Sadly, the best quizmeister the national parks have ever known has left the building.
Perhaps he was done in by his Ringers, Mystery Photos, Jumbles, or perhaps those treacherous Mystery Spots.
Or maybe he was simply stumped by perhaps his toughest quiz yet -- how to escape the ever-growing popularity of his quizzes and an over-crowded Winner's Circle. Whatever the cause, the good Professor Janiskee was last seen exiting the servant's entrance.
We've begged, cajoled, pleaded, beseeched, implored, and even supplicated, but all to no avail. We even considered propositioning the professor, but he said it would be no use, as he would be consumed by the Okra Strut and that time would just not allow for another jumble.
While he's available for emergency duty, Professor Janiskee has largely retired his quizmeister togs, put up his park maps, guidebooks, and park trivia stash, and gone out to work in his yard.
I'm sure you, the readers, will miss him as much as we will, possibly more when you turn to the Traveler on a Thursday morning looking for his wit and misdirections.
Truth be told, he's been a great colleague, collaborator, and friend, one whose shoes simply cannot be filled.
We'll continue to offer puzzlers from time to time, but none that match the quality of Professor Janiskee's. Perhaps, though, you can encourage him to return to the Winner's Circle...
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Enjoy retirement!
Thank you, Professor. Enjoyed your quizes over the years. Have a wonderful retirement, We'll see you in the traces!
Thanks for your contributions over the years. Enjoy retirement or you will have to write on the chalk board 100 times....
My heartfelt thanks to Kurt for his generous praise and to Traveler readers for their kind remarks. I've truly enjoyed my stint as Quizmeister.
Can't help asking if anybody out there can identify the locations for the four photos Kurt used with this article. ;o)
Bob--
Just one last chance to stump me & credit me for wild imagination?
In decreasing order of probability:
#3 is obviously the high boardwalk at CONG; do you need more specific location along it?
#4 could be Canyonlands or Arches, I'll guess the Devil's Garden area at the north end of the park, the junction for the east trail to Private Arch? I believe that same difficult hiking sign and rounded sandstone tops exists in the Needles district of Canyonlands (e.g., Chessler Park) and probably the Maze district, but I've never gotten over to the Maze.
#2 looks familiar, but it could be almost anywhere in the coastal plain from N.C. down to GA & northern FL. The stunted juniper & pine to the right of the church suggests windy, on or near a barrier island (as opposed to along Bluff Rd.). Mayby if you told us the plant she's holding as a hint?
#1 is one of those close-cropped photos that could be the porch of almost anywhere there's shingle siding.
Thanks again for everything!
Tomp, you're batting .500, which is perfect for this time of year!
You've got #3, and #4 (the trail name should give it away). After that, though, you're hitting nothing but air.
#2 is Portsmouth Village at CALO. We dressed in our finest attire to ward off the squeeters....and it didn't work. The VIP gave us the tree branches for swatters.
I kid the professor that #1 is his view from the retirement home, but it's actually a store where you catch one of the ferries out to Cape Lookout.
For the record, I have lost nearly ten pounds since those photos were taken. ;o)
BTW, tomp2, that third photo was actually taken on the feeder trail leading from the visitor center to the low boardwalk at Congaree National Park. (Since that particular boardwalk closely resembles the park's high boardwalk, we won't deduct any style points.) The man standing next to me is Traveler stalwart Jim Burnett.