Well we have made it through the vast wilderness of the Monongahela National Forrest and are now in civilization again. Parsons W. Va. that is. If we would have come here a week later we would have been able to catch the bluegrass festival! Maybe we will catch another one on our way down the road. Since we last updated we have seen so many beautiful scenerys. Including Lindy Point which we actually camped on for Jeff's birthday. You couldn't ask for a better birthday present! We will not be able to post any pictures this time since we are using the public library computers. We will get them up as soon as we can though.
We are continuing to meet so many wonderful people and as Jeff and I reflect on how many beautiful friendships we have made in just the last two months we are amazed. When I think of being back at home in our monotonous lives, doing the same thing every day and seeing the same people I think about how it seemed like all the world was going down in the pits. However as we walk across America, without a time line and a schedule of places we have to be at at certain times, I see now that God has his people placed all over this country. Even though America is looking like Sodom and Gomorrah, God's people are being raised up and shining through all the darkness around. It is so comforting to know that we have a support system of family members of Christ everywhere we go. Jeff and I often think about the reunion we will have with all of the people we have met when we get to eternity. It will be so amazing to be in the presence of Christ with all of our brothers and sisters!
~Kristin
The Monongahela Forrest is a wonderful place. To give you an idea of what it looks like, the word Monongahela means, "River with the sliding banks" or "high banks that break off and fall down." Some sources name the Delaware tribe of Native Americans as the ones to name the area. The steep mountain walls just cut straight into the river bank! Talk about steep! It is a vast wilderness full of beautiful mountain laurel, rhododendrons, mosses & ferns of every kind, and just about every tree one could imagine too! It is truly a wild and beautiful place. After coming though this Forrest we now know why they call WV "the mountain state." up and down, up and down, up and down, etc..... :) after several thousand feet of elevation we were ready for a sit down. Luckily there are a few lean-to shelters scattered amongst the rhododendrons. We made use of one for the night. They consist of a three sided structure with a raised floor and a pitched roof. They also have a fire pit right infront of the opening, and by the looks of the fire pit, these shelters have been here a long time! We set up our tent inside, and signed the register. Then we made a fire to cook on and ate dinner. Then night fell, and let me tell you about that. Ok, close your eyes and then pull a stocking cap over your face, then find the heaviest winter coat you have and put wrap that around your face and head, then walk down into your basement and turn off all the lights. Thanks what night looks like in the mountains of the Monongahela National Forrest!!! After the sun came up and we could see again, we made it to Black Water Falls State Park and had some lunch there. Then we hiked over to see the falls. It was beautiful. It is a 57' waterfall, here's a picture. http://www.mountainhighlands.com/listings/blackwater_waterfall_1.JPG.
From there we hiked over to Lindy Point where we watched the sun go down on Blackwater Canyon from high up on top of a cliff. It was so beautiful we just decided to set up our tent and sleep there on top of the world. Here's a picture of Lindy Point. http://www.chriskaylerphotography.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/blackwaterfallsstateparkstock2.jpg
So the next morning we walked southwest back through the national forrest and out onto a forrest service road. Let me tell you about Forrest Service road 244 now. It is 3.5 downhill miles of steep winding gravel road! It is BRUTAL on your feet and knees, but we finally made it to the blacktop and then into the back of a pickup truck for the 3 miles or so into Parsons. Thank you kind stranger for the ride into Parsons! We ate at a nice little restaurant in Parsons and then found the baptist church. It is right next door to the Catholic church and in between the two building there is a nice little grassy courtyard area. We thought that we might be able to camp there, but we wanted to get permission first. The man who lived next door to the churches told us where the pastor of the baptist church lived so we walked over to his house. When we got there we were greeted by the biggest chocolate lab we had EVER seen! He was huge, but as friendly as could be! We knocked on the door and hollered through the window, but no one was home. We even went across the street and sat under a shade tree to wait for them to get home for a few hours, but they never came home. Their dog even came over to sit with us and that was great! Wish we knew his name. We tried calling him every name in the book, but nothing perked his ear. After 8:00 we decided to just go back over to the church and set up camp anyway. When we arrived we met Fred. Fred is the man who takes care of the catholic church and he told us that he had a much better place for us to camp! He said he had a garden close by and that we would like it there much better! Boy was he right!! Nice and shady by the river, and surrounded by a beautiful garden! Thank you Fred!! God Bless you!! We woke up this morning to Fred pulling up with two coffees, some fresh apples, and homemade peach bread!! Whoa! Awesome. We met his son and his wife and were able to do a load of laundry at their house. Thank you Joe and Ashley!! So now we are at the little public library in Parsons, WV where we are checking emails and facebook, and updating the blog.
