Sunday, February 28, 2016

Towpath Trail X (2/28/2016)

Not too long ago it looked like this:
Scottsdale Boulevard

Sunday, February 28, 2016
Aaaah! A sunny day at 64 degrees! Time to do another section of the Erie & Ohio Canalway Towpath Trail, this time between Lock 29 back to Boston Store.
Lock 29 is significant for the Roman numeral mason marks
on the sandstone blocks from nearby quarries
Whitened sycamore trees against the blue sky
Lock 30
Lock 30 was dry at the top level, wet below
Lock 30 had a feeder channel to bring water
from the Cuyahoa River to the canal
The stone structure in the middle once was the
towpath bridge over the feeder channel
A Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad bridge
and a moon gate (!)
The towpath is raised between the Cuyahoga River to the left
and the Erie & Ohio Canal to the right
Stagnant section of the former canal with a mossy log
Great blue heron
Lock 31 (1892), also known as the Lonesome Lock,
seen from the north end
A huge stump in the lock
Boardwalk
This area was full of gnawed off trees
Stumpy Basin was a wide section of the canal,
which allowed boats to turn around or be put in storage;
ice was harvested from the basin in the winter;
it is now a protected wetland
Another view of "our" basin
Unidentified seedhead 
Tree growing in the canal
Ohio Turnpike bridge reflection
The bridge abutments interfere with the reflections
of the dead trees in the canal
Message in a bottle?
At first glance, it looked like the Ohio Turnpike
Bridge had a blue neon light running along the
center of the underside, but it is the sky!
Ubiquitous iron truss canal bridge
A beaver lodge?
Chrysemys picta marginata/Midland Painted Turtle
More Midland painted turtles
A rock outcrop with a strange linear cut (in front)
Ubiquitous Canada Geese
Cuyahoga River rapids below a "dam"
Did they purposely block an oxbow section of the
Cuyahoga River, then allowed debris to build up?
Thus ends another 50-mile hike.

(We hiked the "first" section of the Towpath Trail that follows the old Ohio & Erie Canal on July 6, 2014 from Harvard Road to the Marcy Trestle. We started at the Canalway Center near the trestle and walked to the overpass of I-77 on November 9, 2014. On December 26, 2014, we walked between the I-77 overpass and Quaker Steak on Canal Road in Valley View. On September 27, 2015, we hiked between Quaker Steak on Canal Road and Lock 38. On October 4, 2015, we went between Lock 38 and Alexander's Mill. On November 8, 2015, we hiked from Alexander's Mill halfway to Station Road Bridge. On November 29, 2015, we went from Station Road Bridge halfway back to Alexander's Mill. On December 6, 2015, we went from Station Road Bridge to Red Lock. December 13, 2015 was between Red Lock and Boston Store. On February 28, 2016, we hiked from Lock 29 back to Boston Store.)

Monday, February 8, 2016

Tree Removal (2/8/2016)

Monday, February 8, 2016
We were hoping for another sunny day, but no luck. Today the tree service people were coming to cut down our double-trunk ash tree (Fraxinus spp), which has been infested with emerald ash borers (Agrilus planipennis). The tree was dying, and we couldn't afford to have it fall on our house, or our neighbors' houses! It is basically two trees.
Five men arrived in four trucks: a crane truck, a cherry picker, a small utility truck pulling a chipper/shredder, and another utility truck pulling a stump grinder.
To carefully back the crane truck down our narrow driveway to the back yard, they put down pieces of plywood overlapping the edges of the driveway to create the widest driveway they could.
Crane truck in our backyard; note the extended tree pruner
holding back the power lines! And the two trees creating a 'V' to the right
The arborist, or is he a lumberjack?, with all his gear
The crane cable lifted the "tree surgeon"
and deposited him on the ash tree
If those are foot markings on the crane, then I estimate it can reach up to 75 feet.
After some initial cuts, he started by
cutting off the top third of the tree
It was like having a full-grown tree outside
a second story window!
The chipper/shredder truck
The chipping/shredding took place in the driveway: noisy!
You can see that it is starting to snow!
This guy had to wait for the  top part of the tree
to be cut up enough to free the crane cable
He attached the crane cable to the trunk
He pulled up a larger chainsaw
and cut the remaining trunk of the tree in half
The crane lifted the tree trunk
making sure it got over one set of wires
and lowered it into the truck
They were shredding "branches" up to 6-8 inches, but had to haul away the thicker trunks.
Someone else got to cut the base of the trunk
Then they still had to cut down the other tree! Eventually the crane truck backed down the driveway, and the stump grinder truck backed in and got the thing right up to the stump!
Stump grinder truck
Grinding the stump
Next: a new fence!

