My Indiana: Indiana’s Ode To Uncle Sam

Uncle Sam has become a major piece of americana history. His likeness is featured on everything from posters to the New York Yankees team emblem. He has been the subject of just about everything that represents America at one time or another. His image brings about a sense of pride, patriotism, and the good ‘ol ethic of supporting your country and the American troops. At no other time is his likeness seen more than on the fourth of July. Uncle Sam represents America.

Most people think of Uncle Sam as little more than a folklore figure, a myth generated up to back the war efforts of World War II and invoke a spirit in people to join the United States war efforts abroad. The famous “I Want You” poster still brings about a sense of pride when it is encountered.

The myth of Uncle Sam ends in Indiana, a state where many claim the man behind the namesake is buried. It also ends in New York. There lies the problem. Two towns and quite possibly two different individuals with one huge basis for American historical interest. In order to understand the complete story we must first take a look at what we know.

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My Indiana: Mountain Biking Makes A Mark

I happened to discover a great publication, put out by Indiana’s Department of Natural Resources, that offers a glimpse into the outdoor life of fellow Hoosiers. Outdoor Indiana. I haven’t had a chance to research the past archives, but by looking at the latest rendition, it looks to be a very nice publication offering some insider news and features involving the great Indiana outdoors.

If you live in other states, you may discover that your own state puts out a similar publication. A simple way to find out is by typing in your state’s name + DNR into any search engine. You should find a link on the DNR site if one is available.

The thing that caught my eye about Outdoor Indiana was this month’s feature on mountain biking. This isn’t your normal run-of-the-mill mountain biking article and most people look to Indiana as anything but a ‘hot’ mountain biking destination, but through the efforts of a few individuals, the state is actually getting pretty well-known with bikers.

This article runs through some of the history associated with how most of Indiana’s mountain bike trails came into existence. Although they don’t exist in multitudes, the mountain bike trails of Indiana are quickly expanding. Much of this is do to one man and some thoughtful volunteers.

Mike Hufhand, who is an avid mountain biker, decided that after traveling to a few bike trails out-of-state that he would like to incorporate something of this nature in Indiana. At the time, Indiana only had one trail that specifically mentioned mountain biking as a purpose. That trail, at Roush Lake (near Huntington, IN), was designed in 1995 as an experimental project.

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My Indiana: Time To Push The Column

This past month has been a bit hectic. First, I moved my website. Then I accepted a new position within Skinny Moose Media, my blog host company. On top of that, I am in the preparation stage of launching a new online magazine (more on that in a later post). All I can say is it’s been a busy month. Luckily, things are getting back under control.

Right before my move to Skinny Moose Media, I decided to launch a small project on The Adventurist. My Indiana. In theory, this would be my way of combining one love (that of adventure) with a more personal touch–my home state. Not everything on “My Indiana” revolves around adventure. This is the one space I allow myself to venture and discover what my home state has to offer. The first installment of My Indiana discussed what I am trying to do in more detail.

There have been a few other installments of My Indiana, but nothing on the regular basis that I had originally planned. The original plan was for a weekly column. This has been sporadic at best, often times coming every couple of weeks, with nothing in the past month. It’s time to get back on track.

Starting this week, I will probably take this blog down to 5 days a week. One reasoning is that most of my fellow bloggers take the weekend off to enjoy some time away from the computer. Although I won’t be making posts on The Adventurist on Saturday or Sunday, I will still be working on my other two projects. I need the time for that. In the meantime, this is going to give me the perfect opportunity to crank-up the “My Indiana” column. I am going to be setting this as my Friday feature and running it through the weekend. It gives me a nice stopping point for the week and gives me something to look forward to-almost like a day off. Hopefully, you will find the posts interesting and perhaps even learn about a state that gets very little media attention other than it’s sports-even though that could be a future topic, as well.

If all goes planned and people dig the new column, this may lead to a future blogging endeavor, but we will have to wait and see on that.

In the meantime, I mentioned that there had been a few “My Indiana” posts previously. You can find them by clicking below.

• My Indiana: The Adventurist Kicks Off A New Project Posted April 17, 2008
• My Indiana: Indiana and Midwest Rattled by Rare Earthquake Posted April 18, 2008
• My Indiana: Tornado Season Approaches, Beware and Prepare Posted April 29, 2008
• My Indiana: Summiting Mt. Baldy–Indiana Dunes National Lake Shore Posted May 27, 2008

Right above this post, you will find the latest installment, My Indiana: Mountain Biking Makes A Mark.

