American Dream: the E. Chestnut St. Incident

My husband had an appointment in Pine Grove Mills. And for once, instead of visiting my two favorite scenic cemeteries, I decided to explore a side street I'd never been on. It was a glorious, sunny day, cool and crisp, one of the first mornings to feel like autumn is coming. Oh, joy!

So I hopped out of the car and went exploring on E. Chestnut St. On the map, it looked like the road went straight out, flat, along the hill. There was vague indication of some kind of view, possibly nearby. Lion's Valley Vista. Now, doesn't that sound nice?

The road itself is semi-paved. Which means that it is paved a while, then gravel and mud, then paved a while, then more gravel. You would need a truck to drive far on it. The road winds through assorted properties, some with rather nice houses, others with old shacks and long-parked cars or trucks rusting out, much resembling any typical Appalachian "holler" in West Virginia.

Above is a scene that I photographed along this road. It features a huge American flag hung on a tree, over a little hobby horse type child's toy that appears to be quite old. It looked like a slice of Americana to me. A strange version of the American Dream, but who am I to judge somebody else's little slice of paradise?

As it turns out, E. Chestnut St. does NOT provide access to Lion's Valley Vista. (That view may be reached by hiking the Musser Gap Trail, which begins near Shingletown, just off route 45.) The road I was hiking on, a distance of about 1.5 miles in - and another 1.5 back out! - ends in signs that say Private Property, No Trespassing, and BEWARE OF DOGS.

My best advice to fellow hikers, travelers, and photographers is to be respectful of private property. So upon reaching the signs, I turned around and walked back out. And that was the end of my Chestnut St. adventure!

If you are a fan of John Mellencamp, you may know this bit of trivia: his first album, which did not fare so well, alas, was called The Chestnut St. Incident. My soundtrack song is the very first song on that album: here he is with American Dream.