Mice on Main - a scavenger hunt

It’s the little things that make Greenville such a wonderful town to live in; in this case, really little things – mice! (Warning: If you haven’t already found the mice, this post contains pictures and information of the mice and their locations.)

 

“Goodnight Moon” is one of my boys’ favorite books, it was written by Margaret Wise Brown, author of “The Runaway Bunny.” They both enjoy searching for the little mouse that appears in nine different scenes in the book… but maybe it isn't the same mouse, instead a consortium of mice?

 

A boy named Jimmy Ryan also loved searching for the mice in “Goodnight Moon,” and when it came his turn to do a high school senior project, he came up with the idea of creating a special scavenger hunt in downtown Greenville. Because he imagined it to be a family of mice that appear in the story, South Carolina artist Zan Wells created nine bronze mice which were then hidden along Main Street between the Hyatt and Westin Poinsett hotels. We enjoy searching for the mice every time we stroll down Main Street, and we recently even brought our mommy-toddler group downtown to introduce them to the Greenville mouse family.

Millie might be the hardest to spot... unless you're shoulders above the competition!

 

The first mouse, Marvin (they’ve all been named) poses next to a bronzed sculpture of the book “Goodnight Moon”, which used to be adjacent to the fountain in front of the Hyatt. When NOMA square was revamped, the mouse was been moved to a large boulder; the hint now reads "Begin your search on North Main where the water flows in and out of the hotel. You'll find the father mouse, MARVIN, reading his book. He can't hide - take a good look!" 

Update 6/23/2022: Clue #7 is incorrect on the website, as the health food store has since closed. An alternate hint reads "Melissa is always a happy sight; you'll see her when the light's just right! Have a seat, and the two of you will likely meet."  I suggest searching between Dark Corner Distillery and Crêpe du Jour...

The cousins with Marvin the mouse before the remodel of NOMA square

 

For the hints that will lead you on a successful mouse hunt, be sure to take a look at the website before your visit to downtown. You can always run into Mast General Store for a free scavenger hunt fact sheet as well. 

Advice from a local: don't search for the mice in order! If you start with Marvin and then follow the hints 2-9, you'll end up crossing Main Street 8 times - especially not fun with small children. We like to search counterclockwise, starting with hint #1, then crossing Main St. at the pedestrian crosswalk to pick up #2, heading south for #4, #7 & #8. Then cross the street for #9 and head north for #6, #5 and #3. 

Līga checks another one off the list

 

Fun fact: There used to be a tenth mouse, which was not part of the official Mice on Main series. It used to sit at the feet of General Greene in front of the Greenville News building, drum in paw. However, that entire city block was razed to make way for the Camperdown development... 

 

So now that you know Greenville doesn’t have a rodent infestation, please know that there are many more cool things to do and see in this town: while looking for the Mice on Main who knows what else you’ll find!

Janisse Ray

A friend of mine lent me “The Ecology of a Cracker Childhood” while I was still living in Georgia, working as a wildland firefighter and conducting prescribed burns in some of the very longleaf pine stands described in Janisse Ray’s book. In it she weaves together her childhood with the ecology of the vanishing longleaf pine forests that once carpeted the South. Either because the descriptions of the longleaf stands so vividly reminded me of my own time spent in the Georgia forests, or because I too, was hard at work to save the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW), but the book struck a chord with me. I jumped right into “Wild Card Quilt,” her second novel about returning to Georgia with her son after attending grad school at the University of Montana, then her third, “Pinhook,” which at that point in time was her most recent work. From these books I gained new-found inspiration for the work I was doing with the US Fish & Wildlife Service, and it was with wonder that I visited sites such as Moody Forest Natural Area, the Nature Conservancy/Georgia DNR managed property on the Altamaha River. (Moody Forest is the only known example of an old-growth longleaf pine-blackjack oak forest left; the site is home to 200 to 300-year-old longleaf and slash pines, trees 600+ years in the cypress-tupelo sloughs, the endangered RCW, the gopher tortoise and Eastern indigo snake.) Magic was restored to my work in the southern pine forests after I had literally and figuratively burnt out from the southern heat, the fires, the attitudes of many a southerner/coworker and the hopelessness of trying to preserve anything from the sprawl of metropolitan Atlanta.

Source: here

 

It was in the Greenville Journal that I noticed a tiny blurb about the South Carolina Native Plant Society hosting Janisse Ray as special guest speaker, and I was ashamed to see she had published a plethora of new books during my absence from Georgia. I intend to make up for lost time, I’ve purchased her two newest works and am already fully immersed in “Drifting into Darien,” about the extraordinary biodiversity of the Altamaha River corridor.

 

My friend had urged, “If you have the chance to go to a reading, do it. She’ll get you really fired up!” And of course, I went. For two hours I wasn’t mom/cook/household manager, but again the idealistic girl who believed that our world can be saved, one tree and species at a time. Ms. Ray, I thank you for that, as well as the ceaseless work you do on behalf of all the creatures and places that have no voice of their own.

Source: here

 

I insist you read “The Ecology of a Cracker Childhood,” the recipient of multiple literary awards and honors, the book I chose to gift to my parents in attempt to explain The South to them. If you’re into the food revolution I suggest picking up her most recent work, “The Seed Underground: A Growing Revolution to Save Food.” If you celebrated the possibility of the return of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker from extinction, find “Drifting into Darien” and if you’ve ever (or wish to) canoed the Okefenokee swamp, then “Pinhook” is for you. I completely agree with the New York Times critic who proclaimed Janisse Ray the Rachel Carson of the southeast, and after hearing her speak I can’t wait to take my boys to Moody Forest so that they may pick up some magic of their own.

