Author Archives: Marjorie

Tunneling through history: the Blue Ridge Tunnel

Marjorie Turner Hollman is an author, creator, and observer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

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Emerging from the Blue Ridge Tunnel

It’s a long drive from New England where we live, to Tennessee, where our grandboys (and their parents!) are. On our way there, or when traveling back toward home, we make a point of stopping places that offer Easy Walks, (not too many roots or rocks, relatively level with firm footing, and something of interest along the way). After a recent visit, we headed for the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia, but before we got onto the parkway itself we stopped at the Blue Ridge Tunnel.

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Sand skiing

Indiana Dunes National Park

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Marjorie Turner Hollman is an author, creator, and observer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

Have you ever felt like you’ve been someplace before, even when you know the surroundings are new to you? On a recent trip I got that feeling, though perhaps, it was more of an echo of the past. Different state, different circumstances, and with different people. One common denominator tied my memory with the reality: sand dunes. We stopped to visit Indiana Dunes National Park. The Indiana Dunes State Park is adjacent to the national park and thus a substantial stretch of dunes buffers the surrounding area from the mighty waves of Lake Michigan.

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Niagara Falls: more than you think

Marjorie Turner Hollman is an author, creator, and observer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

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Standing on the American side of the Canadian (Horseshoe) Falls

Leaving from New England and traveling west, our logical first stopping point was near Buffalo, New York. Should we visit Niagara Falls? I had never been, but had heard of the massive commercialization near the iconic destination and felt sure it would be a disappointment.

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Southern New England Ocean Views

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

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Off season at Gooseberry Island, Westport, MA

In southern New England we are lucky to have a number of sections of coastline that are open to the public and easily accessible. My family heads to the coast for day trips, including Rhode Island and Connecticut since we are so close to the borders of both these states, mostly in the swing seasons (spring and fall). We choose coastal winter walks when other areas are likely to have ice-filled paths. Visiting in the swing seasons and even the dead of winter helps us avoid heat, bugs, traffic, and crowds that make summer coastal visits not so much fun for us.

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Our House in the Tropics

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

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The back yard of our house, 1965

The following is my response to an exercise often suggested for groups looking to learn to tell stories. “I don’t have stories to tell” is a frequent reply. Despite resistance, participants are encouraged to simply describe a room (or two in this case) in a house where you spent a lot of time growing up. If this sounds like fun, try it! I’d love to hear what you came up with. MTH

Our house was built on land that had once been part of the Everglades. To drain the area, ditches were carved out to create buildable property for newcomers to the area. One of those ditches was in our back yard. It became a source of endless entertainment, much to our parents’ chagrin.

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Hiding in plain sight—New England ruins

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

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Triad bridge cement abutment, Blackstone, Massachusetts

I was asked to review a new book that will be published April 2, 2024, Hiking Ruins in Southern New England. It was gratifying to see that the authors, both archeologists, not only provided information about archeological remains along trails, but also included helpful maps and information about how to reach the various locations they pinpointed in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Color photos convey a lot about what they categorize as ruins. In addition, they offered information about trail surfaces, a real gift to those of us with mobility challenges. This book made me want to get out and start checking these destinations off my list. Reading through the guide brought to mind multiple locations I have visited that feature similar ruins.

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The River Meets the Sound—Milford, CT

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

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Boardwalk onto the beach at the Coastal Center

We had an errand in the Milford, CT area and since it was a substantial drive for us from south central MA we made time to stop at a local Audubon shoreline sanctuary that we discovered not far from our destination.

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Beaver Pond Franklin, MA in winter

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

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Beaver Pond area in winter

Beaver Pond is quite close to downtown Franklin, MA, but feels a world away from the bustle of Dean College, churches, businesses, the town common, and the well-used commuter rail station. Rt. 495 skirts this conservation area, so quiet is not at the top of the list of attractions here. Despite the noise, the views are lovely, both from the beach area overlooking the water, and amidst the tree-lined path that skirts the edge of the pond.

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Strenuous travel-EJ Phillips and me

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

E.J. Phillips, actress, devoted mother and grandmother

Ambivalent—that’s how I feel about travel, especially when the likelihood is high of it being strenuous. I have the heart of a world traveler but the body of a day-tripper. A yearning for travel is in my very bones, yet the effort involved in leaving home can freeze me in my tracks.

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Bicycle craze

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

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Out on our tandem during the Covid pandemic (Acadia National Park)

We humans are prone to “enthusiasms.” Even though we want to distinguish ourselves from others, being attracted to what “everyone else” is doing seems to be in our makeup. I saw this most recently during the Covid Pandemic that began in 2020. Suddenly deprived of indoor entertainment and ways of gathering safely, crowds headed outdoors and soon parks and trails were jammed with visitors. It became so bad that those overseeing these outdoor spaces felt forced to close them because of concern for contagion. We ourselves continued to ride our tandem bicycle, but shifted our habit of riding on rail trails, instead turning to quiet country roads to spend time outdoors away from crowds.

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