Johnny Appleseed Festival for out-of-towners

Since I've mentioned the JAF here a couple of times, I thought it would be considerate of me to show out-of-towners what it's like.  Fortunately, it's about a slow half-hour's walk from my door to the park.  Unfortunately, Laurie was under the weather this morning and opted out.  But this is the one place on earth I can be both comfortable in a crowd and entertained on my own.

First up is the military camp along the river.

A Confederate tent with Confederate money.

Lots of re-enactors at JAF.  Here's Robert E. Lee.

Cannons.  We'll get back to this.

Yup, a real live Gatling gun.

Continentals to your right...

...a union patrol to your left.

This dude was a magician/comedian.  Here he is magically proving to a man in the audience that his $20 bill was real by incinerating it.

After several false attempts, the bill is "found" inside a lemon he sliced in two.  I could have taken twenty pics here.

Music is all over the place, with travelling groups, three stages, and the medicine show.

A song about Skeeters at the Pioneer Stage.

One of Chris' must dos- hang out with the bagpipe band.

The festival is kinda divided in threes.  This first area has the hand crafting demonstrations.  Weavers, potters, blacksmiths, and this coppersmith.

Examples of the coppersmith's art.  So shiny I wasn't sure how good the pic would turn out.

Popular with kids are the alpacas. 

Moms like all the things these people make with alpaca wool.

The man himself- Johnny Appleseed.

The #1 place to be at JAF- BUFFALO BURGERS!!! And turkey legs darn near as big as your arm.

The second area has the crafty stuff and antiques.  No big winners for me today, but always fun to check the tents of antiques out.

The stage in the second area.  One of the best acts over here is this chorus of violin playing kids, with littler ones clogging on the stage below.

Buffalo Burgers and Turkey dogs!!!!!

Re- entering the first area, I smelled that smell that told me maple candy was at hand.  Another Chris must-stop.

Celtic music at the folk stage.  I do love to listen to the harpsichord...

Apple-mashing for cider.

There's a patch of woods separating the first two areas.  Here the local wildlife wait patiently for their turn.

Johnny is a fabulous storyteller, and does a couple shows a day.

The third area is the Indian camp.  Not near as neat as it was when I was younger, but still some neat things to come across.

One of the two fife and drum corps that wander the park.

This is the other.  This was moments after they shot off a musket.  Fifteen people in the assembled crowd dropped over dead.

This little guy wanted to shoot me.  I told him I'd shoot back.

He liked the idea so much, he had me do it twice.

Cannon demonstration.  Ready, Fire!  (Um, Chris, it's called a "slow wick".  When they say fire, count three.

One, two, three...BOOOOM!!!

I decided to go home by way of the woods.  And for 2:30 in the afternoon, that also was surprisingly entertaining.

Just because I thought it was a neat shot.

A butterfly, just because the first one I tried, some doof who wasn't looking almost stepped on it, and the second one met up with its significant other just before I could snap, danced a jig over my head, and flew away.

This dude with the nut in his mouth was so funny.  He came bounding out the ravine trail and stood there.

Took a pic, said, "Thank you." He turned around, posed, turned to look at me, and bounded back down the trail.

Just as I came up to dead tree road, I heard something going bump in the day.  Sure enough, the fawns were out and about.

Every two steps you heard a crash or a rustle, and there would be a squirrel laying on fat.

Ground hog way up the road.  I was clicking these when Laurie texted to find out if I was still alive.  She hadn't heard from me since I sent her buffalo burger pictures.

'Munks were all over the place, too, but behind every tree and around every corner...

...there was a squirrel.

There you have it.  Now you know what it's like to spend a day at JAF, and I am reminded what it's like to take a walk without being attached to a scent-driven outboard motor.