After a few days at Top of the Rock, we headed for the lake house rental, utilizing the smaller roads for the 85’ish-mile drive. You know, the little ones wiggling their way through the countryside. Just beautiful in the spring!

Lo and behold, much to our surprise, we drove right past a ROUND barn. Who knew! The well-kept and preserved, Stuckwish Round Barn, one of just 36 in Indiana. Hey, does your state have a round barn? Ever seen one? But 36!?! Oh, these crazy folks! Ha!

Well, not to be outdone, the navigator spots, in tiny print in the road atlas (thanks, Michael!), “Covered Bridge.” Intrigued and calculating the distance at only four miles, or so… (distances not being her strongest skillset) out of the way, we went for it. After all, that’s why we’re out here – in search of the elusive, roadside “world’s largest ball of twine” and all that, right? Heck, we just saw a round barn!

Utilizing some even smaller roads, we managed to find The Medora Covered Bridge, the longest historical covered bridge in the nation. Built in 1875, it spans 431 feet between abutments plus another 16-foot weather protection extension on each end. The impressively built bridge carried local traffic across the East Fork of the White River until 1972. What’s funny is that there is an argument as to whether this one is the longest. Apparently, the claim is important when you are a covered bridge. Todd researched the argument and thinks it’s silly, so we’re sticking with this one.

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To add to the homey feel, the property includes a friendly cat, Jasper. And for entertainment, a groundhog we’ve dubbed “Prince.” (We know, not very original. But look at him!)

Now that we’ve caught up with the blog, we’re ready to get back to that relaxing-playing games-exploring thing, and oh yeah, the ever-important planning of the next destination. Vagabonds must plan…

Moving every few days doesn’t allow time for planning, and we need to think through where the coming meandering may take us. So, we reserved a house on a small lake in south-central Indiana through May but had a few days to kill before check-in.

“Top of the Rock” cabin

Boy howdy, did we find it. We met our host at “Base Camp” (the bottom of the knob), where we transferred our things to their vehicle for the ride to the top. The car stays parked below. How about that for remote?

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There’s a series of decks built into the exposed side of the rock. The view from the upper deck is incredible!

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With the view and the nature all around us, we found no need to call the hosts to provide transportation down the road, choosing instead to remain at the top and immerse ourselves in the scenery. From the song of an Eastern whip-poor-will outside the kitchen window each night, to the dozens of soaring hawks and buzzards cruising right under, in-line with, or over our decks – or heck even landing on the rail or roof with a thud! – it was just soothing. Err, except on our walks, if we stepped off the path – ticks! (gross)

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There were several paintings of horses and cowboys in the cabin and hoofprints on the trails. Susie was in seventh heaven. Ha!

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Faced with walking back down the knob – Lords knows how far that was – our lucky captain (he calls himself “fat boy”), found a window that could be opened and the needed ladder to reach it. Then the game began!

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The morning of our departure for the lake house, the buzzards stopped by one more time. Todd swears he heard them say, “I know, up close, we need some head feathers! Kind of like the captain!”

Get it? “Part two” of our tale from French Lick. Ha! Sometimes we think we’re so clever.

After two nights, we bid the splendid West Baden Springs Hotel, “à bientôt” (see you soon) and headed 45-minutes south for a stay at the “Moondance” cabin to walk trails and watch the big boat traffic on the Ohio River. The barges showed up, but so did the rain.

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April showers aren’t great for getting your steps in, unless you count dashing to the cabin across the street to do laundry.

The community supposedly gained its name in 1899 because the currents create a great deal of drift to be deposited on the bank at this bend in the river, as if “attracted by a magnet.”

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Aha! Finally. Part deux. What’s the big deal? Why return to French Lick? Well, first up, a ride on the French Lick Scenic Railway.

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We stayed in the area to see the ultra-light indoor planes. The boom was there a few days before to install plastic in the upper atrium framework so the little planes wouldn’t get stuck. These 12-inch to what seems like 2-foot- long planes are literally “light as a feather,” made of very, very thin balsa wood, super thin mylar, and a rubber band. Given the right bend of this or that, the idea is to release it and see how long it can stay afloat. Ten minutes? Sure, no problem. The bigger ones, close to thirty minutes! Some made it all the way to the top to whack the dome before slowly circling back down. Here’s a link for those interested: just released…

We spent a couple of hours watching the planes lazily drift in circles. Yeah, we’re old. But really, it was delightfully peaceful, like an aquarium… or Bob Ross…

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On an interesting side note, the hotel is the birthplace of, wait for it… tomato juice. Yes, tomato juice. What? in Indiana? Yep! We love random factoids like this.