Sunday, February 7, 2016

Cleveland Architecture Part I (2/7/2016)

Sunday, February 7, 2016
Took advantage of another sunny day to do a city hike in downtown Cleveland. (It is often very difficult to get photos of a complete building when you can't back up far enough because of the other big buildings in a cityscape!)
The Hanna Building, E 14th Street side near
Euclid Avenue, (1920-1921, designed
by Charles Adams Platt)
The Hanna Building E 14th Street entrance;
listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1978 as part of the Playhouse Square Group
The Hanna Building seen from Euclid Avenue
(5/30/2016)
The Hanna Building Euclid Avenue portal
(5/30/2016)
The Hoyt Block (1886)
at 700 W St Clair Avenue
The Hoyt Block detail
Later I learned the Hoyt Block is actually next door at 608 W Clair Avenue!
The Hoyt Block (1874, designed by Walter Blythe) is one of the few
remaining stone buildings in Cleveland, and had one of the first
hydraulic elevators; listed on the National Register of
Historic Places in 1974 (4/17/2016)
The Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen Building (1921, designed by
Charles Sumner Schneider) and the Perry- Payne Building (1889, designed
by Frank Cudell & John Richardson) at 820 & 740 W Superior Avenue;
the latter was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973
Terminal Tower (1926-1927,
designed by Graham, Anderson, Probst & White)
Rockefeller Building (1903-1905, designed by
Wilm Knox & John Elliot, in Sullivanesque style),
at 614 W Superior Avenue; listed on
the National Register of Historic Places in 1973
The "Sullivanesque" style is notable for the ornamental patterns
of intricate weaving of linear and geometric forms with stylized foliage,
resembling Irish medieval folk art, here in cast-iron (4/17/2016)
Rockefeller Building detail (4/17/2016)
Rockefeller Building entrance (4/17/2016)
The Rockefeller Building was built on the site of the Weddell House (1847), where Abraham Lincoln spent the night on 2/15/1861, while on his way to his first inauguration as President of the United States.
Last (1979) by Tony Smith,
at the Frank J Lausche State Office Building (1979)
at 615 W Superior Avenue (4/17/2016)
Key Tower (1991, designed by Cesar Pelli);
from 1991-2007 it was the tallest building
between NYC and Chicago, and it remains
the tallest building in Ohio
Warehouse District "SmallBox" shops (4/17/2016)
Terminal Tower reflected on
55 Public Square (1958, built as the
Illuminating Building)
75 Public Square (1915, designed by
Hubbell & Barnes), built as the Illuminating
Building until replaced by 55 Public Square
Public Square is being renovated...
Society for Savings Building (1889-1990,
designed by John Wellborn Root) at 127 Public Square;
it was Cleveland's first modern skyscraper and
from 1890-1896 it was the tallest building in Cleveland
Society for Savings Building wrought-iron detail
Second story window in ground floor arch
Society for Savings Building entrance; listed on
the National Register of Historic Buildings in 1976,
(I haven't figured out why the building is dated AD 1888)
Public Square side of the Howard M Metzenbaum US Courthouse
(1903-1910, designed by Arnold W Brunner in Beaux-Arts style
as the Federal Building and US Courthouse);
listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974
Howard M Metzenbaum US Courthouse,
Euclid Avenue façade (4/17/2016)
Jurisprudence (1911) by
Daniel Chester French (4/17/2016)
Commerce (1910) by
Daniel Chester French (4/17/2016)
US Courthouse entrance with three of nine heads,
each carved with a different expression (4/17/2016)
Fountain of Eternal Life or
Peace Arising from the Flames (1964, by
Marshall Fredericks), started as a memorial to
veterans of the Vietnam War, but since has been
renovated to include names of veterans from
1899 (Spanish-American War) to 2014 (Iraq War)
The four base sculptures of the Fountain of Eternal Life represent the four "geographic civilizations" of the world: Nordic, Eastern, Southern, and Western, according to the artist. The fountain is located in what was called Mall A, but is now called Veteran's Memorial Plaza in the Cleveland Mall. The Mall is a large open area surrounded by public buildings from a design called the Group Plan of 1903, considered to be the earliest and most complete civic center plan outside of Washington, DC.
