The Incident on Elk Horn Road

Saddle and Bag Jigsaw Puzzle

So, why did it take me four hours to get my car inspected today??? Stay Tuned.

Here's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

We have three vehicles that need to be inpected this week; the stickers on two of them have actually already expired (dear me!) It's a pleasant jaunt through the bucolic Carroll County countryside to get to my favorite state inspection garage out at Pipers Gap, so me thinks to myself: I should take my own advice to make more pictures, then I tossed the camera bag into the car, just in case I get inspired. It's a glorious Indian Summer day as the last wisps of morning mist flee from the relentless sun. I drove past a herd of Holsteins knotted together in the corner of a pasture, and something about the jumble of black and white excited me. I turned around twice, pulled my car ever so carefully off the road on a nice level place, then eased forward right into a hidden hole! (Notice the first slide in the show. What you can't see in the picture is the right front bumper sitting on the ground and the left rear tire completely suspended in the air! Not to worry, though; AAA is just a phone call away; but I'll make the call after I get a few shots.


Half an hour later, I get back in the car to call the tow truck, but alas; I have left the cell phone at home! (nothing unusual; it's not a habit that I have been able to make, yet.) I'm still not ruffled. I decide to walk back to Gary's garage to ask him for a tow. I might as well take the camera, too, since I might see something photo-worthy. Another hour later, I have only walked about a 1/2 mile, when Gary comes by. "Ah saw yer caurr 'side 'o de rode; you OK? I could sing praises of my mechanic 'til the cows come home. For now, suffice it to say, that I would have to think LONG and HARD about ever leaving this place because we are so dependant on him to maintain our old vehicles lifestyle. (Side-note: Twice this week, Dave has mentioned not sinking any more money into the "White Chariot of Funness," our beloved '84 Corolla . . . GASP!!)

Gary went to get his chain, I took more pictures until he got back, then he had me properly back on the road, lickedy-split. I managed to drive the rest of the way to Felts Brothers without any more stopping, but it was hard because I saw two woolie worms crossing the road; the first that I've seen this fall; and a certain affirmation that fall is, indeed, here. Why do woolie worms like to cross roads??

When I arrived, the doors were all shut, but the lady in the store assures me that he has just gone to lunch and will be back in about an hour. It's too far to go back home and return, so what else to do, but . . . take more pictures!! Now, I have a favorite place to shoot just down the mountain from there. It's a forest of trees that look like straight, tall soldiers, marching right down the mountainside. I've known about this sport for decades, and I have a shot in my mind's eye that's waiting for the perfect moment. It has to be a crisp, clear winter morning, with fresh snowfall, at least 5 or 6 inches to cover the forest floor. The trees are going to be black against the sun and their shadows are going to thrust straight towards me across the blanket of snow. I'm going to shoot at F:16, and the sun will look like a giant diamond dangling in the treetops. Alas, the magic shot still eludes me because I don't have a 4-wheel drive vehicle to get down the steep, curvy road, and venturing out of my cozy house early on a January morning is almost unthinkable. But one day, like a patient, persistant fisherman, I'll clip another prize-winner on my stringer.

I DID get the car inspected, after all (even took a couple of shots at the garage) and I will post those up tomorrow, along with the tree shots. Without further ado . . . . here is the slideshow of things to see on Elkhorn Road when you're stuck in a hole. Relax, and I hope you enjoy the journey as much as I did!
PS: Did you notice the first blush of color in the leaves?

The cows that started it all:


Just a couple to enjoy right now in case you don't have time for the slideshow: