Shenandoah South of Strasburg

Towns of the Shenandoah Valley tend to be surrounded by farms. Some like Strasburg even have farms within the town limits.

I captured these images in the spring.

Sharing with The Barn Collective and Mosaic Monday

Hello Young Lovers

I'm searching my unused images for one that meets the "Young at Heart" theme that City Daily Photo is running on the 1st of August. I'm hoping for something that really suits the topic but I consider this a runner-up.

Critters of July

Summer is passing quickly; July is almost over. So I thought I'd review some of the animals and birds I've seen this month. The first bird is one I saw today.

We began this month at Virginia Beach. I didn't actually bother to walk on the sand because my feet were bothering me, but I took photos from our room's balcony. Here we see a cute dog leading his person.

My most exciting animal sighting was a bear in Shenandoah National Park. Here we see a slightly different pose.

Sharing with Saturday's Critters and The Bird D'Pot

I posted photos of ducks and geese, mostly in our community lake. Here's some mallards in a different location, on a creek in Woodstock, VA.

Robins have been plentiful this year.

And finally, another image of a hummingbird. We have at least two that visit our feeders. 

Flowers, A Kite, and A Sign of Love

Willy Nilly Friday

1. It's raining, it's pouring! We need it, because it's been hot and dry since the 18th. That's when I took this picture of a daylily with raindrops on it. I'm sharing this with Maria's Orange blog hop, and I thank her for spotlighting my sunset picture from last week.

2. Speaking of flowers, these are at Eastham Park in Front Royal. 

Sharing with Floral Fridays and Weekend Green

3. One afternoon my eye was caught by something moving in the sky. It was a kite! It soared for a while and then came down in some trees.

Skywatch Friday

4.  Frank took this picture of me and Lynn, two "L" ladies. This was a week ago at Orkney Springs. We were there for the Arlo Guthrie Concert. We joke that we go to see him every 10 years, because it is actually true although we squeezed in one extra concert at JMU.

5. It was only fair to turn around and take a picture of Frank at the same sign. These giant "LOVE" signs are a project of Virginia Tourism and they appear all over the state. "Virginia is for Lovers."

Archaeology at Belle Grove

Middletown, Virginia

"Archaeology in Progress. Visitors Welcome"

Belle Grove is a beautiful historic site in nearby Frederick County. Historical records show that enslaved people lived and worked there before the Civil War. Since only bits and pieces of their stories are left in the historical record, archaeology is one way of learning more details. On this field across from the manor house, archaeologists are seeking to find where the field hands lived and what items they owned.

Matt Greer and a small staff are doing the methodical digging. They record the location of every artifact, whether it is a piece of pottery or an old nail. Matt is a doctoral candidate at Syracuse University. 

The youngsters we see here were visiting the site and asking intelligent questions. 

I missed the site tour that was given in late June because of our travel schedule. I have an interest in historic archaeology because I volunteered for many years with a program in Alexandria, Virginia.

Here's a picture I took by Belle Grove Road. Over the years I have posted many photos of Belle Grove.

Hummingbird at the Blue Feeder

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Sharing with Wordless Wednesday and Wild Bird Wednesday

Old Cabin in Woodstock, Virginia

Sharing with Tuesday Treasures and Wordless Wednesday on Tuesday

(Sketch filter applied at low intensity in Movavi)

July Randoms, Shenandoah Valley

The Good: Warren County is extending the Front Royal bus line to Middletown and also to Fairground Road. It will benefit students attending Lord Fairfax Community College and people who are employed in the Winchester Pike area. 

Sharing with Random-osity and Seasons

The Random: This farm is home to a transmission repair shop but also to some cows. It is near Woodstock, Virginia.

Sharing with Mosaic Monday and The Barn Collective

The Fun: There is a brand new mural on the back of the Woodstock Café. Isn't it cute?

I was delighted to see that the watering can is real and has actual water spraying out of it!

Sharing with Monday Murals

Restoration Fellowship and the Three Tall Crosses

Many travelers on I-81 have seen the three tall crosses near Strasburg. They were erected by a local church, which also keeps lights shining on them at night. From the highway, it's quite a sight to see!

The church is called Restoration Fellowship Church.

Five Critter Pictures

There are so many ducklings this year! We may have an overpopulation of ducks soon. Or perhaps some of them will move to other ponds, unlike our resident geese.

Black and White Weekend

My buddy Flash is hanging in there. His age and heart condition have slowed him down but he enjoys lounging around. His appetite for dog food has lessened but he still likes people food and snacks!

This Canada Goose was with his family members but they are obscured by the branches. 

The next bird, a parrot, is a not native to Virginia. He was keeping an eye on his companion's table at the farmers market in Front Royal.

Sharing with Saturday's Critters and Bird D'pot and Weekend Green.

The final image has a bird too. Do you see it in the tree on the right?

July Sunset, Riverton

Riverton is on the north end of Front Royal. I took this from a shopping center that's near I-66.

Sharing with Orange You Glad and Skywatch Friday
and My Town Shoot-Out

Blog Post #6022

Somehow I failed to note the six thousandth post on the blog. It should have been on the first of July, but we were at the beach so I was distracted. Here are some pictures from then to now.

Kate and Rusty, Virginia Beach

See more Virginia Beach posts.

We drove back from the beach on the 4th of July. We were too tired to go to see fireworks  and then it rained! At least I got to see some that neighbors set off.

On Saturday we went to an event at Cool Spring near Bluemont.  It's a beautiful place, not well known yet. You can see this young fellow in an earlier post.

This picture and the next two are suitable for the Fences linkup.

Thornton River Orchard, Sperryville, VA

Today I had an appointment in Woodstock and took a few pictures there afterwards. This pretty scene is on Water Street.

So here we are, three weeks into July. The past two days have been very hot, but pretty to see if you are inside with air conditioning looking out at the greenery.

Robins and Swallowtails

Barns and a Memorial to Displaced Families

Rappahannock County, Virginia

Sharing with: The Barn Collective and Wordless on Tuesday

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I read about the new memorial in Sperryville so of course I had to go see it! It honors the people who had to leave nearby land that is now part of Shenandoah National Park. This happened in the 1930's when the park was formed. Landowners who did not sell willingly were forced to do so when eminent domain was invoked.

Other memorials have been erected in neighboring counties, with more being planned. This one is beautifully built of stone, apparently without mortar, in the style of chimneys in remote areas.

Sharing with Tuesday Treasures

Erected by Blue Ridge Heritage Project

Heart-shaped Stone on the Rear of the Structure