Thursday, October 10

Our first stop of the morning was at the nearby lake that Clair and Kate enjoy visiting many times a week.

It is difficult to see the lake through the morning fog. Maybe you can see it best in the reflection of the sun.

I liked seeing the milkweed seed pods silhouetted by the sun.

This photo displays the “rest of the story”. Clair took these pictures of me while I took the milkweed shots. 🙂

Our second stop was at their favorite breakfast restaurant.

Another photo from Clair’s cell phone.

Cerwin ordered a small order of the “Breakfast Mess”. He said it was delicious and he was glad he didn’t order the large portion. It included potatoes, scrambled eggs, onion, bacon, and ham – and I may have missed something.

After breakfast we went back to their house for about an hour before our next excursion. As usual there were deer grazing on woodland delicacies next to their place.

A perfect pose.

Their house and garage/shop.

Cerwin enjoyed seeing Clair’s shop. He is skilled in woodworking and has been having fun creating things since his retirement. He made the frame for the bed we slept in during our stay.

After seeing the shop, I explored their deck and back of the house.

We saw a flock of turkeys shortly after leaving their house. Clair said they see them on occasion, but not as often as deer.

Our destination for the morning was near Altoona – about half an hour away.

We were pleased when Clair and Kate asked if we wanted to visit the Horseshoe Curve. We are not sure that we ever stopped here. If we did, it was a very long time ago.

Signs in the visitors center – while we waited for the funicular (lift) to take us to the top.

The Altoona watershed is next to this location.

A window view to the funicular track.

The lift operates every half hour.

Ready to leave. Notice the other car coming toward us.

This is when you hope the cars stay on the right track. 🙂

Clair took this picture of us while going up the hillside.

It was fun to watch – and hear – the first train go around the curve.

It was a beautiful day for watching trains. The engineers always waved to those in the yard. There were probably close to a dozen people watching the trains.

We enjoyed meeting the man on the left who was a train buff.

I got this picture from the internet to give you an idea of the setting. When standing next to the fence, we were at the area on the right where you can see the walkway and fence.

Kate and Clair

I asked Clair to take a picture of us with my camera.

Another train arriving.

Clair, Cerwin and Kate

Helper engines. They assist long trains up or down the mountain.

Information for those who like facts.

Kate watching the next train – in the area of the yard where we could get close to the track.

We decided to walk down the 194 steps instead of taking the funicular.

Some beauty from the area.

I heard a waterfall when in the parking lot, so walked over to investigate.

You will have to come back tomorrow to see how we spent the rest of our day. 🙂