girl power.

I was riding solo for most of this week at Three Rivers State Park in Florida. Dakota’s great-aunt passed away and he flew back home to Maryland to attend the funeral. He was also able to go skiing with his friends up in Snowshoe. After taking Dakota to the airport, I was able to spend a few hours visiting the historic village of Pensacola.

Museum of Industry

The Museum of Industry had exhibits about the history of lumbering, brick making, railroads, and commercial fishing that made Pensacola a thriving commercial center in the 19th century. I had no idea snappers were such a big fish in this part of Florida, but they were a huge part of the fishing business back in the day. Life as a snapper fisherman could be incredibly tough. Wages were based on shares, and the men were only paid if the trip’s profits exceeded expenses. If it didn’t, the voyage was called a broker, and the crew only received a 10 lb snapper as payment.

Turpentine was also a booming business in the area.

To make Turpentine:

1. Pine gum was collected in cups or boxes that were attached to trees.

2. The gum was dipped from the cups and poured into barrels.

3. Dip barrels were taken to the still to be heated in a large kettle.

4. After distilling, the liquid rosin in the bottom of the kettle was ladled into barrels and sold.

The museum’s brickmaking exhibit space was really interesting, with some of the bricks being from the 1770s!

I was able to take part in a walking guided tour of the village, which was great. It was pretty packed with people and, being the history and museum nerd that I am, always make it a point to strongarm myself to the front of the group so I can hear what the interpreter has to say. It is ridiculous, I know! But what is the point of going if I don’t get to learn anything?

As Dakota was away, I had to move the camper alone for the first time and it was a little intimidating. Usually, I have my roles and Dakota has his, and with both of us, it usually takes about 2 hours to get the camper packed up, ready to move, and dump the tanks. I had practiced doing it all myself the week before just to make sure I knew all the steps, but still. It is a pretty big job to tackle alone. But I did it! And it wasn’t nearly as hard as I thought it would be. It was also my first time really going anywhere significant while towing the trailer, and I may have had a few oh-shit moments when I tried to back it into the new location at the end of the week. But I was really proud of myself that I was able to do it alone.

Other than that, there isn’t much to report on this week. A lot of job searching and a little bit of binge-watching forensic files when I was feeling sorry for myself. Maybe a bit of ice cream, too. All in all though, another successful week on the trail!