Hi folks! I just wanted to stick something beautiful up since this place has been getting a bit stale lately. Apologies all around for the molasses-like rate I've fallen into. My too-busy-to-blog interlude will continue for another while but the time shall soon come when we can ponder life's curiosities together once again. My list of future posts never stops growing.
Oh, and the picture? Just an image of a postcard I swiped from somewhere forgotten. (If it was from you then I'm sorry.) It's one of those scenes that makes me wish I could be in another time and place so badly that it's almost unhealthy.
10 comments:
I have been to that store many times!
It is in Cave City, Kentucky.
(This is near Mammoth Cave)
We would stay at a hotel that was right behind it and would visit the Chest after dining at the Long Johns Silvers.
Sadly it is gone now or I would still be visiting.
Yes Cave City. I visited that store a couple of times back in the 80's while on family vacations.
Also if I'm not mistaken, that should be Guntown Mountain in the background which I blogged about here.
Glad to see you're still alive Kirk!
You guys are amazing! Brian you just described my fantasy vacationland experience.
Can either of you recall what was in the treasure chest shoppe? I probably have a good idea, but do you remember any specifics? Did you ever buy anything?
I'm still a Long John's fan but I loved when they were more pirate themed. I also liked when you could see the food behind glass as you stood in line. And it was all nested in mountains of golden "krumbs" or crunchies or whatever you want to call them.
Nice post David! Now I remember there's some info on that place in my Land of the Smokies book by Tim Hollis.
I need to see what's left of that area sometime.
I think I'm gonna burst whatever fantasy you may have about this place when I say it was very nice inside.
I remember it felt a lot like a Hallmark store. This place was a "gift" store and not a tacky souvenir shop. I remember being sorta bored while my mother looked at stuff. Not a whole lot in there to entertain a young boy.
The building seemed rather new too, and I'd guess it was built in the late 1970's.
We bought a few things there, but I can only remember one thing. They had a collection of rocks, minerals, and geodes (this being Cave City, I'm sure they had some "cave rocks" too, but I remember got my cave rocks - an actual stalactite, at another place).
Anyway, we bought this rock that had very delicate needle-like crystal formations on it. But unfortunately it didn't really survive the trip home in the car very well.
Okay, I guess that's not as wacky as I would have hoped. Maybe that's why they didn't make it. If you're going to do the novelty structure thing, then you need at least some of the merchandise to be just as unusual. Appeasing the young boy market seems like a must!
Anyway, thanks for the extra info!
Great to hear from you - it's been a while! I hope you are working on something worthy of your super powers...
So nice of you to say Brick. Great to hear from you too! Ha, yes some of it is good stuff that will surface here eventually and some is pure nonsense that is necessary for survival.
Just popped in to your blog and got a solid fifteen minutes worth of much needed entertainment through the first page alone. Way to blog fun blogger!
David W. is right about the contents not matching the exterior.
I remember begging to go there expecting wonderful treasures but the "Hallmark" feel nailed its contents.
I remember getting a key chain cap gun. A little miniature gun that took the plastic caps that were all fastened together in a circle.
Guntown Mountain is in the background and the WigWam hotel is still just around the corner from this spot.
The place Kirk would love is the Virtigo House. It is one of those places where water runs up hill and gravity is defied in each room.
They also sold cool plastic treasure.
It has opened and closed spuractically over the years but I did get to take my kids through it once.
Good then, my feeling of missing out is lessening. But I'm glad to hear there was SOMETHING for kids there.
I was looking at google maps and I think I see exactly where this postcard photo was taken.
I also did some flickr searches for cave city and it still looks like the type of place I would like to visit. Quite a few nice old signs, several souvenir shops, mini golf and and a well kept dinosaur world. Not to mention the Guntown mountain. And I'd have to sleep in a Wig Wam. Yes, I would have loved vertigo house, but at least I've been to similar places. Thanks guys for introducing me to a stop on a future road trip.
It just seems wrong that they don't have stuff for the boys who dogged mom & dad for several miles until they finally turned around and drove back to this place.
Post a Comment