After spending the night just east of Charleston, we start our day with a walk along the Kanawha River, which isn’t as picturesque as you might think. The water is high and muddy. A couple of tugs cruise slowly by. Depending on which side of the river you are on, a few beautiful old homes still exist, but most have been converted to commercial use. The capital still boasts a beautiful old courthouse, as well as an elegant federal courthouse. And the capitol gleams with gold leaf on its rotunda.
Today will be a long day — over 500 miles — which is just about my personal limit. We continue down I64 through the length of KY, stopping briefly in Lexington to discover an independently owned bookstore: Joseph-Beth Booksellers. I try to patronize the independents when I can — but this two-story store is a little too Barnes & Noble-ish, with more non-book goods than books, and no hand-written signs recommending staff reads. They had a decent poetry section though, and a restaurant where we caught a late lunch.
As we leave Lexington, I admire the horse farms — again. I grew up on the Black Stallion books, and avidly followed Secretariat when he made his triple crown debut in 1973 (I still have the three magazines on whose cover he appeared before he even won triple crown). There was a time when I could recite all of the triple crown winners — I knew my horse racing history from the Godolphin Arabian to Genuine Risk (one of the rare fillies to win the derby). And while I have lost track over the past 20 years, I still remember the enthusiasm of my childhood, and have continued to note, with great satisfaction, that no triple crown winner since Secretariat has been able to match his time and performance in the 1.5 mile Belmont Stakes, the final jewel –and most elusive– in the crown. It was the performance of a lifetime.
But I digress. [Mention horses –or books — or art/architecture — or cars, and it is still easy to do.] As we keep moving west, the landscape begins to flatten out as we gain an hour of time crossing Indiana. Gone are the rolling green hills of KY. Tonight our room looks out on green cultivated fields. We didn’t make it to IL as predicted, but far enough. Tomorrow’s goal is Kansas City, where everything is up to date (a line from an obscure song). Tom is determined to find the best BBQ. I will keep you apprised.
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