Side notes of West Texas

Thought I would share a few photo's of Texas that weren't a part of the 100 Mile Capture.   So many beautiful things out there that need their photograph taken and not everything has been spaced 100 miles apart.

One of my favorites was of course The Shackleford County Courthouse in Albany, Texas.  It's stunning! Texas has some of the most amazing historic courthouses.  I plan on visiting each and everyone in time.
We stopped at this beauty on our way through West Texas.  It has a very nice Veterans tribute on the grounds. If you would like to see more detailed shots of this gorgeous courthouse you can click on the picture or follow this link  http://brickroadphoto.smugmug.com/History/Shackleford-County-Courthouse

Built 1883-84 from plans by J. E. Flanders of Dallas, architect for several other 1880s Texas courthouses. Edgar Rye of Albany was construction superintendent. Kilted Scottish Masons erected the walls of stone quarried a few miles southwest of town. The foundations rest two feet deep on "natural concrete" (caliche). Budgeted at $27,000.00; final cost was $49,433.75. Clock tower was added at public's request. 

Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1962

 

 

So how cool is this?  The rock that pulled the tower clock for over 53 years.  360 lbs!  It is sitting outside one of the courthouse entrances.  The odd thing about this courthouse is there are four entrances, one on each side, however there doesn't seem to be a MAIN entrance as they all looked the same at the time of their construction.  The entrance pictured above has a newly constructed handicapped ramp and seems to be the most used entrance now. However, the side entrance has more wear on the antique door knobs.  Interesting!
To see detail shots of those gorgeous doorknobs and the very cool stone carving pieces inlaid in the stone work of the structure, visit here   Very cool detail pictures

Right across the street from the courthouse is this wonderfully restored Sinclair station.  Complete with lubrication and washing bays.  Love the gorgeous old truck.  This Sinclair Station is on the northwest side of the square at Albany, Texas and it was built in 1935 and restored by brothers Hank and Ted Paup in 2004

 Remember the days when your neighbors went on vacation and when they returned home you were invited to come over, have pie and watch their vacation slides?  I remember seeing slides of someone's Aunt Judy with her head cut off and a little blur next to her that was cousin Jimmy....you know... the one who never holds still.   If it wasn't for the brownies they served it would have been unbearable. 

 SOOO here I am 40 years later showing my vacation pictures to anyone who will look, yikes! Thanks for humoring me while I share. I hope you enjoy them and I promise NO pictures of Aunt Judy, mostly because I don't even have an Aunt Judy!   *wink*   I will try to keep them as painless as possible.  FYI  I did bake brownies today so if you want the full experience come on over!

Keep snappin'
Jeanne

100 Mile Capture, part 1

The 100 Mile Capture

Last year New York photographer Brian DeFrees traveled coast to coast and back.  He strapped a camera on his car and took over 200,000 time lapse photo's.  He compiled them into a 5 minute video called Drive Across America in 5 minutes.  I warn you if you get motion sick take a few Dramamine before you click and watch, it moves pretty fast  
After his video went viral on YouTube, a friend (thanks Diane) and I started discussing how cool it would be do something similar.  Basically, our idea was that every 100 miles you stop and take one photo regardless of what is at that 100 mile mark.  Since she lives in Washington and I am across the country in Texas we knew a girls "100 mile road trip" was not in our near future so I decided to do a test drive (if you will) on our vacation and....

SO the "100 Mile Capture" was born
  
Here was the reasoning behind choosing the 100 mile mark

1. NO way was I strapping my camera to a car NO matter how cool a time lapse would be AND no one was willing to provide funding for a new fancy smancy time lapse camera and equipment.
2. I felt reasonably confident I could talk the  hubby into stopping every 100 miles, HEY it's better then every 50 right?? 
3. Stopping the car every 100 miles seemed like a good excuse to "take a break" if you know what I mean.
4. Posting every 100 miles would give me time to edit and post live.  

Here is what I found out after we got started...

• Stopping the car every 100 miles sounds easy but sometimes it is just not possible or even safe, but I assure you all of the photos were taken at 100+/- within 4 miles. 
•  "Taking a Break" NEVER syncs with the 100 mile mark.  
• I thought if I took a photo every 100 miles I could edit in between  stops and post live...WRONG!  There are several parts of the western states that need some serious tech upgrades.  3G 4G LTE are strangers to this land.
•  Even though there were a few grumbles about stopping so much when we started, by the end of the first day my driver/hubby was better at spotting things than I was. 
• Taking photo's for me is like eating potato chips....I simply can NOT stop at one 
• Stopping and stretching/shooting every hundred miles really broke the trip up nicely.  We saw things we would have never seen and learned quite a bit about the areas we were traveling through.    

