold mine and pan for gold. They have a Presidential Wax Museum. The 1880 Train is a restored steam locomotive that offers rides along some of the narrow-gauge railway lines up in the Black Hills.

If you just want a fun drive, start at Hot Springs and go north on Highway 385 to Spearfish. It is a long, slow drive, but the scenery is beautiful. Not for winter driving. The city of Spearfish got its name from the creek. When the settlers first arrived here, Spearfish Creek was so full of trout that the local natives used spears for fishing. It isn't like that now, with low water levels due to drought. But places along the creek are famous for fly fishing.

Quote from: Sephirah on May 22, 2025, 05:53:16 PMThat was the insignia on SS uniforms, back in WW2.

I suspected that was true of the soldier, and possibly the headstones. But they looked different. These were skulls with bat wings outstretched sticking out of the sides. The really freaky thing was that there were two, one on each side of the entrance to the church. The top of the skull had a depression as though it was used as a holy water stoup. My thought was, "What kind of church is this?" 

I haven't been able to find a picture of one like it. < insert Twilight Zone theme song >

But while searching, I found something even more creepy.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedlec_Ossuary

Quote from: Lori Dee on May 22, 2025, 06:38:18 PMI suspected that was true of the soldier, and possibly the headstones. But they looked different. These were skulls with bat wings outstretched sticking out of the sides. The really freaky thing was that there were two, one on each side of the entrance to the church. The top of the skull had a depression as though it was used as a holy water stoup. My thought was, "What kind of church is this?" 

I haven't been able to find a picture of one like it. < insert Twilight Zone theme song >

But while searching, I found something even more creepy.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedlec_Ossuary

Something like this?

Quote from: Lori Dee on May 22, 2025, 06:23:01 PMMost people come here to see Mount Rushmore. It is impressive, but I encourage people to see Mt. Rushmore, then go see Crazy Horse Mountain. The Crazy Horse Memorial dwarfs Mt. Rushmore by a lot. They have a nice video to watch that documents the history of the memorial that has been under construction by the same family for decades, and still is not finished.

To get an idea of the size, the memorial features Crazy Horse sitting on horseback with his finger pointing. You can fit the entire Mount Rushmore carving in the head of Crazy Horse. The Crazy Horse Memorial is entirely funded by donations. No taxpayer money is used.

For hiking, biking, and horseback riding, the Mickelson Trail is a local favorite. It is a 109-mile greenway through the Black Hills of South Dakota, converted from a former rail line. The trail features over 100 bridges and four tunnels. Since it is a former rail line, the bridges are the original wooden trestles that have had the gaps filled in, and the inclines and declines of the path are gentle enough for all to enjoy.

In the northern Hills is Deadwood, which still looks like a scene from the wild west. The town hosts saloons and casinos. Some of the old saloons still have the original bars in them, dating back to the 1800s. Many have bullet holes in them from the days of the Wild West. Mount Moriah Cemetery on Mount Moriah in Deadwood is the burial place of Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane, Seth Bullock, and other notable figures of the Wild West.

Also in the north is the town of Lead (pronounced Leed), which has the old Homestake Gold Mine. The Homestake Mine was over 8,000 feet deep (2,438 m) and was one of the top gold producers in the U.S. It was the largest and deepest gold mine in the Western Hemisphere. The mine produced more than forty million troy ounces (43,900,000 oz; 1,240,000 kg) of gold during its lifetime. This is about 2,500 cubic feet (71 m3) or a volume of gold roughly equal to 18,677 US gallons. The mine closed in 2002 and is now the home of the  Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory (DUSEL).

Back in the 1960s, experiments were done in the depths of the mine to study solar neutrinos. In 2007, after the mine was closed, the experiments continued, and more research is being done there today. Tours are available. If you are claustrophobic, you can see the large pit of the Homestake Mine across the road from the Mining Museum (in Lead).

At the south end of the Black Hills is the town of Hot Springs. It got its name from the warm mineral springs that bubble up from the ground in the area. I think there are seven, but most are on private property. There is one down by a riverwalk along Fall River. (The river doesn't freeze in winter due to all the hot water.) There is another that was in a restaurant, but I don't recall the name.

Evan's Plunge and Moccassin Springs are available to visit. Evan's Plunge has a long history of people soaking in the healing mineral baths from the springs. The VA hospital and Old Soldiers Home up on the hill contracted with Evan's Plunge to bring veterans down for a nice soak in the mineral baths as part of their hydrotherapy programs.

The downtown area of Hot Springs has interesting architecture. All of the old buildings were constructed using blocks of stone from the local red limestone rocks. The roadway was very narrow and made a 90-degree turn, so the city decided to widen the roadway. Sadly, some of those great buildings were sacrificed for the construction.

There are many smaller attractions around in the various towns. At Hill City, you can tour a gold mine and pan for gold. They have a Presidential Wax Museum. The 1880 Train is a restored steam locomotive that offers rides along some of the narrow-gauge railway lines up in the Black Hills.

If you just want a fun drive, start at Hot Springs and go north on Highway 385 to Spearfish. It is a long, slow drive, but the scenery is beautiful. Not for winter driving. The city of Spearfish got its name from the creek. When the settlers first arrived here, Spearfish Creek was so full of trout that the local natives used spears for fishing. It isn't like that now, with low water levels due to drought. But places along the creek are famous for fly fishing.

