Below are some photos of the Culinary Institute Of America’s corkscrew museum.

You’ll find every kind of corkscrew in the CIA’s museum that you can imagine, from deer antler handled ones, to small pocket models, high tech gas operated corkscrews, and whimsical figurine corkscrews.

Ivory and deer antler corkscrews such as those in the photo above were popular in Europe in the  1700′s – 1800′s.

The antique corkscrews in the collection, seen above, were designed to be carried in a gentleman’s pocket.

Directions To The the Culinary Institute Of America, Greystone Campus, located near the town of  St Helena, CA.  (Napa Valley)

The CIA Greystone campus, which includes a restaurant open to the public, is located on highway 29, just one mile north of St. Helena.  There are a number of activities available for visitors, including browsing the school’s store, wine tastings, wine classes, cooking classes and of course the corkscrew museum.

Below is a map showing the location of the Greystone campus.

My wife and I took the Napa Valley Wine train tour in September of 2011 and found the food and service to be of excellent quality.  We had previously read about the tour on TripAdvisor and saw that it had mostly great reviews, though some folks who were not accustomed to older trains complained about the slightly jerky motion of the train at times. This is just is normal for older railways and we found it to be just a part of the charm of it all.  The tracks that the wine train travels along were originally laid in the 1860′s, when the train brought tourists to the hot springs spa at Calistoga.

The Napa Valley Wine train consists of nine cars. There are four lounge cars, two dining cars, the Vista Dome car, the Silverado car and the kitchen car. Our seating was in the Vista Dome car, which provides a panoramic view of the hills, sky and vineyards. As we left the station a full moon was rising, and could be seen above our table as it rose in the sky.  Built in 1952, the Vista Dome car was lavishly restored and is one of just a few remaining in use in the world today. The lounge and dining cars were built between 1915 – 1917. Keep in mind that this is an antique train. Watch your step as you move from car to car and be careful in narrow hallways and on the steep stairs up to the Vista Dome car. Wine tastings are held in the Zinfandel lounge car.

There are a number of side tours available on the Napa Valley Wine Train. You may choose the evening dining tour, which is simply a trip to St. Helena and back, or one which features winery tours as part of the train ride. For up to date info on tours available, check Winetrain.com for the current schedule.

A Worthwhile Part Of A Napa Vacation

While some may find the Napa Valley Wine train a bit on the “cheesy” side, it’s not every day that you can dine in an early 1900′s rail car as it travels through scenic vineyards. If you have even the slightest affection for trains, you’ll love riding on a piece of railroad history in one of the most beautiful parts of America.  We found the food to be excellent, though a bit pricey, but “food with a view” always is. At the time of our visit the Vista Dome dining package was around $129, which includes a three course meal and a glass of champagne. (Note that the chefs use only humanely raised, hormone free meats and fish, and locally sourced fruits and vegetables.) We found staff on the Wine Train to be professional and courteous and we did not experience any delays in service. In St. Helena the lights go off for just an instant as the train’s locomotive is disconnected and moved to the back. The train is hooked up to city power in the meantime, and this takes only a few seconds.

Photos Of Napa Valley Wine Train

Below are some photos of the wine train that we took in September of 2011.

Below, inside the Vista Dome dining car. Glass of complimentary Champagne, orchid on table.

It’s simply unbelievable how the chefs on the Napa Wine Train can cook all of the meals served in the close quarters of the kitchen car. You can view the train’s kitchen car as you walk from one end of the train to the other.

Directions And Map To Napa Valley Wine Train

The train departs from the McKinstry Street Station in the Oxbow district, about five minutes by foot from downtown Napa. The station is located at 1275 McKinstry Street, which is the address you can use for GPS navigation.  Below is a map of the Napa Valley Wine Train location.

The phone number for the Napa Valley Wine train is 1-800-427-4124.

My wife and I stopped in for lunch in September of 2011 and found the staff very friendly and helpful in explaining to a novice how to shell an oyster. If you buy a half dozen or more of oysters, they’ll provide you with a glove and shucking knife, hot sauce and even a barbecue pit should you want to cook them. Mesquite firewood is available, or you can bring your own charcoal.

