End of April: Good, Random, and Fun.

Random-osity.

The Good: Springtime has arrived in Virginia and trees are blooming. It really is pretty out there!

Sharing with Floral Bliss and Mosaic Monday.

The Random: For Monday Murals, I've got a horse race mural in a restaurant in Luray. I'm sorry about the lights that are in the way.

The Fun: Rockland Park has a new feature. A cluster of exercise equipment beckons to youngsters and adults alike. It is across the road from the children's playground.

Rockland Park is near Front Royal at the end of Fishnet Road.

Today in Mt. Olive

We went to the small town of Mt. Olive in Shenandoah County to visit an art studio. I took a cell phone picture of the Methodist Church, although I have shared it previously. I think it has charm.

[It is neat to see that some of my blogging friends from the 2014 post are still with me! Thanks, guys!]

Sharing with InSpired Sunday.

The studio we visited was at the end of Mt. Olive Road. Artist Wolfgang Neudorfer has decorated a barn since the last time we were there. Isn't it fantastic?

This is a beautiful area at the base of North Mountain. It's west of the Toms Brook exit on I-81.

If you like rural scenes, drive up Mt. Olive Road and mosey along Back Road. Or just visit the Barn Collective and see what other photographers have captured! 

Is She Really Going Out With Him?

I've been seeing these two together. She may be a hybrid of a muscovy duck and a mallard. Isn't she beautiful?

We have a few muscovy ducks at our neighborhood lake. I read that they consume mosquitoes, flies, and other pesky insects.

It is spring, so we're seeing birds in pairs. After all, it is a good time to start a family!

I think the birds on the utility pole are blackbirds, but I'm not certain.

Next we have a pair of mallards. They are pretty birds.

Sharing with I'd Rather Be Birdin' and Saturday Critters.

Mourning Doves

Canada Geese

Garden Week Randoms

Willy Nilly Friday

1. The gardens at Glen Burnie are beautifully enhanced by creeks and ponds. A recirculating system pumps the water back up from the lower gardens. I showed a duck playing in the creek on Wednesday. Here's a little waterfall rendered in black and white.

Glen Burnie is in Winchester, Virginia.

2. We were at Glen Burnie because someone I know was giving a photography talk. Jackie Bailey Labovitz explained how she makes wonderful images of wild flowers. She puts a tremendous effort into these artful photographs.

I've been to her gallery in Sperryville and also we were in a Photoshop class together.

3. These cheerful tulips were blooming at Glen Burnie. (Orange you glad it's Friday?  Floral Friday.)

4. On Wednesday I made a brief stop at the Carrier Arboretum in Harrisonburg. It was a wonderland of blooms, with wild flowers, spring bulbs, azaleas, and flowering trees!

Sharing with Weekend Reflections and Skywatch Friday.

5. The final images show a path in Carrier Arboretum. For the second version, I added a sketch filter and a vignette. 

Progress on New State Park.

Work has begun on Seven Bends State Park near Woodstock. It lies between a section of the North Fork of the Shenandoah and the Massanutten Range.

Currently it is only open for walking. No facilities are available. But it is a nice place to walk along an old country road that is closed to traffic.

We recently went to a meeting at Friends of the North Fork for an update. There have been delays due to road and bridge conditions, but limited services should be in place by autumn.

Ranger Stevens, Chief Maintenance Ranger, and John Eckman of FNFSR.

Currently there are a number of old buildings which need to be demolished because they are unsafe. The site was once a farm and home to Camp Lupton, a boys' camp run by Massanutten Military Academy. Some artifacts and barn beams are being saved.

The Virginia State Parks website has general information.

Narrow roads and low-water bridges limit the type of vehicles that can enter the site at this time. Do not try to come here after a heavy rain! The river can rise quickly and flood the bridge!

MSV Mallard

This duck seems to be enjoying the water at Glen Burnie in Winchester. This is part of the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley.

Sharing with Wild Bird Wednesday, Through My Lens, and Not So Wordless Wednesday. 

The Mill at Sugar Loaf Farm

This is the only known brick grist mill in Augusta County, Virginia. It was built by David Summers prior to 1830 using design principles of Oliver Evans, noted engineer and author.

We saw this while taking a Historic Garden Week tour on Saturday. It is located on a beautiful estate where cattle are raised.

Sharing with Tuesday Treasures. 

Dusk at Shenandoah River Lakes

Sharing with Our World Tuesday
and Wordless Wednesday on Tuesday.

Things We Saw Today

Random-osity

The Good: I like seeing murals, and this cat painted on an interior wall was a surprise.

The Random: We saw some barns and stables in Fauquier County.

Sharing with Mosaic Monday and The Barn Collective.

The Fun: We came across a small show of classic cars. Frank really enjoyed seeing them.

What Day is Today?

1. This is Marie's birthday. She is my younger daughter, shown in this old photo between Lynn and me. 

2. Today is Earth Day. A store in Strasburg gave away redbud trees this weekend to mark the occasion. We got one and Frank planted it in the yard. It's small but I hope it grows. Here you see a redbud blooming in the forest. They are more of a purplish pink than red.  

3. Today is also Sunday, so I'm posting a church for the InSpired Sunday linkup. This is the Shiloh Baptist Church in Millwood, VA.  I found an article that states that it was built in 1892.