Say it fast, three times… Hoof Hearted, Hoof Hearted, Hoof Hearted
In yesterday’s blog I mentioned that we like to keep our daily drives between camp spots, to 300 miles or less. We like to break the drive up into segments, with 100 miles each being ideal. This allows us to stop and stretch our legs, take bathroom breaks, maybe get a snack, and hopefully discover something interesting. Maybe a “point-of-interest”. Stops could be spontaneous or planned. Driving only 300 miles a day gives you plenty of options to choose where and when to stop. Today was one of those days. We had a planned and spontaneous stop. Both at points-of-interest.
Our planned stop today begins with a song Terri and I heard many times on San Diego’s 91X during our commute to work together in the late ‘80s. It was often played on Friday mornings with other off the wall selections like Todd Rundgren’s “Bang on the drum all day” and The Beat Farmers “Happy Boy”. Milo Tremley’s “Hoof-Hearted” is a one of kind audience participation cowboy song (I’ve included a YouTube link below for your enjoyment). Anyway, Terri and I were having dinner in one of our local favorites, Square One Bar & Grill. We were at a table opposite the bar when a guy at the bar asked for an IPA. I heard the bartender suggest Hoof Hearted’s $60 Nachos (it’s a beer). I turned and asked the bartender “did you say Hoof Hearted beer”. He replied “Hoof Hearted” is a brewery. Well I was intrigued. I decided to look it up on my phone right then. Maybe it was a local CT beer. To my surprised, the brewery is located in Marengo Ohio just off I-71 north of Columbus. I looked at Terri and said “the brewery is 5 minutes off our route through Ohio”. I immediately added Hoof Hearted Brewery as a waypoint between our Saturday and Sunday camp spots.
So when we left Starr Hill Vineyard & Winery this morning, our GPS was set for Hoof Hearted Brewery on County Road 26 in Marengo Ohio. If you haven’t driven the Interstates enough you probably think that there isn’t much between points A & B except a couple dozen Pilot/Flying J’s, Love’s or T/A Truck stops. Oh, but you would be wrong. Today, just 40 miles north of our exit to Hoof Hearted, we see a billboard that reads “Grandpa’s Cheesebarn - next exit”. Terri and I looked at each other and said “what the hell…”. We pulled off the interstate. It did not disappoint and we now have $100 worth of exotic cheese and chocolate in our RV fridge.
Part of the beauty and fun of driving the American highways is finding these little diamonds in the rough. Honestly, there’s not much to do or see at the Alton RV Park in Galloway Ohio. But there was a lot to experience at our other stops along the way. Did I mention the “Fin Feather Fur Outfitters” right next to Grandpa’s? Heeee… shoots and scores!