Above, one of the friendly folks at Hog Island Oyster company shucking a sample oyster for me to try. If raw oysters are not your thing, you can always grill them up on one of the BBQ’s located  next to the bay.

Hog Island Oyster Company has earned the first Food Alliance Sustainable Shellfish Certification and is a leader in sustainable mariculture. They sell wholesale, at farmers markets and have and oyster bar in Napa and San Francisco, as well as a traveling oyster bar which can come to your function.

Directions to Hog Island Oyster Company. It is located on Tomales Bay, about 49 miles north of San Francisco on Hwy-1. See the Google map below for directions.

This is a great little stop that you’ll enjoy even if you don’t like oysters. To get to Hog Island Oyster Co, take Hwy-1 north from San Francisco and follow it to 20215 Highway 1, Marshall, Ca. Their phone number is 415.663.9218

A number of secluded coves can be found along this hike. Bird watching at Bodega Head is some of the best around, and draws birders from all over the nation. Wildflowers blanket the hillsides in color in springtime, offering some nice scenes for photographers.

Directions To Bodega Head.

From Highway 1, drive through the the town of Bodega Bay. At Eastshore Rd, you will see a sign for the Bodega Bay Marina. Turn left here, follow the road down the hill, then make a right turn onto Bay Flat Road. Go past Bodega Harbor and follow the road southeast. Look for the Campbell Cove sign.  Just up the hill is a free parking lot and public restrooms. Stay on the maintained trails and off of the barren cliffs, as human caused erosion is becoming a problem. You can follow the hiking trail counter clockwise around Bodega Head. Along the way, you can hear the sound of seals and sea lions coming from Seal Rock just offshore. A local captain, Captain Rick, takes tourists out to seal rock.

As you come back down the hill, stop and take a look at “Hole In The Head” This huge hole was dug as part of a nuclear reactor project which was scrapped by PG&E years ago and then donated to the state park system. Lots of bird life can be found around the pond, and birders often set up tripods and use cameras with long lenses to photograph them.

Below is a photo taken along the Bodega Head hiking trail, looking back toward the town of Bodega Bay. There are actually a couple of hiking paths you can take here. One will take you down to the Salmon Creek/Bodega Dunes loop which will take you down to Bodega Dunes Campground. A map of the trails can be found in the parking lot at the top of the hill.

Below is a Google map of Bodega Head. You’ll find a better hiking map at the trailhead.

The old fort in nearby Ft. Davis was built in the mid 18oo’s to protect settlers and travelers from Apache, Comanche and Kiowa raiding parties.  It was named after the former U.S. secretary of war Jefferson Davis, who also later served as president of the Confederacy.  Ft. Davis was later home to the Buffalo Soldiers.  A nearby “must see” is McDonald Observatory, operated by the University of Texas  which is open to the public.  Telescopes are available for stargazing at the base of Mt. Locke.

Below is a map of Ft. Davis State Park

Below is a highway map of Davis Mountains State Park.

Directions to Davis Mountains State Park:

To visit Davis Mountains State park, drive 1 mile north of Fort Davis on State Highway 17 to State Highway 118N.  Travel west on State Highway 118N for 3 miles to Park Road 3 where you will enter the park.  Phone number for Davis Mountains state park is 432/426-3337

There are frequently burn bans in Davis Mountains State park when wood and charcoal fires may be prohibited. You can call the park phone number for information on burn bans and for reservations. Don’t miss this beautiful state park. It has much to offer visitors of all ages.

History Of Inks Lake in Texas

Inks Lake was named after Roy B. Inks, one of the original board members of the Lower Colorado River Authority, which has jurisdiction over the lake. The land was used for cattle grazing by a number of ranchers since the 1800′s until it was acquired by the state of Texas in the 1940′s. Inks Lake State Park, comprising some 1200 acres, was opened to the public in the 1950′s.  The granite hills surrounding the park, were home to various bands of Native American tribes before the mid 1800′s.  The lake is formed by Inks dam, on the Colorado River.

