Day 6, The James River

Note: Ward, Wally, Theo, and I are on a week-long vacation in the Blue Ridge of central Virginia.

 Today was the last day of vacation before we drive home tomorrow. We are having a good time, but were starting to get a little weary. Thus, we had a relaxed morning, each in our corner of the house vegging. However, after a few hours of relaxing, I got the go-fever. So Ward and I went out for the afternoon to visit the James River - the lowest point along the Blue Ridge Parkway. 

We took about a 20 mile drive down the Parkway to our destination. By this point on our trip, I had seen many spectacular mountain views, and thought I was getting used to them. But I was wrong! Each bend along the parkway seemed to be prettier than the one before. We made very slow progress because I wanted to stop at every overlook. However, we eventually made it to our destination. (Once again, the photos pale compared to what our eyes saw.)

We abandoned this walk after the trail became covered with briers and huge boulders. The view from the overlook pullover was good all the same.

It's not so evident in the photo, but leaves are just beginning to change color. 

There was an afternoon haze in the sky, but we could still see far.

Unfortunately, the visitor's center, where we hoped to learn
more information about the area, was closed.

But there were some self-guided walks to do.

Of course, Ward was interested in the construction
of this footbridge over the James River to the locks.

The Battery Creek Locks were the same age and were much like we have seen
along the C & O Canal.

More beautiful scenery along the James River.

We took another way home to explore more of the area, and we each found something of special interest. Ward got to see a passing freight train, and I visited a little library and chatted with the staff. A good time was had by all.

Now it's getting late and probably time to do some cleanup before bedtime. We have expanded to fill the house and have a lot to gather before our departure in the morning.

Until next time...

Day 5, Peaks of Otter Retry

 Note: Ward, Wally, Theo, and I are on a weeklong vacation in the Blue Ridge of south central Virginia.

The weather was looking good, so we decided to go back to Peaks of Otter to try to get to the top of Sharp Top Mountain. When we got there, all systems were go, so we decided to take a two-prong approach to get to the peak. Ward and Theo took the steep, difficult trail all the way up, and Wally and I took a shuttle van that got us 3/4 of the way there.

The shuttle ride brought flashbacks of country roads that I grew up around. The road was narrow and steep, with rock outcrops on one side and and a steep drop off on the other. Some passengers closed their eyes during the ride, and others enjoyed it. I was somewhere in the middle. Wally sat up with the driver and thought it was great.

The final climb on foot to the peak was steep and rocky but only 1/4 mile long. It was well worth the effort to get there because there were unobstructed views of mountain ridges in all directions. I'll show you pictures later, but as usual, they will not do justice to what our eyes saw. The only problem at the top was the swarms of small flies and gnats. But luckily down a little lower, they were manageable. 

Besides the view, the other great part at the top was that we met Theo and Wally there. We had talked about trying to coordinate, but with no cell service, we didn't even try. However, it worked out anyway. We all got off the mountain the same way we got up and met up at the bottom to regroup.

I wish I could tell you the different mountains and ridges you're seeing below, but I can't. There was no signage and the bugs were too annoying for me to spend the effort to figure them out. :)

The lake in the picture is Abbot Lake that we hiked around on our first visit.

After we regrouped, Wally convinced us to do the Johnson Farm Trail which was close to the lake hike we did on our first visit. It was an easy walk 2 mile hike through fields and woods to the farm. The Johnson Family owned the farm from 1852 until the early 1940s, and the farm is one of the few structures left from the original Peaks of Otter Community. We were in luck because there were interpreters at the site who filled us in on the history of the farm and area during our visit.

We had Mr. Bill all to ourselves as he eagerly shared his knowledge about the farm.
A side note: Mr. Bill and his wife live in Florida, but every summer come to the area to be interpreters at the farm. He does the outside area and she does the house. They are thrilled to be out of the Florida heat and like what they do. It got Ward and I thinking about possibilities for the future. :)

Mr. Bill's Wife

It was an interesting visit and I'm glad we did it. (My first inclination when Wally suggested it was to say no.)

After stopping on the way home for dinner, we headed back to our home-away-from home, tired but happy.

Until next time...

Day 4, Roanoke

 Note: Ward, Wally, Theo, and I are on a weeklong trip to the Blue Ridge of Central Virginia.

Today for a change of pace, we went into the city of Roanoke, VA. Thank Goodness for the GPS helping navigate around the city. Roanoke is a city of around 100,000 people, and among its many attributes, it is perhaps best known for its star. On top of Mill Mountain in the middle of the city is the Roanoke Star. It can be seen from miles around and is a landmark that everyone knows. So, of course, we had to go see it up close. 

The star is the world's largest man-made star and can be seen for 60 miles. It was originally constructed for the 1949 Christmas season to bring in business, but was popular enough that it stayed. It lights up in different color combinations every night.

From up top, we also had a good overlook of Roanoke.

Surrounding the star was Mill Mountain Park with a wildflower garden, teaching zoo, discovery center, and trails. There weren't many wildflowers blooming in the garden at this time of year, but it was a very pleasant walk all the same.

 Our next stop was the Pinball Museum in the center of Roanoke. 

Coincidentally, there was a Hispanic Heritage Month Festival going on. 

We enjoyed some of the music and dancing being showcased. 

The Pinball Museum was not exactly what we thought it was going to be. There wasn't much about the history of pinball, more a large collection of pinball machines of all ages. The best part was that the machines were operational and you could play to your hearts content. No money needed (except the entrance fee.) 

After our sights and senses were full of flashing lights and bells, we headed back to our home-away-from home. 

Until next time...