Thursday, June 29, 2006

Go West, Dumb Man!

While working in the Periodicals collection last month, I came across an issue of The Journal of American History with this turn-of-the-century photo on the cover (the description below it comes from inside the issue):


"Elite tourists such as this well-dressed hunter journeyed to the Colorado mountains for primitive play. As tourists mimicked frontier work, they overlooked their dependence on the labor of the guides and other services workers who blurred into the background."

Now, at the risk of drawing any parallels between myself and this googly-eyed dork, I've been wanting to do something similar.

No, I don't fancy myself roughing it in the wilderness and shooting my own dinner, but I do yearn to see some of that Northwest scenery that is literally on the opposite side of the country from the region I know best. Pictures can't do it justice, of course, but they go along way to communicate what kind of environment awaits someone willing to make the trek. For instance: Crater Lake Lodge.


This was one of many getaways profiled in a PBS series called Great Lodges. I've looked through the accompanying book here at the library and, out of all of the locations, this one in Oregon seems the most breathtaking. Imagine sitting in one of those rockers and drinking your morning coffee.


As for Mrs. Mosley, I think she likes the idea, too. At the very least, the trip would give her more than enough material to put in her lovely photo blog.

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