I Feel Like Shooting Something..

I often feel this way..  This past weekend I was really looking forward to getting out and getting some practice in with my camera.  Saturday morning I woke up and tried to come up with ideas on where to go, hoping to find something new along the way.  I had in mind a place along US-127, just north of the Ohio border.  I’d been there before last spring, and it was a decent trek, but at least I’d have a destination instead of driving around locally trying to find something new.

Sipping coffee, I Googled Butler Cemetery, a local place I’d read about in a few books that is supposedly haunted (what old cemetery doesn’t come attached with a ghost story?) and this time found an article that included an address, giving me a better idea of where it was on Henry Ruff, not far from me.  I figured I’d start there, and then head down US-12 to US-127, stopping along the way at a few places I already had in mind.

At about noon we arrived at the cemetery, also known as the William Ganong Cemetery, as the old, wrought iron sign above the entrance read.  It was located in the center of a residential area, condos on one side and mobile homes on the other.

As expected, there were several stones with the Ganong name, as well as stones belonging to the Butler family.  The site is located on a relatively steep hill, making for some interesting angled shots, and as with most older cemeteries, contained many stones that were illegible or almost completely buried themselves.  One stone we happened upon, dated 1888, had two trees that had grown around the back corners, obviously saplings that had taken root a number of years ago.

Our next destination was the abandoned truck stop and cemetery that we’d found along US-127 last spring.  We stopped in Canton to kidnap Alanna, a friend and fellow photog, and we were on our way.  The quickest way there was to take I-275 South to I-94 West to US-23 South to the first exit, US-12.  After a few miles, you’re through Saline and Clinton, and on your way to the Irish Hills.

The first of our stops was a barn on the south side of the road with a creepy truck parked at one end.  I’d also been here before, last summer, on a previous bike trip.  Barns are a common subject for photos, and this place is truly one of my favorites.  It was raining as we pulled up, and to our luck, stopped shortly after.  The frogs sang in the distance and even though the air was chilly, many a summer memory came rushing back.

Piling back into my car, we continued on to Stagecoach Stop, a recent casualty of the dwindling attractions in the Irish Hills.  Open from 1964 to 2008, Stagecoach Stop was a western theme attraction featuring gunfight shows, panning for gold, a petting zoo, shops, and old fashioned ice cream parlor and kiddie rides.  So many people I know went there as kids and took their kids there.  I’m sure the weakened economy didn’t help, but it’s pretty obvious that it’s demise was the result of evolving generations.  Few, if any of today’s kids are interested in cowboys and indians, not even on their Xboxes.

I never came here growing up, I found it around the summer of 1999 or 2000, while camping with friends in the Irish Hills.   We passed it on the way in and decided to check it out during the day.  Very cool little place with lots to see, and reasonable.  Bill and I went back during a camping trip over Labor Day weekend 2008, and were saddened to hear this would be the last time.  I took gigabytes of photos and video with my point and shoot at the time, trying to capture every detail.

When the auction took place in October of 2008 I was sure Paul Bunyan would be the first to go, yet he still stands guard.

Our fingers are crossed that someone will buy it, perhaps as a movie set if anything else.  Another gem located on this property is a train car that belonged to President Eisenhower.  It’s served recently as a Haunted attraction, which just seems blasphemous.

Moving on, we made a stop at the Irish Hills Towers, another familiar sight for anyone that’s been out this way, also closed for over a decade.

Behind the towers sits the creepiest abandoned house I’ve ever seen, one that I will seriously just leave at that description.  (shuddering)

Dusting off the creepiness, we headed onward to US-127 where we would head south to our final destination.  Alanna determined the golden hour would arrive at 7:22pm, via an app called Golden Lite on her iPhone.   We cruised along as the sun was setting, and reached what I thought would be our last stop of the day.

Last spring Bill and I found this abandoned truck stop while out riding, and stopped to check it out, along with a small, very old cemetery across the street.  This was where my Ghost Radar app made several rather convincing statements.  In fact, I just discovered as I linked this to my original blog post, that we first visited this place on April 2, 2010.  One year to the day.

Golden hour had arrived, and we were able to capture several shots in the cemetery in its warm glow.  I’d heard about golden hour, but honestly this was the first time I’d deliberately taken photos during this time. I’m still a newb, and I take every chance I get to go out and shoot, regardless of light.  But later as I went through my photos, I saw just what kind of lighting the golden hour is all about.

Instead of turning back north to head home, we decided to go south a bit further to see what else we might find.  I’m so glad we did.

Although I had a tough time capturing it, the setting sun cast a warm glow on the far rafters of the barn on the left.

Golden hour dissolved into the frosty dusk and my numb fingers told me it was time to head back to my warm waiting car.  We drove back home, exhausted from the day and so incredibly excited to see what we captured.  Today we put in a full eight hours of traveling and shooting, and I commented that I didn’t know what I loved more: planning a photo trip, taking the trip, stumbling across new places, taking the photos, or sorting and post process.  All of it excites me.  Not to mention learning from the bad shots, and being happy with the good ones.  I can’t wait to do it again.