Gettysburg or bust.........

Some time ago, maybe late winter or very early spring, my little bro asked me if I wanted to go with with him and his friends to the reenactment at Gettysburg for the 145th anniversary of the great battle during the War Between the States.

I enjoy going to these events. It gives us 'quality time' together, which we don't get enough of lately. I enjoy taking part in his hobby and hanging with his friends. Even though its relaxing, to some extent, it's still very tiring for me (in my advanced years). We usually stay up late and then at 6am sharp, the bugler plays reveille and the fife and drum corps begin. You can't sleep through all that racket, so you might as well get up.

The only difference with this reenactment, it was 750 miles away. And we were going to make the drive in one day. One long day. Four of us in his Chevy pick-up. It would require us to stop every few hours to stretch our legs and backs. Lots of stops.

We split up the driving every few hours, also. The trip home was different. Not even close to our trip up there. I drove back home most of the way. We left Gettysburg at 4:08 pm and I finally gave up my drivers seat about 5 minutes until 4.
a.m., that is. My poor old tired bones couldn't take any more. Then I got sleepy. Made it all the way back to Cleveland, Tennessee. I could almost smell home. At least I might have, but none of the passengers in the truck had bathed in at least four days. My sinuses still haven't cleared up.

Anyway, here's the highlights of the trip. Enjoy.


Loading the truck before our long trip.


Early morning on the road.


Sunrise.


We had planned a side trip to Lexington , Virginia on this trip. Lexington is the home of Virginia Military Institute, where Stonewall Jackson was school president, and the VMI artillery (better known as Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John).


Next door to VMI is the campus of Washington and Lee University, Named after George Washington and Robert E. Lee, who were both presidents of this school. The above image is of Lee Chapel. General Robert E. Lee attended services each day here and his office is downstairs. His permament residence is also here. He is entombed in a crypt adjacent to his office, along with members of his immediate family. His horse, Traveler, is buried just outside Lee's office door.


We also made a stop to pay our respects to Stonewall Jackson at the Confederate cemetary.


I wish I had more time to explore the Confederate cemetary. Lot's of history and very peaceful on top of this hill.



The credentials and schedules from our trip.


My bro has this thing about stopping at rest stops along the way. He made the mistake of telling me that his six year old likes to collect all kinds of flyers and brochures from these stops. I will make sure he has a very merry Christmas (some things you should keep to yourself). bwaaaahaaaahaaaahaaaa!!!!!!!