SO here we go.... 7 states, 14 days,  3485.4 miles and  65 hours 15 minutes in the car!  We saw tons of family and beautiful scenery, and more than a few quirky things a long the way.  Hope you enjoy our road trip 100 miles at a time.

Mile 000
The last thing we saw before we pulled out of our driveway.  The sun was coming up and the light was beautiful.

   

Mile 100 turned out to be on the Dallas/ Ft Worth Freeway during rush hour (oh joy) This is the point in the trip I realized EXACTLY 100 miles was just not going to work.  These shots had to be a drive by...well it was really a roll by since we were in Dallas traffic.  One shot to the left, one to the right...so much to see. I'm telling you taking photos for me is like eating potato chips, I simply can't stop at one.

 

 

  Mile 200 let us experience West Texas.  Ooooh Baby it was hot outside 100 degrees and rising.  These horses had the right idea finding the only available shade for miles in Palo Pinto, Texas

Mile 300  Quail Ridge Ranch,   Anson, TX    

West Texas is hot and windy,  the perfect place for windmills!  They seem so looming and graceful against the open sky.

Mile 400  Tahoka, TX 

This Texas road sign and open field pretty much says it all about West Texas.  If you look closely the sign says FARM ROAD.  They refer to them as "F.M. Roads or Farm to Market roads.

I took the photo at about 1/10 a mile over the 100 mile mark

 ...and then just a bit further   *sigh*

Now don't get me wrong, I am all for progress and improving roads but this truck is behind the truck spraying the new pretty yellow lines on the road....my new car is black...patience is a virtue right???

Tomorrow we will see New Mexico

Thanks for looking I hope you are enjoying the trip

Keep snappin'
Jeanne

"The world is a book and those who do not travel read only a page"

"F" is for...

"F" is for.............
Still catching up on posts from vacay.  No Internet service for a week was brutal! (I am such an addict)
August 18, 2013  Daily Photos Community Alphabet Challenge post

F is for FIRE, Firetruck, Fireman, Flag, Fire Station, Fire alarm and Freaking scary!!

http://brickroadphoto.smugmug.com/Photo-A-Day-Images/Photo-A-Day-2013/i-jsDC59G

 

While on vacation in Colorado this brush Fire started. I am taking this from my mothers front yard in Hayden, Colorado.   Hayden is a VERY small rural ranching community in NW CO. This Fire started about 1:00 Saturday and grew VERY quickly, eventually consuming about 1000 acres.
It was county Fair time in Hayden and we watched several of the Fair participants stop what they were doing, hook on their horse trailers and head for the burning area to rescue horses and livestock of their own and their neighbors who weren't home.
It was so Frightening to watch this brush Fire burn and spread so quickly. I am happy to say that the Sheriff has reported there were NO injuries and NO homes lost. They are still working the fire but for the most part it is contained.

Keep snappin'
Jeanne

"E" is for Equine Eating

"E" is for Equine Eating a snack

August 11, 2013

 

We have been on the road for two weeks. Now that I am back home with good internet connectivity I am catching up with my alphabet challenge posts.  The daily photo community I belong to on SmugMug has been challenged to post an assigned letter of the alphabet each Sunday.  This week was "E"

This miniature horses name is Gus, short for Augustus. Cutest little Equine I have ever seen!

Keep Snappin'!
Jeanne

Albany Texas Historic Courthouse

  Another gorgeous Texas Courthouse in West Texas. We have made it through Texas and the "100 mile capture" is going well. I will start posting photos soon!   We stopped for lunch in Albany, Texas and saw this beauty. 

"The 1883 Shackelford County courthouse was the first courthouse restored under the Texas Historical Commission's Courthouse Preservation Program. It was rededicated on June 30, 2001. The architect, James Edward Flanders, designed eight or nine Second Empire style courthouses in Texas during the late 1800s, but the one in Shackelford County is the only one that remains." - Terry Jeanson

Historical Marker Text

Built 1883-84 from plans by J. E. Flanders of Dallas, architect for several other 1880s Texas courthouses. Edgar Rye of Albany was construction superintendent. Kilted Scottish Masons erected the walls of stone quarried a few miles southwest of town. The foundations rest two feet deep on "natural concrete" (caliche). Budgeted at $27,000.00; final cost was $49,433.75. Clock tower was added at public's request. 

Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1962

We will begin our journey to the Arizona mountains today. I am so excited to get to celebrate my birthday with family!! It's going to be a great day!

Keep snappin'

Jeanne

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