My Indiana: Summiting Mt. Baldy–Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore

Indiana is not really known for it’s Mountains. I should know, it’s my home state. I have traveled across this state and lived in nearly every part imaginable, and yet, I can honestly say I have never seen a mountain in Indiana. Sure, there are some decent Bouldering areas in the Southern part of the State, but even those get barely a mention in relation to outdoor activities found here.

There are some little towns, out in the middle of nowhere, that spark your curiosity from time to time: Mt. Summit in the central part of the state, Mt. Comfort, as it’s name implies doesn’t really take much effort to drive to.

No, I didn’t have to grab the ice ax or the crampons to reach the summit of each of these locales and a hike was what you done around town–one antique shop to the next. (Yes, the wife enjoyed it more than I did). As far as an actual ’summit’ you would be hard pressed to tell your buddies it was siting atop a corn field–yeah, neither of these places are either on mountains or hills, but rather flat terrain. Very flat terrain.

While skimming across the web today I was reminded of the closest thing Indiana has to an actual mountain–Mt. Baldy. For those of you not familiar with Mt. Baldy, it is nestled up against Lake Michigan in the far northwestern corner of the state. Specifically, Mt. Baldy lies inside the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. It is a sand dune. Not just any sand dune, but a 400 Ft. monster that I can honestly say I have summited.

What? 400 Ft? Yeah. 400 Feet. Don’t knock it till you try it. That’s all I am going to say.

By the time I reached the top, I was gasping for air and hoping that through some unnatural force, I would look down and notice a Poisk O2 oxygen tank. Oxygen would have been nice. So nice..

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My Indiana: Tornado Season Approaches, Be Aware and Prepare!

Today, tornadoes ripped through parts of Virginia, leaving a path of destruction and hurting hundreds in the process. This phenomenon, while rare, offers up the single most deadly force of nature in Indiana every spring. Sure, we have floods from time to time, but hurricanes, earthquakes (up until recently), typhoons, volcanoes and avalanches occur far enough away that we don’t have to worry much about dying at the hands of nature.

Tornadoes on the other hand…

In 1990 two records were set in Indiana. The most tornadoes in one month happened in June of that year (44) and the most tornadoes ever recorded in one day (37).

Strategically, Indiana lies right in the path of what is known as ‘Tornado Alley.’ This path is responsible for over 80% of all tornados in the United States and runs from the Southeast to the Great Plains.

On a personal level, I have been pretty close to three separate tornadoes over the course of my life. Two of them occured while I lived in Texas–one while I was a kid crouched down on the floorboards of my parent’s car. Luckily no lives were lost and not much damage occured from either twister. The third tornado happened more recently about a mile and a half from where I lived at that time. I was hunkered down in a friend’s mobile home. (I do find it quite odd that when these events take place, I am generally not in the safest of environments.)

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My Indiana: Indiana and Midwest Rattled by Rare Earthquake

There has been much talk over the past couple of weeks over a Series of Earthquakes that has been rattling the ocean floor off the coast of Oregon. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has stated that close to 600 small quakes had hit the area about 190 nautical miles offshore of Yachats, Oregon. Most of these were pretty small, measuring in the neighborhood of a magnitude 2 or 3, with an occasional 4 or 5 thrown in for good mix.

Since I live in Indiana, the earthquakes really didn’t bother me so much. Today I wake up to this:

“Residents across the Midwest were awakened Friday by a 5.2 magnitude earthquake that rattled skyscrapers in Chicago’s Loop and homes in Cincinnati but appeared to cause no major injuries or damage.

The quake just before 4:37 a.m. was centered six miles from West Salem, Ill., and 45 miles from Evansville, Ind. It was felt in such distant cities as Milwaukee, Des Moines, Iowa, and Atlanta, nearly 400 miles to
the southeast.

Now I am not going to sit here and say that I am a sound sleeper or anything, but at 4:37 am, like this article suggests–Yeah, I didn’t even notice it.

A 5.2 Earthquake is pretty large. I am sure we can all remember Los Angeles a few years back and the devestation that a magnitude 6.0 can cause on a heavily populated region of the world–Should it worry me that I slept through a 5.2?

