Cruising with Bison?

When we started this adventure 14 months ago I never imagined that a bison prairie would be on our list of sights to see, but you just never know.  We rented a car last week and did the all day tourist thing in Land Between the Lakes.  LBL is a 170,000 acre National Recreation area that is located between Kentucky Lake and Barkley Lake.

There are two bison prairies where we saw two different herds.  Please remain in your vehicle!

Turkeys clearly love this place.

We came upon one of the old iron producing furnaces, that is still standing.  If you saw the last blog post, I shared a picture of some rocks sticking out of the lake. Well, this is what that furnace looked like before the lake was flooded.

If you’re interested in how it worked...here’s the gist.

We visited an 1850s working farm and museum.  I think everyone who works here truly believes the year is 1850😁

I found my new tiny house.  Needs a new roof, but there is a pile of freshly cut shakes seasoning close by. Actually, this is the blacksmith shop for the farm.  It has a small fire box with chimney in the back corner, and a huge bellows hanging from the ceiling.

This is the wood shop where one young man recently finished a chair and another was making a pipe.  Everything is built using 1850 technology. I love old tools!

We received a personal weaving lesson, and if Covid weren’t around I could have been in there weaving with her!  In fact, before Covid, buildings were open and people were encouraged to touch everything!  The farm showcases many buildings, including houses, smokehouse, barns, corn crib...etc. It was very interesting to see all of the people going about their day like they really lived and worked on this 1850 farm...cool!

Hummingbirds love this place too!

We ventured ‘off the beaten path’ during our LBL visit, and did a little off roading to find St. Stephen Catholic Church.  The church was not on our map neither were the ‘roads’ leading to it, but with a little luck, determination, and hand drawn directions from the lady at the welcome center we found it!

The church was built by German immigrants in 1900 and held services until 1945.  This is what it looked like in 2000 when a group of volunteers worked 3,800 hours to restore it to its original design and construction.

This is one of the markers in the cemetery of the church where every marker was covered with coins.  I have never seen (or maybe have never noticed) coins on headstones in other cemeteries I’ve visited, so of course, it was time for a little research.  I found that leaving coins on headstones is a military tradition started for the purpose of letting the family know that someone had visited the grave. Each coin has a different meaning. A penny indicates that the visitor was in boot camp with the deceased, and a quarter indicates the visitor was there when the person died.  Since this person died in 1910, I’m pretty sure 15 people who were in boot camp with him have not recently visited...so the jury is still out on the meaning of the coins here.  When we return to Buzzard Rock Marina I will ask the person who originally sent me in search of this church.

On our return trip we stopped at Kentucky dam to see a dam/lock from the land point of view.  This is a turbine used to produce power here at the dam, and you can clearly see the power station in the background.

With our tourist day behind us it was time to get back to boat projects.

I am getting serious about refinishing the teak on the boat.  Of course, my intention was to have it done within 3 months of retiring, but I have several excuses for missing that timeline.  The biggest reason for my delay is the weather has not been conducive. It has either been too wet, too chilly, or too windy.  Also, I have been struggling with the decision regarding which product to use.

I currently have three different products on various surfaces, and I have found serious fault with each of them! Cetol is just too finicky regarding environmental conditions.  Temperature, humidity, and wind must be perfect for several consecutive days, since you can only apply a coat every 24 hours.  Therefore, you need a lot of nice days to get 7 coats on, and if an unexpected shower arrives several hours after a coat...be prepared to sand, or settle for a finish that looks like moon craters (I know this from experience)!

Some friends suggested a product called Le Tonkinois, which is a varnish oil that does not crack, peel, or blister.   I really like this product and currently have it on the stern and bow rails.  It is easy to apply, and self levels into a smooth finish.  With much more lenient environmental requirements, you don’t need 7 consecutive ‘perfect’ days.  It has great color and shine, and is easy to repair.   However, this product is NOT very durable in harsh conditions, and needs maintenance coats re-applied every 3-4 months. So...

Currently, I’m trying a new product called Lust, which is a varnish.  My search for a durable product that only needs maintenance coats once a year, has led me here.  One of the reasons I selected this product is that multiple coats can be applied in a single day. However, I will confess that I am already frustrated, and am considering going back to Le Tonkinois.  Lust has turned out to be very difficult to apply.  It doesn’t flow well, and tacks up instantly making it impossible to get a smooth finish.  The instructions discourage thinning the product after the third coat so I’m not sure how to adjust.  The environmental conditions fall within the suggestions, but maybe it will work better if applied in cooler weather.

One thing is certain...this is the LAST time this girl is stripping this teak down to bare wood!  Don’t get me wrong...I enjoy working with wood, but my fingers and elbows are screaming at this abuse (getting old really stinks)!  I probably should have consulted with friends Ken and Barbara, who seem to be brightwork gurus, before plowing ahead with yet another ‘trial’.

Clearly, Keith has more patience with tedious projects.  He is still working on reconditioning the space under the brow on the fly bridge.  His original plan was to chip off old paint and repaint the interior, in addition to reorganizing the wiring mess that you can see in the back.  Progress has been slower than planned due to the discovery of unexpected rot, and the fact that his chipping creates dust that wreaks havoc on my varnish job...so he graciously moves on to other projects.

All of this on top of our new fishing endeavors has made for a busy week.  Our next post will feature some interesting fishing techniques popular in this part of the country.  This lifestyle offers an opportunity for constant learning...and fun!