Cahokia Mounds: A Mirror into Doomsday

Humankind since invent of the TV has dreamed up and glorified many ways to end the world: Aliens, Comet, Dinosaurs, Earthquakes, Virus, Zombies, Robots, and many more. Could it be simpler than that? A change in culture is enough to bring about the downfall, as might have been the case of the Mississippian civilization.
Past couple of years, I traveled to many small towns in the USA. I met with different native people, who are all classified under a bucket, Native Americans, formerly known as Indians. As I explored more history, I quickly realized that many different cultures and tribes existed and still exists in the USA. One common amongst all of them was the conflict with European settlers, which led to their downfall. However, Cahokia Mounds is an exception.

A map of Mississippian culture civilizations

Last labor day, I visited Effigy mounds in Iowa. Different native people living in on the banks of Mississippi river used to make mounds, in variety of shapes and sizes. Many theories exist of their purpose: each as likely as the other. When urban expansion hit Midwest, several thousands of the mounds were destroyed to make room for modern cities and towns. Some of them preserved and protected, like effigy mounds. I will probably write a separate account of effigy mounds.

My second visit to the Mississippian civilization in Cahokia, Illinois near St. Louis was more exciting. Cahokia had a central mound, 200 ft high, like a pyramid, probably for religious ceremonies. It had a solar calendar with known as Woodhenge, multiple wooden poles in three different size circles. It was a walled village with stockade. According to an estimate, Cahokia was larger than London in 1200 A.D. Archeologists have discovered 104 mounds at the 2000 square feet site, in addition to many artifacts of daily life.

Today, Cahokia mounds site has many well-marked trails. Most of the mounds are covered in vegetation. Turkeys, dears and other wildlife frequent the area. I visited during the coldest day of the winter, so visitors were limited in numbers. A museum inside the visitor center shed some light on the culture, weather, location and history of Cahokia as well as its relationship to other Mississippian civilizations at the time.

Archeologists could not find enough evidences to determine the possible reason for downfall of a prosperous civilization. The possibilities were war, natural disaster, failure of leadership, and cultural changes. War and natural disasters seemed unlikely as 104 mounds stood intact. Failure of leadership could have driven away people. Most likely reason was the cultural changes. What does that mean?

The land was very fertile where Cahokia was. The citizens mastered the art of farming. They soon were growing more food than they needed. As a result, some citizens diversified into tool making, performing, advising and other professions. Over the time, more and more people moved away from the basic task of growing food. Probably, they ran out of farmers and food leading to downfall of the city. The situation is quite similar. The world is full of non-farming people like me, who are wasting time in regulation, politics or laziness. Aliens and robots are far reality. Our doomsday is scripted by us by ignoring our basic needs.

A survey of possible downfall reasons of Cahokia

Visit Cahokia Mounds, largest archeological site in the USA: https://cahokiamounds.org

Lost and survived in North Carolina

I traveled to 45 states of USA, mostly not visiting major cities. Forests, small communities, villages, Indian reservations, Eskimo village, national parks, ghost towns, and some picturesque landscapes greeted me throughout the country. While I enjoyed every moment of my travels and experiences, not all of them were good. This story is about an experience in North Carolina, which almost ended badly for me except I was lucky.

I was on my way to Florida to witness a Space X launch from NASA at Cape Canaveral. It was a spontaneous trip, but straightforward drive down I-95. Google map showed fourteen-hour’s drive to Daytona, where I booked a motel to stay, as Orlando was expensive. I started from Silver Spring, Maryland at 6:30 in the morning to beat the rush hour traffic. Nonetheless, merciless I-95 had more than usual traffic on that day. By the time I crossed Virginia and entered North Carolina, it was already past noon. I was speeding to make up lost time in the traffic.

Notorious I-95 hit me with a construction around 3:30 somewhere in North Carolina. The traffic was at the standstill and Google maps showed a long red line on my way. I decided to take a small detour through some local roads. In driving over 40,000 miles, I had taken these types of detour numerous times successfully. More than 10 times around forest city in Arkansas while traveling between Little Rock and Memphis. Google map did not show any better alternate way, though. I used to defy technology, so I did not think twice.

