Tag Archives: Southwest Virginia

Cold and Wet: Happiness is Snow

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Even though it means lots of digging to get the truck out and shoveling the driveway in order to get to work, I am always thrilled when it snows! The warming of the climate has caused so many worse things than alot less snow in Southwest Virginia, but even still I am saddened when we don’t get any. Ten days ago, we had the first snow of the year, and even though it was just a few inches, it made me happy.

This was my view on the way to work at 7:15am

And this was my view on the way home 12 hours later

This past weekend, the forecasters began calling for a significant snow fall, and the predictions started a full week ahead of time. Usually that means that the snow won’t happen but this time, the weather dudes were right! The wet stuff can cause misery, especially for the homeless and the less fortunate, but since it started on a Sunday, I was lucky enough to be able to just enjoy it, and photograph it, even if the photos were from my cellphone.

The frigid temps gave the beautiful fluffy stuff an icy coating, but we shoveled enough to get the vehicles ready for the morning commute.

Love it or hate it, you have to admit that snow makes for a beautiful landscape.

Stay warm and safe, ya’ll!

Wilderness Road State Park

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Covid-19 Update:  Since I picked back up on blogging, I’ve been sharing brief updates about our travels.  Rest assured, we are taking precautions.  Wearing masks, eating outdoors or take out (or in empty restaurants), and hand sanitizing.  We are doing our part to keep ourselves and others safe!

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Wilderness Road State Park is just about the farthest western point in the state of Virginia.  The park lies astride the Wilderness Road, a route carved by Daniel Boone in 1775.  The route, which followed a buffalo trace, opened America’s first western frontier.

Overlooking the park are the White Rocks, a ridge of 500 foot sandstone cliffs overlooking Powell Valley.  Follow this link to see an image of these gorgeous sandstone cliffs from the air.

The park is also home to a small herd of buffalo.  It broke my heart a bit to see them behind an electric fence.  I tried hard to capture an image that did not include the fence, but no such luck.  These impressive animals seemed sad to me, so I have to confess that I was glad when one of them stomped a foot and showed anger when I got a bit too close.

The park also features a replica of Martin’s Station, a colonial frontier fort that was on this site in 1775.

State Parks are the perfect way to combine the beauty of nature and a love of history.

 

The Ultimate in Social Distancing

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One weekend this past March, while we were all still adjusting to the “new normal” of CoVid19, it was warm enough to ride.

 We decided that time on the motorcycle was the ultimate way to be socially distant.

Typically we ride 100 miles or so before stopping for lunch at a local pub.  In light of the times, we all packed our lunch and enjoyed each other’s company from a distance at a roadside picnic area.

Then we headed back out on the beautiful back roads of Southwest Virginia.  See those splat marks on the windsheild?

I guess it was the warm weather that had so many bugs out and about.

We rode through several rural counties, along too many back roads to count, and the wind in our faces helped us to put aside the worries of the day.

I can’t wait for more rides like this one!

Peace! and Stay Well, my friends

Getting Back Into It: Halloween Redux

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Like many on the East Coast of the United States, the weather was wild in Southwest Virginia on October 31st.  This photo was taken 2 days later while helping a friend hand out candy to those who came by.  The absence of costumed folks in this image, belies the fact that there were HUNDREDS of trick or treaters!

Anatomy of a Bridge

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** This is a scheduled post  from a ride one week ago. As you read, I am in full Get Out The Vote mode! **

Another Sunday Ride. Another Old Bridge.

Something is definitely right in my world when I get to ride the bike two weekends in a row.  The rides haven’t been long but during this busy time in my life, I’m thrilled just to be riding on our beautifully curvy Southwest Virginia roads.

We were also able to explore another old bridge.  With this one no longer in use, we were able to take our time checking it out.

I thought of Joe as I photographed all of the rust, and as we looked at the many parts of the bridge, I couldn’t help but wish that I knew more about civil engineering.

 

I also loved the contrast between the man made structure and the natural world.

Soon enough we were back on the bikes and enjoying the wind in our faces.

As always, we ended the ride with a cold craft beer and this time, a brick oven pizza.

