The Wilderness Road

I drove to the Cumberland Gap today.  If you’re not sure what that is, Google Daniel Boone.  He was not the first white man to pass through the gap, but he was one of the first, and helped lead other Americans out into Kentucky and Tennessee.  It is very pretty up there, they have moved the road into a tunnel and restored much of the gap to what it was like (more or less) when Daniel Boone led settlers through it.

I am standing on Pinnacle peak, which is in Virginia, the pic on the left is Tennessee, and the pic on the left, has Tennessee to the left, and Kentucky to the right.  The hill in the middle is where the three states come together.  You can hike to it, but I didn’t do it this time.  Like I said, gorgeous views from up here.

I then drove to Murfreesboro, crossing into the Central Time Zone as I did so.  I visited the Stones River National Battlefield.  Something I have been asked, and what some of you may wonder, is how I explore the battlefields.  At Vicksburg, I hired a guide.  While this was interesting, it was difficult to really have a one-on-one discussion at times, while still learning from them.  Not something I’m good at.  At a few of the parks, I have bought a CD guided tour that I could just put in my CD player and have it guide me around.  This was a good way to do it, because you could pause it, stop and spend time at different sites when you felt the need, and if you were out of time, or needed to move on, you could stop it at anytime.  It also cost less than the bus tours, or hiring a guide.  Some of the places had a tour that was free that would take groups around all or part of the park, either on a walking tour, or with everyone driving to the different stops.  This is probably my favorite alternative, because it got others involved, I had a guide, and I could learn from not just the guide, but also the others on the tour.

A few pictures of the Union cemetery.  Most of the graves are from the Civil War, some are from later wars.  The tall headstones are where the soldier was identified, the short ones are unknown.  Yes, the third one is me by one of the monuments in the cemetery.  I know I haven’t had any pictures of me so far on here, so here you go.  Please, if you have any questions about anything I write, ask me, and I’ll try to answer.  Happy Road-Tripping!