Cleveland Board of Education Building (1931, designed by
Walker and Weeks in neoclassical style);
listed on the National register of Historic Places in 1975;
it appears it is being renovated to become a Drury Hotel
A statue of Abraham Lincoln (1932, by Max Kalish)
stands in front of the Board of Education Building
having been paid for by donations by schoolchildren 
Board of Education Building detail with the Western Hemisphere
Board of Education detail with the Eastern Hemisphere
Cleveland Public Auditorium (1920-1922, designed by
J Harold McDowell and Frank Walker in neoclassical style)
as part of the Group Plan of 1903
The Cleveland Public Auditorium was the largest of its kind when it opened, seating 11,500 people. It is still used today, including for the Rock and Roll Hall of fame induction ceremonies.
Cleveland City Hall (1912-1916, designed by J Milton Dyer, with a
Beaux-Arts entrance bay and 2-story Tuscan colonnade),
as part of the Group Plan of 1903 and a twin to the County Courthouse
Bug Screen (2008) by Pae White, showing patterns from
insect wings and spiderwebs; located at the
Anthony J Celebrezze Federal Building
Free Stamp (1982) by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen
Free Stamp was commissioned in 1982 by Sohio, but then BP bought out Sohio and didn't want the art installation. It was donated to the city, and placed in Willard Park in 1991, looking ironically as if
it was thrown from the Sohio/BP Building!
Pulaski Plaza with a monument honoring General Casimir Pulaski,
a Polish nobleman and military commander who came to
North America in exile, and helped the cause of the American Revolution;
the cannon (1899) is known as a "Polish rifle"
 Erieview Plaza at the north end of the Cleveland Mall has a great view of the buildings on the shore of Lake Erie.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum
(1993-1995, designed by I M Pei)
Great Lakes Science Center (1996)
As you can see,Lake Erie has not yet frozen over this winter.
FirstEnergy Stadium (1997-1999), built as the second
Cleveland Municipal Stadium until naming rights were sold in 2013
The Cuyahoga County Courthouse (1906-1912, designed by
Charles Morris of Lehman & Schmitt in Beaux-Arts style
with a 2-story Ionian colonnade), a part of the Group Plan of 1903
Alexander Hamilton (1914) by Karl Bitter,
 flanking the courthouse entrance steps
Thomas Jefferson (1914) by Karl Bitter
flanking the courthouse entrance steps
The Cuyahoga County Courthouse from the lake side (4/23/2016)
Oliver Hazard Perry Monument (1860,
built for Public Square)
The monument has moved several times: in 1892 it was put in storage when it was replaced by the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument in Public Square, and in 1894 it was placed in Wade Park, then in 1913 it moved to Gordon Park, and finally in 1991 to Fort Huntington Park. The original statue by William Walcutt was re-cast in 1929, and the original sent to Perrysburg, OH. This statue is one of two copies, and the second copy is at the Statehouse in Providence, RI.
Prosecutor (1957-1991) John T Corrigan Memorial
(2004, by Milano Monuments) in Fort Huntington Park
Jesse Owens (1982) by William McVey,
in Fort Huntington Park
The family of Jesse Owens moved to Cleveland from Alabama when he was nine years old. He attended East Technical High School and tied the 100-yard dash world record when he was a senior. He went on to excel in track and field at Ohio State University, where he set three world records and tied his own record in the 100-yard dash. He may be best remembered for participating in the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin, winning four gold medals and thus discrediting Hitler's theory on the master race.
Bertsch Building (1903, built as Wohl's
Hungarian Building that had a Hungarian restaurant),
later it was named the Lawyers Building
as it is located across from Cuyahoga County Jail
Quicken Loans Arena (1991-1994 as Gund Arena,
renamed when Quicken Loans owner bought into the NBA
Cleveland Cavaliers in 2005 and renovated the arena)