The original inspiration in amazing places
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Wilmot at the deadly killer
umbrellas
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Wilmot at the Deadly Killer Umbrellas
Once on the way to Los Angeles we stopped to see the
famous umbrella sculpture which had been put in place by the
same artist who did "Running Fence". I can't remember his
name or the name of the umbrellas, but the site was
impressive. Unfortunately, these umbrellas were in a pass on
the Grapevine, a place that experiences periodic high winds.
Just a couple days before these pictures were taken, two of
the umbrellas had come loose, killing two people.
Wilmot and the Hoodoos at Yoho
The Hoodoos are a famous fixture of Yoho National Park
in Canada. Probably as many people say "What are Hoodoos?"
as say "What is Wilmot?". Hoodoos are formations when soft
soil is beneath harder soil (such as a rock) and the soft
soil is eroded away, leaving a tower with a rock on top.
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Wilmot at the Drive-Thru
Tree
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Wilmot at the Drive-Thru Tree
There was a time in California history when
entrepreneurs found it irresistable to cut a large hole
through the base of a Redwood or Giant Sequioa tree and pave
a road through it. The tree continues to live because the
cambium (the layer beneath the bark) is intact on either
side of the hole.
Wilmot at the Deutsches Eck
Wilmot took a trip to Germany. Where the Mosel and the
Rhine rivers join is called the Deutsches Eck. Wilmot
visited there and looked down from a Castle at the beautiful
sight.
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Wilmot after being adopted by
Coyotes
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Wilmot adopted by Coyotes
One day on our way East across the United States, we
lost Wilmot in the desert just on the Arizona-California
border on Highway 10. We were halfway to Tucson before we
realized Wilmot was missing. We vowed that after we finished
our obligations in Tucson that we would return to find
Wilmot. In Tucson we discovered Wilmot Road and knew it was
a sign that we would find Wilmot again. We returned two days
later to the spot where Wilmot was lost and...he was gone!
We searched high and low and eventually found him high on a
hill 100 yards away. His ears and eyes had been chewed off
and the little plastic thing in one eye had been chewed out.
The tail was gone and never recovered (a new one was made
later). Clearly coyotes had discovered Wilmot and had a
grand time in the desert. After this incident we took much
better care of Wilmot, and made a "Wilmot repair kit" to
help keep Wilmot in prime condition.
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Wilmotssaga
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Wilmotssaga
The Runestaff is a publication of the Barbarian Freehold
in Morro Bay, California. For a time I contributed artwork
for this newsletter, including the art for a continuing
story by Mark Falke-Graybill told in Viking saga style,
called Wilmotssaga. The Runes around this picture start out
saying "This is the saga of Wilmot..." Wilmot the "Viking"
is shown in a boat with a raccoon on the bow; racoons being
New World animals which shows that Wilmot had made it to
America. The picture is contained within an outline of a
grape leaf - symbolizing Vinland - America. However, there
are penguins on an ice floe in the background, showing that
Wilmot's navigational skills still needed some work. The
articles were not entirely historically accurate.
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