The thing that bothers me the most is that in Indiana an earthquake is a very rare occurance. Sure, we get tornadoes and floods on a regular basis–but EARTHQUAKES? We like to leave those for California.

The last earthquake to occur in Indiana of any significance was a 5.0 magnitude quake in 2002. Before that, I would have to say 1993 or 1994–I felt both of those, but then again, they both happened during the day. Anybody inside a house at those times would have noticed an unusual shaking going on for about 20 seconds–I did. My parents, on the other hand, who were outside mowing grass during the last big one, didn’t notice–

I guess, before reading the news reports this morning, I had never really given earthquakes much thought in Indiana, even though I had felt two of them previously. They are such a rare occurence that after they happen, we quickly forget.

Randy Baldwin, from the United States Geological Survey, said the quake originated in the Wabash Fault, a northern extension of the New Madrid fault, about six miles north of Mount Carmel, Illinois. Originally the earthquake was being reported as a magnitude 5.4, then downgraded later to a 5.2. It also mentions that two aftershocks were reported as well. The aftershocks, over the course of the next three hours, measured 2.6 and 2.5 respectively.

“All of a sudden, I was awakened by this rumbling shaking,” said
McMurtry, 43. “My bed is an older wood frame bed, so the bed started to
creak and shake, and it was almost like somebody was taking my mattress
and moving it back and forth.”

Mrs. Irvetta McMurtry felt it two states away in Cincinatti.

Me, on the other hand, well, I slept like a baby.

My Indiana–The Adventurist Kicks Off A New Project

Those of you that are close observers to this site may have noticed a new ‘tab’ at the top of this site labeled “My Indiana” pop up a couple of days ago. This is actually the start of a new project I have been batting around for awhile. Indiana is not known as the “Adventure” capital of the world, but it does happen to be my home state, and one I am quite proud of. Indiana? What the?

Over the past couple of years I have been able to develop The Adventurist into a multi-faceted site, with the focus on Adventure and the Outdoors. That is not going to change. With most of my perspective coming from events far and wide in the field, I thought it might be fun to explore a bit of my own state, and perhaps share that experience with you.

“My Indiana” will be focusing on many facets of the state–hopefully on a weekly basis. One of my reasonings behind this project is that once again, as there was when I started The Adventurist two years ago, there is just not that much information out there, and if there is, you have to dig to find it.

So why not start a new blog?

Actually, that is just a personal choice. I could very easily start another blog and direct people elsewhere for the information, but I have also thought that this platform could, in fact, inspire some of my current readers to perhaps give Indiana a second look–in effect promoting my own state in the process.

I will be covering a variety of topics with this project. The Outdoors and Conservation will lead the list, but, as with most people, that is only one facet-I will also be taking a look at some environmental issues and current news ect. making the rounds with an emphasis on showing everyone what I like about my home state and issues that perhaps need a bit of work. On another note, those currently living in Indiana who will be stopping by, will be getting a taste of the “Adventure” world as well.

It isn’t very often that I have an opportunity to promote two aspects of myself, to two different crowds, simultaneously–then bring them together. This should be a fun experiment in community and interest. We will see where it goes.

I will be including the “My Indiana” title in each of the posts representing this new project and then will be linking to each, through the “My Indiana” tab found at the top of this site. Much like I have currently done with the coverage of Mt. Everest in 2007 and 2008. This will allow easy access to anyone who just wants to read the Indiana posts. Another idea is to include a state flag photo, or something similar, to signify each of the “My Indiana” posts to all of you adventure readers-that way, you have the chance to read it or not. A simple choice. America loves choices!

In the meantime, while I am getting this project kicked off, I would love to hear your comments on the idea. For? Against? I am hoping that this project, even if you do not live in Indiana, will inspire you to get out in your own state and discover what it has to offer. Many of us who love the adventure and the excitement of these great outdoors understand that we don’t need thousands and thousands of dollars for a once-in-a-lifetime expedition (even though it would be nice) but rather, all we need to do is step out our backdoor and go experience the outdoors ourselves. It doesn’t matter where we are-what we are doing–or who we are with-the fun is in the journey.

Cheers-
Jason Hendricks
Editor
The Adventurist