Friday, November 4, 2016

Henge Crazy - p2

I'm enjoying this part of the trip, but after not riding for two days I'm starting to feel a little......unhenged...

Back at our hotel Bev and I spend a quiet evening;  she will fly home in the morning and I will ride south for more henges. 

...and here is one, Bamahenge.
Bamahenge is a full size and properly oriented to the sun replica.
Created by Mark Cline and funded by George Barber it is made of fiberglass that looks amazingly real even up close.


Another destination to check off the list is the Natchez Trace Parkway. The Parkway is over 400 miles long, I'm able to ride about 150 miles of it....and loved every second!
I have a strong feeling I'll be back on this road in a year or so..

The next day is Sunday and as I ride past this small church I impulsively hang a U-ey and ride into the parking area. It only takes me a minute to realize I'm going to stick out like a sore thumb, and I am the only sore thumb there. But I don't care and the people who gave me a warm welcome obviously didn't care either.
I got to hear a beautiful choir and enjoy a wonderful spirit with the rest of the Mt Zion Baptist congregation.
Those couple of hours were one of the highlights of my trip. 

Then into Texas where I visit the Civil War POW camp that I believe my great-grandfather was held at, and where he escaped from.
One of the placards states that there were very few successful escapes from Camp Ford, making his even more impressive.


An example of the tiny little huts some of the prisoners lived in.

I then make my way to Kerrville, Texas to see the "Empty Cross".
Created by artist Max Greiner Jr. the cross is 40' across and over 70' tall. It was placed in 2010.




Thousands of people have written prayers on these rocks and left them in a designated area surrounding the Cross.

Then to Ingram, Texas....

....to see Stonehenge II
Made of plaster and mesh frame, it is 90% as wide and 60% as high as the original Stonehenge it is not oriented to the sun. The brainchild of Al Sheppard and friend Doug Hill, Stonehenge II was going to be destroyed in 2010, but the Hill Country Arts Foundation of Ingram, Texas rallied to have it moved 8 miles to the Arts Foundation campus.

Mr. Easter head sports an afro...


The next morning I arrive at the last henge of this trip, 
The University of Texas Permian Basin Stonehenge.
This henge is astronomically configured and the same width but 14% shorter than the original.
The limestone slabs weigh up to 10 tons each.



That is it for the henges on this trip.

Google map said the shortest way home from Montgomery, Alabama is 1,911 miles, I take the Biker's Shortcut and I'm able to do it in 2,527 miles....



And true to form, once my horse points its nose toward the barn it is hard to rein 'er in... The last three days I bust out the miles so I can get home to my own bed.
A 4,900 mile awesome journey.

I need to find some more henges.....

3 comments:

Trobairitz said...

Wow, that is a lot of miles. You must have a comfy seat on the bike, or did you do that on stock?

I never realized there were so many henge tributes in the States. It looks like you had a great trip with great weather too.

Ken said...

Tro...I left out the bad weather part. I had a couple days of rain, but other than that it was good. The seat is stock and ......well.... it could have been better, but then it could have been worse too! :)
Thanks for reading!

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