One mile after I exited I-95 a series of events led to an unusual situation. A sixteen-wheeler truck had attempted to take a u-turn and was stuck on the road blocking all lanes on both sides. Instead of waiting it to clear, I turned left to a narrow road after few cars. My assumption was, at some point GPS would pick up where I was and show me the way back to I95 towards Florida. A half-mile on the narrow road, the road was closed, again due to construction. The road after the barrier was unpaved. Three blockades in two miles was a sign I should abandon looking for detour and wait it out on the freeway, but I decided otherwise.

I took the lead and turned right before the barrier. Three cars followed me and the rest turned around. The road was narrow with no divider, had no junctions to go out. After driving five minutes, the road entered woods, not dense but could be classified as forest. A junction was few feet ahead of me and I looked at the map in my phone to give me directions. My phone had no GPS or mobile network. I took left turn, direction I would expect I95 south to be. I restarted my phone.

Out of three cars, one car followed me. I have been delaying update on my phone for few days. I forgot that detail. When I restarted my phone, it started update and did not restart. At that moment, I decided to take next couple of left turns assuming directions to I95. The car behind me is following me uncomfortably close. If I stop, he would not have enough time to put his brakes and collide with me. I looked at my phone still updating. It was almost five and being February the Sun was about to set. I looked in my mirror, I saw guy in the car behind me had a shotgun in his right hand. If I stopped then, I would be robbed at least.

I slowed down and took a left turn. My stalker followed me. Fortunately, he was a good driver. Even though tailgating closely, he did not collide with me. I looked at my still updating phone. Then I scanned the gas levels. I had 88 miles to escape. I took one more left turn. The road was curvy, so lost my sense of directions and started making random turns at every junction. My follower as expected kept making all the turns behind me. No other car entered the road. With darkness settling in, no other sign of life was evident. After half an hour of rat race, my phone finished updating itself. I opened the map. I took one more left turn with my stalked behind me. After a minute, he drove off the road. GPS and network were back. It suggested I take the next right.

My stalker was well aware of the area. As soon as I approached the highway, he let me go. I made the right turn and I was facing the same sixteen-wheeler, which was stuck on the way. With the help of cops, it was finishing making the u-turn. The road was open in ten more minutes. I was back at the same exit I left I95 after driving for a mile more. What an adventure!

This week I read an article from a fellow traveler to share some bad travel experiences with all the good ones. That inspired me to share this one of the two bad experiences I had during my travels in USA. Over 25000 miles, 150 days and 45 states of traveling, I only had two bad experiences.

That incident in North Carolina was first where I saw a gun in use, the use of intimidating. I lived for three and a half years in Arkansas, where shotguns were offered free with diamond purchases. I visited Missouri where I toured a gun shop like a grocery shop, without being asked any questions. However, facing the prospect of gun violence was uncomfortable. I noted this experience as an adventure, but it was traumatic for a while. I did not make any detours for next four months or so. Looking back at it, I could only imagine how traumatic all shooting incidents be to the pupils in the school where they faced them. I wish no more children will have to go through that trauma, be it any solution.

Oregon Beaches: In five pics

Five pics are no witness for fresh beauty of Oregon coast. Not only beaches but also wildlife and small communities across the coast are unique. The tectonic fault that run parallel to the west coast has produced many earthquakes over centuries. Tsunamis and ocean currents along with earthquakes have created a unique set of islands and ecological system across the coast. Old light houses and trails still stand. Whales, seals and other animals frequent the shores and waters. Oregon coast was like no other coast in USA not only because of its landscape and natural beauty but also for the vibe in small towns of northern and central coast. To wrap it all southern coast also has large sand dunes. I experienced people living with real freedom there. Stress was at the lowest and cash was king. Cannon Beach came out as winner, my favorite town of all. As one of the local shopkeeper put it, cannon beach was a town of well-settled happy hippies and it was evident. Do not miss Oregon coast, it is truly one of a kind! Enjoy a bonus video of drive through central Oregon!