Things to do at Inks Lake State Park.

There are numerous campsites in the park including tent sites, RV sites and even backpack camping areas. Guided geology and nature tours are available. Fishing is often excellent in Inks Lake State Park, with crappie, bass and catfish the species most commonly caught by anglers.  One of the best times to visit Inks Lake State Park is in the springtime, when there are many kinds of beautiful wildflowers to see on the granite shores and hills surrounding the lake. Wildlife in Inks Lake state park includes songbirds, raccoons, opossums, white tail deer, and other small animals. Not far away from Inks Lake is Longhorn Cavern, which is also a state park open to the public.  If you have a chance to take the Vanishing Texas River Cruise, do so. This unforgettable tour allows tourists to see nesting bald eagles and other wildlife along the undeveloped shores of lake Buchanan.   The historic main streets of nearby Burnet and Marble Falls offer many opportunities for shopping and dining. Located just four miles from the park, Buchannan Dam, which creates Lake Buchanan, is the world’s largest multi-arch dam.

Below is a highway map of Inks Lake State Park.

Directions To Inks Lake State Park

Inks Lake State Park is located just 9 miles west of Burnet. Take State Highway 29 to Park Road 4. Then go south 3 miles to the park headquarters.

To find out about park details, such as closures, fire bans, etc. call the park headquarters at the following address or phone number:

Inks Lake State Park

3630 Park Road 4 West
Burnet TX 78611
512/793-2223

McKinney Falls State Park maps are available at the park office.

Directions To McKinney Falls State Park:

The park is located just a few minutes south of downtown Austin. Take US Hwy 183 to McKinney Falls Parkway. Follow the road to the park entrance as seen in the map of McKinney Falls state park below.  The address of the park is

McKinney Falls State Park,

5808 McKinney Falls Parkway
Austin, TX 78744
Phone: 512/243-1643

Below is a map of McKinney Falls State park, as well as a map showing how to get to McKinney Falls State Park.

Below is a map of McKinney Falls state park showing major roads and highways near the park.

This is a very nice state park and is well worth visiting. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.

Excerpts

In the Excerpt box write a short summary of the article.

Search Engine Placement and Keywords

At the bottom of every post page is the “All In One SEO” form. Fill in the title section with a very descriptive title that is also unique. For example, if your article is about a popular museum there are likely hundreds of web entries about that place and an ordinary title will condemn your article to page three or worse on Google.  However if your title is more unique, such as “Houston Modern Art Museum Directions and Hours” you are more likely to be found by those searching the web for that niche information. Smaller niche topics are good for long term earnings. The smaller the niche the higher your article can rank. Just be sure your title is descriptive and not too short. “Bryce Canyon” is an example of a bad article title. “Where To Find Fossils In Bryce Canyon” is better because it would likely rank on the first page of search results for someone typing in that exact phrase, if it contained enough text and unique keywords, had enough backlinks, etc.  No one formula can place your article on page one of search results but you can stack the deck in your favor.

For the SEO description write a summary of the article that contains the essence of the article. For example, “A look at the best places to find fossils in Bryce Canyon. Map and location of fossil sites in Bryce Canyon and paleontology.”

For keywords choose those that searchers might use when looking for your article such as “Bryce Canyon fossils, Bryce Canyon, Bryce Canyon paleontology,”.  You can use individual words and groups of words.

About Keywords

There is a fine line between too many keywords and not enough. Your article entitled “Map Of Fossil Sites Of Bryce Canyon” should contain that phrase or related phrases in each paragraph. “Some great fossil sites of Bryce Canyon can be seen in the following map”.  And “the fossil sites we visited in Bryce Canyon were amazing”. You get the picture. What you don’t want to do is overdo it. Google’s “robot” can sense when you are using too many keywords on purpose.

Article Size

There are volumes of SEO or search engine optimization tips on the web. Most suggest that your article be at least 400 words. This is a good rule of thumb. The more unique content you have the better. All content submitted to MyGeoInfo must be 100% original. Google, Yahoo, and other search engines can identify copied and pasted content and will rank your article lower.

