Autumn Reflections

Morgan County, WV

More of this below.

These pictures are from last month.

Near the Town of Huntly

Rappahannock County

Wordless Wednesday on Tuesday

Prospect Peak and Cacapon

Near Berkeley Springs, WV

When we went to Berkeley Springs on Sunday and visited Frog Valley Artisans, we were very close to the spectacular viewpoint at Prospect Peak, so of course I drove up there. I've shared pictures of it before, but it's worth revisiting.

We made a couple stops in the town of Berkeley Springs, and then headed in the direction of home, stopping briefly at Cacapon State Park, where I walked Charlie in a pretty setting next to the lake.

Blackwater River and Gorge

On Friday’s post about the Blackwater Lodge, I neglected to show you full views of the gorge, so I’ll show some now. They were on the SD card in my camera and the pictures I showed then were from my phone, along with the pictures I showed on Thursday of the waterfall. 

A plaque tells us that "This area became a full-fledged member of the West Virginia Park System on October 5, 1953." it goes on to say that the original 934 acres of land who is a gift from several power companies. More acreage was added later.

I took a picture from the bridge that crosses the Blackwater River above the waterfall. As you can see, the fall foliage there is already colorful.

Mosaic Linkup / Sunday Best

A Stop at Blackwater Falls

Davis, WV

Early autumn excites me enough that I travel to see it. I want to see colorful leaves in the crisp sunlight. Typically the foliage display reaches its peak in the Allegheny Mountains before it does here in the valley.

Yesterday I had an appointment in the town of Broadway, which to my mind is almost to West Virginia. So I decided to drive out to see the fall colors on the Allegheny Front, which was about an hour and 20 minutes away.

The colors are a little behind this year and have not reached their peak. I had already decided that I would continue a little farther to Blackwater Falls and Fairfax Stone State Park. Since I have been to Blackwater Falls a number of times, I didn’t stay there very long, but I did take the short upper trail to the overlook.

There isn’t as much water going over the falls as there was in past years. They have not had as much rainfall this year. 

Dry Season Still

When we had heavy rain last week, I hoped that it would end our drought, but it only helped a little bit. We still need more rain. Our rivers came up slightly, but are still running low.

The grass greened up and grew enough to be cut. We still have some summer flowers.

 

A few trees are starting to show the colors of autumn. I don’t know whether the drought will impact the fall foliage season.

Thursday in Clear Brook

Frederick County, VA

After taking some pictures in Winchester, I decided to go up to Clear Brook Park to get some pictures of the lake. I had stopped at the park once, but had not walked out to the lake. The water level turned out to be low, like most of our rivers and lakes are right now. It’s been a fairly dry summer.

Some people were fishing, and others were walking along the trails. 

I saw this cute green frog. It did not move, so I was able to get closer. I modified his close-up in the Oilbrush app. 

The park has a number of amenities, including an old caboose.

The parking lot is surrounded by Rose of Sharon trees. 

The Clear Brook community is still somewhat rural, although it’s proximity to I-81 has made it a trucking hub. There is a large Amazon Fulfillment Center. 

The post office is still small.

When I got back to the veterinary to pick up Charlie from day boarding, I found one of the resident cats sleeping in the waiting room. 

I’ll close with a picture of Charlie that I took today. He was quite pleased because he not only chased the ball and played with it, he brought it back and laid it near my feet. He is not a retriever breed so it has taken him a while to learn to bring the ball back.

On a Trail with Charlie

Taking Charlie to the Lion's Tale Trail was a spur-of-the-moment decision. I had driven to the recycling center in Edinburg and felt the urge to go to the national forest, which is not far from there. Charlie was in the backseat and I had his leash and water bowl in the car.

I have been to this trail before. It is an easy loop of a half mile, built with children in mind including kids with disabilities. It was sponsored by the Edinburg Lions Club.

I blogged about this trail back in 2007. I remembered how level it was, and it wasn't until we started walking that I checked my phone and saw there was no signal. It occurred to me that I had not told anybody where I was going, and the place was totally deserted. I would be in trouble if I broke my ankle or something. Next time I will plan better.

The trail is level and Charlie behaved well. The scenery was pretty.

Views from Chapman Landing Road

Near Edinburg

I’ve posted photos from this road before. It runs from Route 11 to the foot of the Massanutten Mountains. 

• Narrow Passage Inn
• High Water
• North Fork/ October
• Cold Countryside 

My Photos app misidentified this corn as sugarcane.

See more collages at the Mosaic linkup.

Shadow Shot: Tree

Today's post is a short one because I want to be sure I get to bed on time tonight. My dog has been waking me up at the crack of dawn, so I get tired. To add to that, I am trying to recover from a sinus infection so rest is important.

The blogger who hosts Shadow Shot Sunday has a beautiful autumn photo today. Check it out and then see more shadow photos at the linkup.

Sunday in the National Forest

George Washington National Forest is not far from home, but I have to cross the mountain to get there, so I don't go there very often. If I were still able to hike, it would be a great place to go, but my unsteady ankles just can't handle the rocky terrain.

Rhododendrons are still blooming here and there.

The photo of the creek looked a little flat so I opened it in the Oil Brush app and added a filter.

With Charlie at the Camp Roosevelt Picnic Shelter