We miss everyone back home and all the friends we have made along the way. Thank you to everyone who sent me birthday wishes! We can't wait to see everyone again! Either here on earth or in eternity!!
~Jeff
We are continuing to meet so many wonderful people and as Jeff and I reflect on how many beautiful friendships we have made in just the last two months we are amazed. When I think of being back at home in our monotonous lives, doing the same thing every day and seeing the same people I think about how it seemed like all the world was going down in the pits. However as we walk across America, without a time line and a schedule of places we have to be at at certain times, I see now that God has his people placed all over this country. Even though America is looking like Sodom and Gomorrah, God's people are being raised up and shining through all the darkness around. It is so comforting to know that we have a support system of family members of Christ everywhere we go. Jeff and I often think about the reunion we will have with all of the people we have met when we get to eternity. It will be so amazing to be in the presence of Christ with all of our brothers and sisters!
~Kristin
The Monongahela Forrest is a wonderful place. To give you an idea of what it looks like, the word Monongahela means, "River with the sliding banks" or "high banks that break off and fall down." Some sources name the Delaware tribe of Native Americans as the ones to name the area. The steep mountain walls just cut straight into the river bank! Talk about steep! It is a vast wilderness full of beautiful mountain laurel, rhododendrons, mosses & ferns of every kind, and just about every tree one could imagine too! It is truly a wild and beautiful place. After coming though this Forrest we now know why they call WV "the mountain state." up and down, up and down, up and down, etc..... :) after several thousand feet of elevation we were ready for a sit down. Luckily there are a few lean-to shelters scattered amongst the rhododendrons. We made use of one for the night. They consist of a three sided structure with a raised floor and a pitched roof. They also have a fire pit right infront of the opening, and by the looks of the fire pit, these shelters have been here a long time! We set up our tent inside, and signed the register. Then we made a fire to cook on and ate dinner. Then night fell, and let me tell you about that. Ok, close your eyes and then pull a stocking cap over your face, then find the heaviest winter coat you have and put wrap that around your face and head, then walk down into your basement and turn off all the lights. Thanks what night looks like in the mountains of the Monongahela National Forrest!!! After the sun came up and we could see again, we made it to Black Water Falls State Park and had some lunch there. Then we hiked over to see the falls. It was beautiful. It is a 57' waterfall, here's a picture. http://www.mountainhighlands.com/listings/blackwater_waterfall_1.JPG.
From there we hiked over to Lindy Point where we watched the sun go down on Blackwater Canyon from high up on top of a cliff. It was so beautiful we just decided to set up our tent and sleep there on top of the world. Here's a picture of Lindy Point. http://www.chriskaylerphotography.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/blackwaterfallsstateparkstock2.jpg
So the next morning we walked southwest back through the national forrest and out onto a forrest service road. Let me tell you about Forrest Service road 244 now. It is 3.5 downhill miles of steep winding gravel road! It is BRUTAL on your feet and knees, but we finally made it to the blacktop and then into the back of a pickup truck for the 3 miles or so into Parsons. Thank you kind stranger for the ride into Parsons! We ate at a nice little restaurant in Parsons and then found the baptist church. It is right next door to the Catholic church and in between the two building there is a nice little grassy courtyard area. We thought that we might be able to camp there, but we wanted to get permission first. The man who lived next door to the churches told us where the pastor of the baptist church lived so we walked over to his house. When we got there we were greeted by the biggest chocolate lab we had EVER seen! He was huge, but as friendly as could be! We knocked on the door and hollered through the window, but no one was home. We even went across the street and sat under a shade tree to wait for them to get home for a few hours, but they never came home. Their dog even came over to sit with us and that was great! Wish we knew his name. We tried calling him every name in the book, but nothing perked his ear. After 8:00 we decided to just go back over to the church and set up camp anyway. When we arrived we met Fred. Fred is the man who takes care of the catholic church and he told us that he had a much better place for us to camp! He said he had a garden close by and that we would like it there much better! Boy was he right!! Nice and shady by the river, and surrounded by a beautiful garden! Thank you Fred!! God Bless you!! We woke up this morning to Fred pulling up with two coffees, some fresh apples, and homemade peach bread!! Whoa! Awesome. We met his son and his wife and were able to do a load of laundry at their house. Thank you Joe and Ashley!! So now we are at the little public library in Parsons, WV where we are checking emails and facebook, and updating the blog.
We miss everyone back home and all the friends we have made along the way. Thank you to everyone who sent me birthday wishes! We can't wait to see everyone again! Either here on earth or in eternity!!
~Jeff
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