Southern Indiana and the Lincoln Boyhood Home

On our way to the McCarty Reunion, we decided to first ride to the Abe Lincoln Boyhood Home.
So off to the southeast we cycled.

Coal Mine in Southern Indiana

Oil Well in Southern Indiana

We chuckled as we saw the name “Krieg” (war) on many of the tombstones in this cemetery.

Wheatfields were a common sight.

Colorful Bill Moore recommended a good place to eat.

Combination Restaurant and General Store in Selvin Indiana

Chris checks out the books in the restaurant.

This stove once heated the restaurant in the winter.

These ladies are probably the best cooks in Selvin.

Equipment for Strip Mine in Southern Indiana

Strip Mine in Southern Indiana

Time to sleep but no campground insight!

We pitched our tent next to the roadside.

Arriving in the city where Abraham Lincoln lived.

Impressive Park Sign with Lincoln as a Man and a Boy

The Lincoln cabin depicts where Abe lived from 7 to 21 years of age. The original cabin is in an excavation site near here.

Stephanie, studying Japanese at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, explained to us how Lincoln lived.

Morgan, a delightful Purdue University student, introduced elementary school students to pioneer life.

Bob explains how animal furs were used for clothing.

Bob asked the kids which hide belonged to which animal.

Your turn. I only got the Wolf and Fox right.

Home of Abe Lincoln (reconstructed)

Chris Wielding a Pioneer Tool Like a Baseball Bat

Morgan, Chris and Stephanie at the Lincoln Home

Chris Arriving in Santa Claus Indiana
Volunteers answer letters from Kids sent to Santa!

The Christmas Store in Santa Claus

Ferdinand State Park — A Great Place to Sleep

Brush your teeth, Don.

The Longest Day of Our Journey

Dad owned property on this beautiful lake 25 years ago.

Dad loved to fish here.

High in the Indiana hills we came upon this sawmill and learned how logs are cut into boards.

We stopped here at the 7 Hens Farm because I was delighted to see how this old bicycle had been retired.

Chris was always fascinated by horses along our cycling path.

The friendly farmers, John, James and Pam Jones, came out to talk with us for a spell and generously brought us bananas and several bottles of water which we badly needed after this grueling day of climbing hills. They explained that they started with - you guessed it – seven hens – thus the name:  Seven Hens Farm.

There is an easier way than riding a bicycle
to tackle the steep hills – click it!

The sun was setting and Spring Mill Park was still several miles ahead of us.

The area here looked identical to the
Odenwald where we live in Germany.

We finally made it to Spring Mill Park
and headed straight for the campground.

The next morning we decided to visit a cave.

The boat was built specifically to fit
through the narrow passageways.

The cold river cave only had a few formations and
we only went in about 500 yards to where the boat
could turn around.

This formation, flowstone, also had something on the sides that spelunkers call “moon milk”.

Mitchell, Indiana, is only about 4 miles away from the park, so we did our laundry there and visited the monument to Gus Grissom, an astronaut from Indiana.

We then moved into the Spring Mill Inn and then went to the McCarty Family Reunion – which we quickly learned was,
by no means, a normal family reunion.

Continue to the McCarty Family Reunion