Donkeys and Friends

Rockingham County, VA

 

I took these pictures three weeks ago. Most of the leaves have fallen now.

Autumn Reflections

Morgan County, WV

More of this below.

These pictures are from last month.

Cold Dawns, Smoky Dusks

Yesterday I mentioned that we've been trying to adapt to the change from daylight savings time to standard time. By "we," I mean my dog hasn't adjusted and I'm trying to train him to sleep until daylight. 

One morning he wanted to go out really early, but I waited until there was a glimmer of light in the sky.

Since then, I’ve managed to wait until a little later. Hopefully he will adjust this way. It’s really cold in the early morning, too. 

We’ve had some pretty skies in the evening.

Yesterday I had an appointment in Harrisonburg, and the air was smoky from wildfires to the south. My eyes felt very irritated. But the smoke particles provide colorful sunsets. I pulled off to take a skywatch picture on the way home. Currently the sun goes down now at 5 PM. (Oh, I miss the long days of summer!) 

The final photo is from this evening.

Two Birds and a Walk in the Park

The black-capped chickadee was sharing a feeder with a house finch. At least, I think she's a house finch. The female finches are not very showy and have not made a big impression on me. She looks sweet though. 

Somehow it is the middle of the month already, and I was reminded that the 15th is Garden Bloggers Bloom Day. I saw pansies blooming in a park in town so I’ll show a few pictures from a short walk I took there. Pansies tolerate cold weather better than most of our flowers here.

Charlie was with me and he was interested in sniffing everything. He is now two years old and is doing well in many ways, but still has a way to go on some things that I thought were basic. Apparently his stint in the Envigo breeding factory left him with some deep fears. Many dogs from the same place have similar issues. They were bred to be lab animals, not house pets, and they were treated so poorly that the place got closed down. Add to that the beagles’ inherited tendency to run and hunt, and no wonder he struggles. 

Lately, we have been trying to adjust to the time change and shorter daylight hours. Charlie has started getting up well before dawn, and I really don’t want to go outside when it’s dark and cold. I’d rather sleep until dawn, so I hope we can work this out quickly

Mutant Ninja Pumpkins

Seen in Woodstock, Late October

Wordless Wed. on Tuesday

Color in Kernstown

The town of Kernstown has been pretty much swallowed up by the city of Winchester. It is still known for Civil War battles that took place there in 1862 and 1864.

I stopped there on Thursday and noticed that irises were still blooming at Popeye’s.

I took a picture of Kernstown Battlefield from the Opequon Church parking lot.

No Campfires

Shenandoah National Park

On Tuesday I had an appointment with the foot doctor in Front Royal, and afterwards I drove into Shenandoah National Park, which is next to the town. There were signs at the entrance warning of wildfire smoke and a ban on fires. There are two wildfires burning near the park, the result of a prolonged drought. Hopefully the rain but we had today will help firefighters to get the fires under control.

By the way, photographing that electronic sign was challenging. For some reason, the phone does not record it in the way that the eye sees it. I could tell that the letters were disappearing when I looked at my screen, so I took some pictures using LIVE mode as I waited for the drivers in front of me to pay the entrance fee. When I edited the pictures, I was able to select one with the letters showing.

Someone said these clouds were smoke from the fires, but that may be an overstatement.  Certainly there was a layer of smoky haze along the horizon, but the fires are well to the south and east of this scene. I only drove the northern section of the park, exiting at Thornton Gap.

There was still plenty of beauty and plenty of tourists. 

Autumn Day in the Valley

Although I am not an early bird, my dog likes to get up at dawn, and sometimes before. He does not understand that daylight savings time ended and most folks are sleeping a little later.

After we take a walk first thing in the morning, I like to spend some time at home, checking messages, catching up on tasks, and so on. I like to get out in the afternoon, even if it’s just to ride out to the dog park. Sometimes I vary the route to to look at the scenery.

Water Thursday / Skywatch / All Seasons

The fall colors are bright, even though we are still in a drought. There’s been just enough rain to keep the grass green.

 

A Wren and East of Edinburg

The carolina wrens have returned to my yard. I heard one singing and there it was!

 I'd also like to show you a couple of scenes from Edinburg last week. The first is a view from the bridge on Edinburg Gap Road. 

Just east of there is Lost Bottoms Farm. This was before the recent hard frost that nipped the pretty flowers. 

Near the Town of Huntly

Rappahannock County

Wordless Wednesday on Tuesday