Backlinks

Another determination of how high your article will rank in search engine results are the amount of backlinks, or other sites linking to your article. This is where using other sites, such as Xomba, Clipmarks, Infopirate, SheToldMe, Delicious, Digg, Mixx, Reddit, etc. The more of these bookmarking sites you submit your article to the better. In addition, try to become an active member of these sites and try to build a following. For example, one way that has traditionally been used to build followers on sites like Twitter is to follow other members with the hope that they will follow you back. About ten to twenty percent will usually follow you back.

All of this bookmarking and Tweeting is hard work. However, it is the best way for your article to be found. Even if your MyGeoInfo article does not appear on page one of Google’s results, you may find that a Clipmarks or Xomba bookmark will appear there with a link to your article. Either way you win and if the bookmarking site also shares Adsense revenue you have more chances of earning.

Facebook is another way to promote your articles. If you have a lot of friends on Facebook then you can share your MyGeoInfo articles with them for more views.

Use A Different Title And Description When Bookmarking

Here is something that many people do that is a huge mistake. They bookmark an article to several sites using the same title and description as the main article. Many sites like Yahoo Buzz import the title and description from your article but you want to change this. The reason for this is that the more titles you have for your article the better chance it will get at being found by different search terms. In the above example you might use “Bryce Canyon Paleontology Sites” on one bookmarking site and “Fossil sites of Bryce Canyon” on another. Write slightly different summaries on each site to catch different web searches that may occur.

High Earning Keywords

Some keywords are worth much more per click than others. While Google does not disclose how much, those about high value places may earn you more money. Travel ads in general are usually high earners, so place themed articles are good for long term residual income. You may also consider submitting articles including details, maps and directions about places like high end health resorts which may earn even more.

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The McDonald’s Analogy

McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc was fond of saying “early to bed, early to rise, advertise, advertise, advertise”. With article promotion it is no different. You must promote your articles by submitting them to as many places as possible. Join all of the social bookmarking sites you can. The current most effective sites, in terms of Google page rank, are Digg, Mixx, Xomba, InfoPirate, SheToldMe and  Clipmarks (plus Amplify). With Clipmarks, plus Amplify, you can submit to several bookmarking sites at once including your Google Blog. Social bookmarking sites come and go from favor though. Do a Google search for your article using the title after a few days and see which of the sites that you used come up first in the search results and focus on those first when bookmarking new articles.

King’s Inn Restaurant Review.

The King’s Inn Restaurant is one of my favorite restaurants in South Texas. It is not easy to get to, has a limited menu and no wine, but other than that it is a great place to eat. There is no menu, only a verbal one that your waiter tells you. The fare is seafood, and lots of it. Specialties are fried shrimp and black drum, which is a locally caught fish. The restaurant sits on the edge of Baffin Bay, a little over a half hour drive from the college town of Kingsville Texas. The closest town to the restaurant is Riviera, TX.

Directions To King’s Inn Restaurant Near Riviera, TX.

Take U.S. 77 south from Kingsville and go left at FM 628; keep going until you hit the water.

Use the map below and locate Loyola Beach, south of Kingsville on the water. King’s Inn is in Loyola Beach.

The building is not anything fancy, in fact it looks a little weather worn and windswept. It has withstood countless gulf tropical storms and hurricanes.

Inside you’ll notice lots of memorabilia and photos on the wall and large dining areas where you can bring a whole wedding party. Groups are welcome at the King’s Inn Restaurant.

For reservations call (361) 297-5265.

If you love good seafood it is well worth the drive to the King’s Inn Restaurant.

Iceland has a lot to offer in the way of tourist attractions. Far from being a barren frozen land it is an interesting landscape that features hundreds of hot springs, several large spa pools, rugged scenery and friendly people. Most Icelanders speak English.

For a truly unique experience you might consider heli skiing in Iceland. Best times are in the fall to winter, though there is plenty of snow most of the year.

Here is a YouTube video of heli skiing in Iceland.

Fast Tube by Casper