Landscapes of the Yellowstone National Park: In five pics

Yellowstone national park is famous for two attractions: its wildlife and hot springs. However, there's a lot more to it. Yellowstone varies a lot in its landscape and altitude. I went to Yellowstone in early May, when south east portion of the park was closed and eastern Yellowstone was just opened. I entered the park from north western entrance in Idaho and greeted with green landscape and marching bisons. I was staying at mammoth hot springs within the park which was located north central. Yellowstone is huge, larger than the state of Rhode Island. In numbers, the park is around 3500 square miles. Few deers tried to run me and my car down on my way there. Their bright eyes in dark did help avoid the collision. Lesson learned: do no drive in Yellowstone after dark. Mammoth hot springs village, as the name suggested, was near one of the hot springs, mammoth hot springs. Different bacteria live in those hot springs based on the temperature. They have different colors, which make every hot spring an assortment of rainbows. Then, of course, there's a lake Yellowstone. Yellowstone also has an active volcano. Northeast entrance of Yellowstone in Montana had a bit of snow but east Yellowstone was a white paradise. For snow lovers, a better sight hardly exists. Two days before I exited from the east side of the park, avalanche warning closed that exit for several hours. I experienced the reason. A part of east Yellowstone was like a big box. The mountain slops on both sides were steep, high, almost 80 degrees and snow covered. I felt claustrophobic and exhilaration of trapped inside a gigantic box. A vast field filled with undisturbed snow definitely showed me how heaven must look like: serene, calm and beautiful white. Of course Yellowstone has a grand canyon, waterfalls and not to forget two valleys full with wild animals. Enjoy five of the best landscape pics. It is difficult to chose one bonus video for Yellowstone landscape, but east Yellowstone it is, since that part of Yellowstone is not in any other Yellowstone posts.
 

Lakes of Minneapolis: In five pics

Minneapolis: A city that pleasantly surprised me the most in USA. It was a huge city and each part of the city felt like a city in itself with its own flavor. In addition, public transport was amazing. The city had a big mall, the Mississippi river, rich history, lots of lakes, and a hipster downtown. This post is about its chain of lakes. Western Minneapolis has a chain of lakes. I chose the Lake Calhoun for a hike. It was a beautiful Sunday morning, so a lot of people. People were playing volleyball, barbecuing, having picnics, fishing, swimming, paddle boating, sail boating, sunbathing, walking, running, talking and everything in between. Living for two years in DC, I was used to seeing only stress and smugness on people's face. It was amazingly refreshing not to see that on anyone's face. Every citizen was having real fun there. I sat down at benches, I observed birds, I observed people, I admired reflections and spent a wonderful morning there. Enjoy my experience in five pics. I hope you visit Minneapolis some day.

Glaciers of Prince William Sound, Alaska: In Five Pics

Unforgettable Alaska Trip. Glaciers are serene beauty of Alaska. I went on a day cruise called glacier discovery in the waters of Prince William Sound. I saw some wildlife as well, sans whales. Nonetheless the glacier part of the trip was Picturesque. Glaciers are compact snow rivers. They are moving at all times, but slow. We were fortunate to witness their slow movement. The only way to witness that is when a chunk of glaciers falls into the ocean. Every year glaciers gain new snow and lose some to ocean. By monitoring net gain and loss we can determine whether a glacier is receding, stable or advancing. While under the climate change and increasing global temperatures, overall glaciers are receding, I was happy to know that a couple of glaciers in Alaska were advancing. Enjoy the pictures and a bonus video.

Otters chilling out in the backdrop of a gorgeous glacier.


Glacier structure up, close and personal.


Ocean, rain forest and a grand glacier.


Here the glacier looks like a river, as they are slow moving rivers of compact snow.


Our cruise approaching the surprise glacier. Yes surprise is the name of the glacier.

Quotes from Native Alaskans: In Five Pics

"We live in a changing world and what we have to do is define where we are today and what's important from the past. A lot of the values that were taught were lost or changed early on, and for a long time there was nothing to replace it. [These] values that existed [before] changed dramatically with the missionaries and government. [We need to] teach...who you are."

This is one of the quotes I found in Alaska, which sums up the cultural shock the natives went through. Before Russians and European explorers set their feet in Alaska, mainly southern Alaska, many native tribes lived there. Every tribe was wise. They had their traditions, cultures, values and way of living. Much of the Alaska was unexplored before US purchased it. These are some of the quotes from those native people who were affected by foreign settlers. Alaska Native Heritage Center and Anchorage Museum are excellent resources of this knowledge. I spent many hours at those two places, but it was not enough to understand and appreciate native Alaskan tribes and their culture. Below are few of the quotes I found there. Zoom in to read.

And this one is a bonus one, not from an Alaskan native but very well written.