Someone asked on my Union County list the other day why so many people came to Union County from Lee County Va. I explained that the Clinch River was a major route back in those days, somewhat like we use the Interstate today. Wherever there's an interstate, the towns spring up. The rivers back then were the same way. I've always been interested in water travel back in olden days. All the way back to ancient times. When I was young my mother bought me Thor Hierdal's Kon-Tiki. A book about his attempt to show that ancient mariners might have crossed the ocean on a boat made of reeds. I learned recently that a group from Iceland was going to recreate the Viking voyage from Iceland to North America in a replica of a Viking Vessel. I was greatly anticipating their launch and wanted to follow it. This weekend there was a special about it on TV. Something struck me odd. True, this is an exact replica of a Viking boat, but did the Vikings have laptops, global positioning systems and cell phones? Kind of like reenacting the Civil War with nuclear weapons don't you think? I was very disappointed. Oh well, Chip