Twin falls and the road kill grill



As you might be able to tell from these pictures, we were out in the country last weekend. Sadly, the Road Kill Grill was not open for business, the neon OPEN sign for Bob’s Place was not lit, and the timing was not right to see exactly what talent Pumkintown has. Don’t worry, I’ve written the dates into my calendar so you don’t miss it again next year. But you know what else the Upstate has? Beautiful scenery, complete with lakes, horses, waterfalls and friends come to visit.



Lake Keowee

 

We met up with Vija in Sunset, SC, as picturesque an area as it sounds. On our walk out to the lake we passed rows of grapevines, an old stone wall eliciting memories of our time spent in Bordeaux. There were stables close by and we couldn’t resist visiting with the horses before continuing on.

 

Make sure to take with directions such as these if you’re headed to Twin Falls (also known as Eastatoe Falls or Reedy Cove Falls), as the trail is unmarked. There is about a 0.25 mile hike to the base of the falls along an uneven dirt path. On our way we passed a swimming hole at the bottom of a beautiful slide that I’ve mentally noted for a return visit once the heat of the summer arrives. It's a little further on that Reedy Cove Creek splits into two, half rushing down 70 feet of bare granite, the rest cascading in several drops to form a beautiful waterfall that was worth hauling a sleeping baby out into the woods to see.

 

One lunch at the Pumpkintown Mountain Opry later we had our tour of the castle, after which it was time to head home. The trees were still bare and the air cold up on the Blue Ridge, and although it can be hard to believe spring is just around the corner, it is nice to think we’ll be back to witness the mountains awake from their winter slumber.

 

Château du Upstate, or a castle in the Blue Ridge

On Sunday we lucked out in getting a tour of a castle, right here in the Upstate. Well, a partially finished castle. Brent Bruns II, of “Doomsday Preppers” reality show fame, showed us around the castle featured in the episode “No Such Thing as a Fair Fight.”

The National Geographic channel show “explores the lives of otherwise ordinary Americans who are preparing for the end of the world as we know it." As my knowledge of planning for Armageddon is limited I will avoid that subject, but what I do want to share with you, is that we’ll soon have our very own château du Upstate. Brent’s family has signed on for more episodes, and the castle is getting a roof.

Originally meant to prepare for Y2K, a bomb shelter was installed, a well dug and the cinderblock walls constructed. South-facing solar panels and a wind turbine provide some power, and there are plans for greenhouses just downslope. I sincerely hope the castle will never be used for its original purpose, however I can’t wait to see it finished.

"Have fun stormin' da castle"

Located on a 50-acre mountaintop parcel, even the bomb shelter has a view. Table Rock State Park is clearly visible through the high-arching openings that will eventually be windows, and although I don’t know what that does for defense, I do know that once the property is finished it is sure to be in high demand. According to Brent the family hopes to rent it out for everything from weddings to corporate retreats, and as popular as the Blue Ridge area is I believe they’ll find a market.

Roost

During my mother’s visit to Greenville we were lucky enough to get a table at Roost, the newest addition to the North Main Street culinary scene. Lauris and his father had tickets to the circus and after dropping them off the rest of us headed downtown. It was raining and it was cold, but from the moment we stepped inside we were enveloped in warmth; the smells, the lighting, the entire space is tasteful and hospitable with clean lines and friendly staff.



NOMA Square on North Main St.



 

Serving up  local, organic, and seasonal food, Roost offers “ a one-of-a-kind dining experience including outdoor seating in NOMA Square, an open kitchen with ringside seating along the Kitchen Counter, an open-air bar area, and a Harvest Table where guests can work with the chef directly to build their own meals.” (From the website, here) Since the menu changes, I’ll just mention that I enjoyed the duck and also the bite of my mother’s bistro filet, but the real winners were the smoked bacon & potato gratin, and the blue crab beignets. There’s a hint of bacon that complements the crab perfectly, as does the local honey served up alongside.

 

Mikus was very well-behaved, only scaring off two couples from sitting at the next table. When requesting a different table in both cases they looked directly at the baby sitting very quietly at the next table and asked for something “a little bigger”… It’s not that I’m offended, as I understand that every customer has the right to a lovely dinner just as I do, however I feel that a perfect evening was marred by having to experience this twice. As I mentioned Mikus in the reservation I feel that the whole situation could have been avoided by putting us in a spot where we wouldn’t be a bother. Maybe I need to grow thicker skin, and maybe the table was in fact too small, but it’s hard enough eating out with a child without getting grief from other customers. And I would like to emphasize he was on his best one year-old behavior. Enough said on that topic.

Mikus checking out the Hyatt lobby, photo credit: my mom

 

So Roost. Go for a romantic dinner, order the bacon-crab donuts, enjoy a glass of wine and stay for dessert. And smile at the mother and baby at the next table, it won’t be so bad, I promise.

 

 

Update 4/3/2013

Un a subsequent visit to Roost we were not served honey alongside our bread, nor our beignets. I was disappointed, as I had been looking forward to the wonderful local honey they served up on our first visit. However, I might have been partially mollified by the gluten free gnocchi - it was divine.