Shenandoah National Park, George Corbin’s Cabin.
It looks like I am attracted to old cabins and shacks doesn’t it?
On the back it says: An authentic mountain dwelling that, before the establishment of the park, was the home of George Corbin. It has been kept in repair by the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club and is used as a weekend trail cabin.
I probably bought this card when one time in Virginia we found ourselves going south down the Shenandoah Valley Scenic Parkway (or a similar name). That were when the boys were youngsters and we were giving them doses of history every summer. Now, things have turned around and they give us doses of education now and then.
The Shenandoah Scenic Parkway was beautiful We stopped often to take in the natural beauty. Once, we stopped at a picnic table and ate our sandwiches – we planned ahead (picture me tapping the temple of my forehead). While we were eating two or three deer moseyed up near us looking for a hand-out. They know human cheapskates when they see them and moved on before they got eaten too.
I remember we stopped at a park ranger’s station that was also a gift shop. They had calendars for sale that featured the wild life of the Shenandoah. It was wildlife eating other wildlife. The law of survival. It was a picture for each 52 weeks, each week had a beautiful color picture, much like a Sahara Club calendar but in every picture I think was an animal either having another animal for a meal or chasing it for the same purpose. It was shocking beautiful.
I probably bought this postcard there instead of the calendar-book and I have regretted it ever since. I learned something very valuable I have carried through life since: It is more enjoyable to be an impulse buyer.
The cabin is so picturesque. There is a shack/cabin near us that is surrounded by McMansions. I have been going to photograph it for a long time, but I never stop and do it. I think I had better because it may soon be replaced!
ReplyDeleteJudy,
ReplyDeleteHey! I live very near a shack that is surrounded by McMansions too! In fact it is so near, I can pour my morning coffee and do my morning bathroom routines there, which I do.
Seriously, folks!
I know what you mean by wishing you had taken a picture when an old house that "belonged" in the place it was at, got whooshed away.
So many of these places have a wealth of stories that the walls have heard - been a part of. I like to stand around an old place and try to sense all they have to say.
ReplyDeleteSi,
ReplyDeleteHey! I do that too!
This cabin is still here. I stayed there this past weekend wile hiking in the Shenandoah. Rich with spirit and history, it is simple, rustic and sound. Without water or electricity or heat, I am transported to a slower time where the hollow was the center for several related families, their livestock, gardens, seasons, dreams and sorrows. The spirits of the Corbin family visit gently in this cabin that has been resorted by the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club. The stories abound, the other dwellings are mere foundations, and the family graves are hard to find. Do not despair, however, the Corbin Cabin is a survivor. It's not at a roadside, but rather a few miles hike in. Come by & say hello.
ReplyDelete