Wouldn’t you just love to live in this! OMG I don’t know how the sturdy pioneer woman did it!! We drove over to Ash Hollow today – I have many photos so I will do several blog post with them. This post will be just on the sod house 
With two doors and no windows I’m not sure how the pioneer woman got her sewing done – she must have been almost blind from eye strain within a few years of living here. Maybe she put her rocking chair (if she had one) outside by the door when she was working on her sewing so she would have more light?
The little sod house - so nice and cozy I'm sure. Made from cutting the ground up into squares or oblong pieces and stacking. Inside is muddy and damp, dirt dropping I imagine and bugs crawling.
the inside of the "house"
I looked up at the roof and saw these cactus - I thought it was really weird to have cactus growing on the roof.
then I walked around to the back of the house and looked up and saw the roof was covered in prickly pear cactus!
While we were looking and taking photos another tourist came by so I had him take a photo of Mike and I in front of this house
for some unknown reason (to me that is) in this part of the country it is not uncommon to see boots placed on fence posts. The property by the sod house had a whole string of boots on the fence post. Anyone know the reason for this tradition?
I will do one or two more post on Ash Hollow – like I say I have a lot of photos. I will get behind on posts at some point I am sure. So far we have had a cell signal strong enough for internet at all places we have been – I’m sure sooner or later there will be several days in a row without it.
Tomorrow we move on and will be at the end of Western Nebraska. We will see Chimney Rock and Scotts Bluff National Momument. Depending on where we find a campsite we might also be seeing historic Fort Laramie in Wyoming.
An update on the quilting front I am about 2/3′rds done with one applique block – wonder if I will get done with it by the weekend. I have not spent much time at it. We have been taking walks as often as we can, we are trying to get in shape for hikes in the mountains later this month. I think we did 2 miles yesterday (one walk) and 3 walks today for a total of about 4 miles.
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My hat is off to our fore mothers!! What a hard life they had!! When I see the old farm houses I think of the women that must have been so excited to have a wood house and WINDOWS!!
Crispy
I can’t imagine living like that. Of course, in that time, no one knew a different life. But now, there’s no way.
Makes me really thankful for all we have.
.-= Vivian´s last blog ..Wonderful Visit with a New Friend =-.
Oh baby! Can you imagine the creepy crawlies in a house like that? Thanks for the photo trip, that was pretty awesome!
Enjoy the break from quilting, change is always nice!
.-= CJ´s last blog ..NOW the luggage arrives- =-.
Oh imagine the women’s work which was never done, so much labour…we are a hardy group for sure.
What wonderful photos, again I feel we are all on your journey…
The fact that the house is still standing is amazing…glass was so very expensive and to travel so far without shattering…imagine.
Don’t know about the boots, but were there any in your size? Yeah, I wonder why they are there too!
Thanks for let us following you on your juorney.
Interesting to read and to see your photo
I read that someone had seen this done near Mt Rushmore and had this to say about boots on the fence post: In 1988, a historian turned up a report of another row of boot-topped fence posts east of Mount Rushmore. Those boots were said to have belonged to ranch hands who quit.
It seems to be following suit around other parts of the country!!
In Montgomery out on some property east a man said he kept finding baseball caps either thrown on the side of his property or lost from the back of trucks so he would pick them up and nail them to his fence posts – now he has found that all of his fence posts facing the road have different baseball caps on them! really neat! Other Montgomerians will go by and nail one on if there is a fence post missing!
Oh – I wouldn’t want to live there! Teri Dingler
I love seeing your vacation photos. I remember reading your blog when you were preparing the blocks to take on your trip but just read back far enough to see that you are going to be gone for 8 weeks. What a great trip!!!! Enjoy the walks and seeing all the gorgeous scenery. Thanks for sharing your travels.
.-= LuAnn´s last blog ..A QUILT SURPRISE =-.
Karen, Nice that you got a photo of you and Mike together. That is sometimes hard to do. The sod house: Wow, I cannot imagine. There are a lot of things I might be able to give up but windows and my washer are two I would not want to do so. Two quick questions: 1) Do you stock up on meals preparations before leaving and then stop along the way a grocery stores for more supplies as needed (and/or maybe you eat out now and then)? 2) Have you gotten much quilting done yet? LOL
Thank you so much for the photos of the soddy! Your pictures are so much better than the ones I’ve seen in history books! One photo I will never forget…the whole family is posed outside their soddy-and guess what was front and center-give pride of place in the photograph: their sewing machine!
I don’t know how they lived like that…especially the women coming from cities back East. It must have been very hard and they must have been very determined.
.-= Miri´s last blog ..Black and White Log Cabin Quilt Finished =-.
I’ve always had the greatest respect for our foremothers and all they did – which included living in soddies. Do you know when this one was built? It actually looks rather large compared to some pictures I’ve seen of the original ones.
Thanks for taking me along on your trip! I love history and can’t wait to see where “we” go next!!!
Have fun!
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