Very interesting!  Thank you for writing all of that out.

Chrissy

I think... I'd prefer to just go have a coffee with my favourite rockhound, over all that stuff. You can't beat someone for whom all of it is in their blood.

Quote from: Sephirah on May 22, 2025, 07:10:12 PM

Something like this?

Very similar, except the wings are attached to the sides of the skull. I was just searching and I found the church. It is St. Peter's Abbey in Salzburg, Austria. That makes sense because I spent many, many weekends exploring that city. I loved it there.

There are plenty of photos of the Abbey cemetery, but not of the interior of the catacombs. What photos I found of the graves and the church do not show the entry and are all modern images. I was there in the 70s and 80s, so maybe things have changed.

Another clue is that the description of St. Margaret's Chapel (in the middle of the cemetery) says it was "late Gothic". So maybe it was a time-period thing. I would think that someone besides me would have taken a picture of one.

Quote from: Lori Dee on May 22, 2025, 08:00:16 PMVery similar, except the wings are attached to the sides of the skull. I was just searching and I found the church. It is St. Peter's Abbey in Salzburg, Austria. That makes sense because I spent many, many weekends exploring that city. I loved it there.

There are plenty of photos of the Abbey cemetery, but not of the interior of the catacombs. What photos I found of the graves and the church do not show the entry and are all modern images. I was there in the 70s and 80s, so maybe things have changed.

Another clue is that the description of St. Margaret's Chapel (in the middle of the cemetery) says it was "late Gothic". So maybe it was a time-period thing. I would think that someone besides me would have taken a picture of one.

Gothic is all about skulls and bats, lol. Its kind of the style. Very much my jam. Not in the genocidal way, you understand...

Quote from: Sephirah on May 22, 2025, 05:53:16 PMThat was the insignia on SS uniforms, back in WW2.

Before the Nazis, it was a symbol of peace, but they appropriated it. From memory the Jains and Hindus have used it for centuries in India? On graves prior to the rise of the fascists in the 1930s in Europe, it has a completely different meaning to the awful one it has now.

Quote from: TanyaG on May 23, 2025, 02:57:32 AMBefore the Nazis, it was a symbol of peace, but they appropriated it. From memory the Jains and Hindus have used it for centuries in India? On graves prior to the rise of the fascists in the 1930s in Europe, it has a completely different meaning to the awful one it has now.

What was missing in my search terms was the word "Gothic". Although no specific images of them in churches and cemeteries, the images are closer to what I saw. I read that for that period, the symbol represented the ultimate threat of death, a "memorandum mori"

Usually, I spend Memorial Day by visiting the Black Hills National Cemetery. This year it is raining, so I won't make the pilgrimage.

I took some photos last year if you want to see them. They are linked in this post:
https://www.susans.org/index.php/topic,247442.msg2270752.html#msg2270752

When I lived back east I visited the Vietnam Memorial "The Wall" every year on Memorial or Veterans Day.
Now I go here in northern Utah:

https://www.mylocalutah.com/historical-places/vietnam-veterans-memorial-in-layton/

Massive respect to both of you. It's all too easy to forget, more now than ever. But we owe it to those who gave literally everything, to remember. And to remember what their sacrifice was for.

Quote from: D'Amalie on May 30, 2025, 08:32:36 AM"The Wall"

I was fortunate enough to visit 'The Wall' once in DC and the traveling 'Wall' a few times. Somewhere on the downward slope to the west is the name 'Gregory Sloat'. Greg gave me his old ID when he received his 'new' pre-deployment ID. I was 19, he was 21. I bought many drinks with Greg's ID. Sometimes, I bought a drink for him. I owed him that much. And still do.

It has rained 11 out of the past 14 days. Ugh.

Locals say, "Well, with all the drought we have had, we need the moisture."

They said the same thing almost 5,000 years ago. Noah built the ark anyway.

Does anyone know where I can find some gopherwood? 

@Lori Dee
Dear Lori:  you are going to need more than just "some" gopher wood....
....    some scholars estimate:
...approximately 250,000 boards of an average length of 10 feet each.

    2.5 million board feet !!!!

Quote from: Lori Dee on June 02, 2025, 06:39:55 PMIt has rained 11 out of the past 14 days. Ugh.

Locals say, "Well, with all the drought we have had, we need the moisture."

They said the same thing almost 5,000 years ago. Noah built the ark anyway.

Does anyone know where I can find some gopherwood? 

Quote from: Northern Star Girl on June 02, 2025, 06:46:19 PMapproximately 250,000 boards of an average length of 10 feet each.

    2.5 million board feet !!!!

I am going to need a bigger saw. 

Hi Lori and All

Quote from: Lori Dee on June 02, 2025, 06:39:55 PMIt has rained 11 out of the past 14 days. Ugh.

Yeah it's been raining downunder here for the past week.  It must me all the rain up there dripping down my way.  Can you please institute some pluming so that does not happen.

Pretty Please?

Hugs
Sarah B
@Lori

Quote from: Sarah B on June 02, 2025, 07:19:31 PMHi Lori and All

Yeah it's been raining downunder here for the past week.  It must me all the rain up there dripping down my way.  Can you please institute some pluming so that does not happen.

Pretty Please?

Hugs
Sarah B
@Lori

I was hoping that we would get a view of the Northern Lights this weekend. Instead, we got lightning, rain, and clouds.

Sorry about the drips, Sis.