One morning in 1917, the chef, Louis Perrin, after running out of oranges for juice, improvised with tomatoes and tried the concoction out on a group of businessmen, who loved it and spread the word. The first tomato juice canning factory was a Hoosier establishment, opened in Kokomo in 1928, and later sold to Libby Foods.

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The first thing to capture the eye in the lobby, is the ceiling mural installed in 2005, telling the tale of Pluto.

Brief version: When Pluto, god of the underworld, took the lovely Persephone away to be his bride, her mother, Demeter, the Greek goddess of earth’s fertility, was heartbroken. Missing her daughter, Demeter caused the earth to become barren (winter). When Pluto allowed Persephone to visit her mother, the land once again became warm and fertile (summer). Thus, seasons were created, according to ancient myth.

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This hotel is much larger than the nearby West Baden Springs Hotel. In addition to almost 1500 rooms, there’s a spa (of course), restaurants, shoppes, a pool, an arcade, even a small bowling alley.

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The dogwood blossoms in the garden did nothing to mask the smell of the nearby mineral spring. Whew, nothing like sulfur!

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You know what we need now, Honey? No, not mineral spring water – yuck. We need to go somewhere more “remote,” someplace with more trails and fewer facts and figures. Hang on; let’s see what we can come up with!

To get within the path of totality for the solar eclipse, we left Charleston, West Virginia at 0400 the day after the wedding, for the six-hour drive to French Lick, Indiana. (0400? Wait, it’s dark, isn’t it? Can’t we pretend this is what totality will look like and go back to bed for a bit? Nah. Come on, sleepyhead, time to get going.)

Fortunately, we hit none of the traffic delays and crowds predicted by the media, at least not in French Lick, Indiana. (Good choice.) French Lick, named so because, think buffalos licking salt near a trading post run by Frenchmen. Lots on the Buffalo Trace.

Time to explore the French Lick Resort, consisting of the historic West Baden Springs Hotel and French Lick Springs Hotel, as well as a golf course, casino, pickleball court, walking trails, and stable, among other things. The two hotels are just over a mile apart. And they used to be in serious competition! (Link just below for those who’d like more info.)

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There is so much history here that we’d never be able to cover it all. Not that you’d want us to, right? 🙂

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In 1901, The original hotel was destroyed by fire. Owner, Lee Wiley Sinclair, tried to sell what was left to French Lick Springs Hotel, but that gent declined. So, Sinclair did the unthinkable; he found a “guy,” gave him an unheard-of contract for the time, and in less than a year had built a fireproof hotel with the largest dome of the world at its center. At the time, the 8th Wonder of the World! Not exceeded until 1955 when the Charlotte Coliseum was built. The architectural marvel, with its 200-foot dome, made headlines when it was built and is still stunning visitors today.

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Solar eclipse

The much-anticipated eclipse did not disappoint. The day was perfect, and we were in awe of the marvelous spectacle!

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After the eclipse, we explored the hotel and grounds, choosing to walk to the other hotel. Since we were a bit overdressed for the warm afternoon, we really appreciated the little 1930’s historic train that took us back to our hotel.

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Pluto Water

What’s this about springs? Well, around 1840, Dr. William Bowles and his business partner began selling the local mineral spring water they called “Pluto Water,” after the Greek god of the underworld. “Taking the waters” was promoted to cure a host of maladies, including alcoholism, influenza, asthma, blah, blah, etc. Everything! Revenues surpassed $1 million in 1919. Production of Pluto Water ceased in 1972, however, after traces of LITHIUM were discovered.

Of the original springs that put French Lick on the map, all but one are capped. We went off in search of the one remaining open well, located at the French Lick Springs Hotel. What we learned is that, in the end, the water is essentially… (read the sign on the right!)

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The hotel has had its share of trials, since 1852, from the devastating fire in 1901 to a hailstorm in 2023 that severely damaged the dome. While the crews are almost done with the repairs to the dome, they don’t necessarily find all the screws. Enter, our valet, who found one while delivering the car…

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The museum, like the hotels, provided a wealth of information about French Lick and its history.

There was plenty of history about Buffalo Trace (the travelway, not the bourbon), Pluto Water, early MLB training, Larry Bird (“the hick from French Lick”), and the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus, 2nd behind Ringling.

After several hours of reading, we finally had to call it a day and head off to find our cabin rental an hour or so south, in Magnet, Indiana. That’s right, it just draws us there. 😉

After a close call with a tornado, what would you expect? That’s right. Life goes on. It’s time for a wedding! Did someone say GRAND-son getting hitched? A super special day. We’re there!

Scroll through and enjoy. No tissues required.

And here we are with the bride and groom. Great moment!

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Next stop, French Lick for the eclipse! Something about an alarm set for 0330 so we can make the drive…??