Snowy Day at the Play Area

Seven Bends State Park

This was taken last week. Now the snow had mostly melted. 

The childrens’ play area is on the Hollingsworth side of the state park. It has a theme of features of the area around the park. This structure represents a swinging bridge. Normally it’s a little farther off the ground, but we had seven inches or so of snow and ice.

Birds on a Presidents Day Walk

Blog Post #9380, "Birds" Post #1290 

In yesterday's post, I shared pictures of Marie walking Charlie in Seven Bends State Park. Today’s pictures are from that same occasion. Marie’s visit was very short, staying just one night because she needed to go back to work.

As we crossed the river to enter the park, Marie saw a great blue heron. Intent on fishing, it did not turn around to look at us. 

I’ve taken better pictures of herons, but this is just a quick cell phone snapshot that I took from the car.

Since the trails were still covered with snow, we took a walk on Lupton Road past the gate. A small bird was perched on one of the bluebird houses, and I think it was a bluebird, although it flew off before I got close.

The Massanutten Range was shrouded in mist, as vapor rose from the melting snow.

We also saw geese flying overhead. They disappeared behind the trees, but reappeared on the other side.

Blogging Note: I had difficulty inserting photos in this post. I switched to the Opera browser and got a message saying that I needed to accept cookies from Google. I did so and was able to complete the post. Usually my browser is Safari, but it has been very slow lately.

Yesterday with Marie and Charlie

Seven Bends State Park

Wordless Wednesday on Tuesday

Mural with Deer and Flowers

Independence Street, Berkeley Springs

This mural is long and the only way I could get it all in one picture was to use panorama mode on my phone. That’s why the shape of the building is distorted. Perhaps I could avoid that if I used a the tripod.

The artist is Maggie Sudnick of Dog on Boat Studio. 

Mosaic / Monday Murals 

Lake Frederick in the Snow

 Taken on February 10th

I found myself on US 340 on Tuesday, traveling from Winchester to I-66. I made a brief stop at Lake Frederick to eat my Aloha bar and see the lake. It was covered with ice and snow.

I’m sure by now most of that has melted because we have had a couple of days of warmer weather and today it rained all afternoon.

The state game commission maintains a public access point for fishing. A single lane of the road had been cleared, and part of the parking lot was clear.

The state of Virginia owns the lake and the perimeter, but beyond that are housing developments.

Charlie’s Valentine Report

Hi! Mom made a sweet kitty on her phone.

The red bird is a cardinal and it is eating. 

Yesterday Mom showed a picture of geese and here are more of them. We saw them from a bridge over the Shenandoah.

We haven’t gone to any dog parks in a long time because of the snow. I did get to go to Sadie‘s house a few times. Here I am playing with her toys. I like to get her toys and eat her dog biscuits and hug her mom.

I went to the state park a couple of times this week Yesterday the road was clear, but I found some puddles and got muddy. The car got muddy too, so we went to the car wash. It is noisy, but I am brave.

The weather has finally warmed up and the snow is melting. Today we went to Riley Park and the sidewalks were clear around the playground. I saw some children, but they ran fast and that startled me. I thought running fast was just for dogs.

I guess that’s it for today. I hope that I’ll have some exciting adventures now that the snow is melting.

Hearts and Power

Seen in a Flower Shop Window

Happy Valentine’s Day to those who celebrate. For those of us who don’t, today is also the birthday of the great Frederick Douglass. 

Born into slavery In 1818, Douglass managed to get an education in spite of a system that forbade him to do so. He devoured a textbook on speeches called “The Columbian Orator.” This is one of the reasons that he became a great public speaker and writer. His autobiography is amazing.

“If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom, and yet depreciate agitation, are men who want crops without plowing up the ground. They want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters. This struggle may be a moral one; or it may be a physical one; or it may be both moral and physical; but it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.”   ― Frederick Douglass

Canada Geese, Monochrome, February

 North Fork of the Shenandoah 

In Canada and northern US, most Canada geese migrate south in the winter time. Here in Virginia, they often stay year round, plus we get migrants from Canada because this is south to them. Nonetheless, it gets very cold here, but their feathers are remarkably effective at insulating them.

Orrick Cemetery in Winter

Winchester, VA

Orrick Cemetery is a historically black cemetery that’s over 100 years old. It was named for Robert Orrick, who donated much of the land. 

Across the street is the Calvary Pentecostal Church of God. I was not able to find a history of the church.

In downtown Winchester, there is a historical marker in front of the home of Robert Orrick who was born enslaved but established a successful business in Winchester.

Wing Camera

My automatic bird camera caught birds on the wing. Some are blurred, but I find them interesting.

When the action was on the side of the picture, I decided to crop it.

Bonus shot: birds in a tree on Friday when we got bonus snow on top of the ice and snow that was already on the ground.

Railroad Bridge in February

North Fork of the Shenandoah

Wordless Wednesday on Tues. / Water H2O

Another Mural at the Ice House

Berkeley Springs, WV

Snow and ice have prevented me from venturing far from home recently, so I’m digging in my files again for pictures that I took in the fall and did not share here. This large painting shows vines with an assortment of birds plus a rainbow.

I inspected the picture to find the artist signature and noticed that there are other names, apparently from financial supporters. The artist is Mary Ellen Snyder. The gallery is in a former cold storage building. 

Mosaic Monday / Murals 

Vineyard in the Snow

Views from S. Hollingsworth Road

A Second Week of Cold Snow

Charlie is not happy with this snowy weather. Here’s how he looked this morning after we tried to take a walk. There was fresh snow and ice and the temperature was extremely cold. I was trying to find the safest path down the slippery driveway but we only made about ten steps before Charlie turned around and headed back to the house. After letting him back inside, I spread some ice melt crystals on the driveway and then joined him indoors for a while.

We did go back outside for a short walk a little later, and then again after lunch to fetch the mail. In late afternoon, we visited Sadie because it was too cold to go to the park. We are lucky that Deborah and Frank like Charlie and put up with his shenanigans.

There were a couple of afternoons when the temperature hovered slightly above freezing, and that was enough of an improvement to spend a little more time outside. On Tuesday afternoon, we went to the state park and walked around the parking lot. The trails were full of snow and I wasn’t about to trudge through it with my dog pulling on a leash. 

Wednesday was my dental appointment so I left Charlie at daycare. As I posted a few days ago, I went up to Skyline Drive for a brief visit. Here are more pictures of the deer that I saw at Dickey Ridge.

Most of them marched off after they saw me, but one stayed and let me drive closer. It looks familiar, and I like to think that it recognized me from previous visits.

Last week we didn’t see any cats outside. This week they finally ventured out. 

Well, Charlie has gone to bed and it’s time for me to do the same. Good night!