I never laughed so long. So long, so long.

Spring Green to Verona, Wisconsin. Monday, June 28, 2021

Frank Lloyd Wright died in 1959, Paul Simon wrote the tune in 1961, our guide was unaware if they had ever met. Bridge Over Troubled Water wasn’t released until 1970, which is where I first heard of the great architect. But no, I had been to the Guggenheim many times before, my grandmother lived two blocks away.

His masterpiece, Fallingwater, is just off the Great Allegheny Passage, itself a continuation of the C&O canal, where my love of bicycle touring was born. I’ve been to Fallingwater twice, despite the steep admission fee and the need to be on a guided tour, so compelling is his creation. Words can’t do it justice. And to think the total cost was $155,000. 2.9 million in today’s dollars, but still a bargain, given what it is.

That marriage of bike touring and stunning architecture in harmony with the land, made Taliesin an alluring destination. This was his home, and a “lab” for many of his designs. It’s a Welsh word meaning “shining brow,” reflecting Wright’s welsh roots and his vision to integrate his structures with the contour of the terrain. Never build a house on top of the hill, that would ruin the line. Instead, tuck it in just below the brow, make it part of the landscape. Brilliant.

He never went to architecture school. He barely finished high school, and blew off the University of Wisconsin after a semester. He did apprentice under Sillsbee and Sullivan, but his virtuosity was entirely his own. A short man with a Napoleanic complex, he always insisted on photographed from below, often with his trademark porkpie hat. Even our guide, clearly mesmerized by the man, admitted he could be “difficult.” That’s putting it mildly. We had to prod him, but he related the sordid tales of his affairs, and the grisly arson/murder that happened here. For all that baggage, though, the man is irresistible.

I opted for the longest (4 hours) and most expensive ($92) tour, and wished it was longer. I took these totally inadequate pictures. The theme, the most succinct summarization of his life, would be “preserving the line”.

I was so dazzled by it all, I was almost short of breath. Had an overpriced lunch at the visitor center, still had 40 miles to Verona (again, shades of Romeo and Juliet) where my hosts Emily and Michael, shared their new home, gracious hospitality, and their totally lovable Newfie, Abby. I was proud to be their first warmshowers guest.

Wherefore Verona? It’s the corporate headquarters of my next epic destination, Epic®️

Distance 44 miles, 3,257 total. Time 10 hours with stops. Elevation gain 1,193 feet.

©️ 2021 Scott Luria