It was the perfect way way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Hiking Buffalo Mountain

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Thank goodness for friends who encourage you to add fun to the calendar, and Karen, from The Unassuming Hiker makes sure that we do.

A couple years ago, Karen started a hiking club for women of all ages and hiking abilities, and while the group often ventures out during the week, Karen makes sure to plan a weekend hike several times yearly for those not retired.   In addition, she schedules the date for those hikes several weeks in advance so that we make sure to set aside the time.

“Buffalo Mountain is one of the most significant natural areas in Virginia.  The combination of high-elevation (3,971 feet), wind-exposed openings at the summit, and magnesium rich soils make it unlike any place else in the Commonwealth”.

Karen suggested that we arrive early knowing that it would not be long before the trail became crowded.  The image below is the parking area that morning.  By the time we left a few hours later, the place was packed with cars jockeying for position in what few parking spaces were available.

It was a gorgeous fall day and the hike to the summit, while up hill the entire way, was only a mile.   What an incredible view!

The 4 of us have hiked together before and the comraderie, the combination of silence and talk, and the excitement of being outdoors is a great fit.

Being on top of a mountain is exhilarating and I scrambled around the rocks like a child, at one point losing my lens cap over the ledge.

Beth sent me these images and I’m sharing them because they reveal the feeling of being on top of the world.

The shale and rock were beautiful and while this image doesn’t show it well, the flecks of color glittered in the sunshine.

Climate change has affected the color of the leaves this year, but the beauty remains.

All in all, a wonderful day on Buffalo Mountain.

Please visit Karen’s blog post about our day and read about the kind folks we met along the way.

A”maze”ing Channels

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We knew that we’d have a great hike and incredible views when we visited The Channels Natural Area Preserve, and we even knew that there would be some interesting sandstone formations to explore.  What we didn’t know was just how very cool those formations would be.  We simply could not help ourselves and kept exclaiming out loud with every turn.  As Karen said, the place brought out the inner child in all of us.

According to several online sources, the sandstone outcroppings were formed 400 million years ago.

Geologists conclude that the Channels were likely formed while the high elevation sandstone cap was under the influence of permafrost and ice wedging during the last ice age.

 The expanding ice fractured the sandstone and water slowly spread and smoothed the breaks over millions of years.

“What is left is a labyrinth of slots and crevices through the rocks. The pathways range from 20 to nearly 40 feet deep and wind their way through damp, moss-covered walls of stone” (https://virginiatrailguide.com/2016/10/23/great-channels).

Aren’t the colors incredible?

Check out the way these tree roots are stretching for moisture,

and the ferns growing amidst the cracks in the rocks.

We laughed and exclaimed and explored and were utterly happy with the experience.

For more information about The Channels, visit the previous two posts.

The Channels

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If you’ve visited  The Unassuming Hiker this week, you have already been introduced to The Channels, a gorgeous, 721 acre natural preserve in Southwest Virginia.  The Channels Natural Area Preserve is part of a 4,836 acre State Forest that was purchased by the Department of Forestry from The Nature Conservancy in March 2008.  The preserve name is derived from the maze-like system of sandstone crevices and boulders that occur near the 4208ft. summit of Middle Knob on Clinch mountain.

With good friends along for the ride, the 2 hour drive to the trailhead was over before we knew it.  The last 30 minutes will offer an excellent ride when next I return on the bike.  Lots of curves and twisties to thrill a bikers heart!

The 3 mile hike to the top was through a lush, green forest that offered plenty of shade on this sunny, breezy day.

Once on the top, we had views that stretched for miles!  We just could not stop exclaiming about how fortunate we were to be there.

I swear, I want to be a hawk (well, except for their diet).  I want to soar!

Even though it is only early September, the color change has begun.

We were 4 very happy women: Fresh air, exercise, incredible views, and lots of places to explore.

Big thanks to Karen for offering weekend hikes for those who can’t make it during the week.

As you might guess, I took a zillion photos.  The next post will show images of the fire tower (which, or course, I wanted to climb), and the one after that will be about the sandstone channels that, when we explored them, brought out the kid in all of us.