Buds on Branches

Trees are getting ready to leaf out! Spring is on it's way.

Fly and Sky

 

I'm tempted to not explain this picture so don't feel you have to read the definitions unless you are curious.

According to Merriam-Webster, one meaning of the noun "fly" is a sheet of material (as canvas) that is attachable to a tent for use as a double top or as a rooflike extension. When I was a child and we went camping, my dad would string a tarp over a picnic table to provide shelter for us while eating and we sometimes called that a "fly." The fabric shown here was suspended over a picnic table near South Landing on the Shenandoah River. No one was picnicking though — it was cloudy, windy and cold!

Linking to: Skywatch Friday

Red-Winged Blackbird

Recently some pretty blackbirds have joined the visitors to our feeders. Red-winged blackbirds are said to be one of the most abundant native birds in North America but I really haven't seen that many.

Lost Memory

I lost my memory... card that is! It was a tiny SD card from my camera. I don't know how you like to transfer image files, but I remove the card from the camera and put it in a slot in my laptop. Well, before the card went missing the last thing I did with the SD card was transfer the files, eject the card, and put it in my pocket.

The next day I noticed it was not in the camera and searched for it, emptying my pockets, looking on tables, even searching the laundry hamper. I wondered where it could be, but finally gave up and put another card in the camera.

A couple days later, guess what I found it in a can of dog treats!

Ah yes! Sometimes I stick extra treats in my pocket in case I need to bribe, I mean train, one of the dogs. If I don't need them, I can always put them back in the treat can. Well, it looks like everything in my pocket went into the can.

A Squirrel by a Tree

Blog Post # 3750

Since I'm still using the phrase "Squirrel Ridge" for this blog, I feel obligated to post a picture of a squirrel every now and then.  This one is pausing under a tree, no doubt getting ready to investigate one of our bird feeders.

Geese Gather Together

At first glance they looked like a goose with three heads!

A Window in Warrenton

In Warrenton, Virginia

When I was a child we drove past the town of Warrenton numerous times on the way to (or from) Shenandoah National Park. We basically stayed north and west of town and did not venture into the historic district. But we missed a lovely and quaint part of town! It's worth a visit for the history or even to shop in charming downtown Warrenton.

It is is the county seat of Fauquier County, Virginia.

Mosby Museum Opens in Warrenton

Today was the long-awaited opening of the Mosby Museum so I drove to Warrenton to visit it. The tour was very interesting and one of the guides was a great-grandson of Colonel Mosby.

The tour started at the town's Visitor Center, which is next door. From there we followed a brick walk to Brentmoor, which was home to the Mosby family for a few years.

Mosby was an interesting person, not just because he was a talented cavalryman and partisan, but also because after the Civil War he evolved along with the changes that the nation was undergoing.

Wiki: John Singleton Mosby

Brentmoor

I've followed in the footsteps of Mosby's Rangers on Civil War Field Trips. And recently we attended a lecture by Steve French (at Handley Library) on "Raiders, Scouts, and Train Robbers of the Upper Potomac" which dealt with Mosby and other partisans who effectively harassed Union forces.

Mosby is regarded as a romantic figure here in Virginia, but there was a time after the war when he was unpopular because he supported Ulysses S. Grant for president!

Search for all my posts on Mosby.

Little Birds on a Feeder

Snowy Mountain

Lake with Massanutten Range in Background

Link: Skywatch Friday

Snow Storm Scene

I took this picture looking toward the lake during the snow storm Wednesday. I was indoors looking out the window — thank you, zoom lens!

Yes, We Got Snow!

We finally got a snow storm in the northern Shenandoah Vally. It seemed odd because Tuesday was a warm day that promised spring was coming, yet that night the snow started falling.

We got between 6 and 8 inches in our yard. Temperatures edged up during the afternoon and the snow started melting.

I took these pictures around mid-day when Benny and I went out to get the mail.

The family across the road built this snowman. He reminds me of the "grinch."

This boy loves his to ride his vehicle and today it served as his snowmobile.

Nice weather for Ducks... and Geese!

Our local waterfowl don't mind the winter weather; in fact, they appear to welcome it. I guess if they didn't like it, they would have migrated south in the fall.

TIps for Bloggers

One of the blogs I follow is the Run A Round Ranch Report and writer TexWisGirl recently shared some tips on blogging which I thought were very good. My favorite is #4, Less is More. She cautions us that "Music that plays automatically when a blog is opened, scrolling banners, intricate blog backgrounds, flashing gadgets, bells, animated animals, flowers, whatever, distract from your actual post, can delay page loads and cause resets, and can generally frustrate the heck out of your readers."

So true! Take a look at all six of her blogging tips.

Squirrel on the Steps

This handsome fellow was curious about our deck. I don't encourage him to come up there because it upsets the dogs! But sometimes he comes up anyway, at least until a dog sees him through the glass door and starts barking.

Note the little stripe he has by his nose. It looks like a big mustache!

Antebellum Estate

This house on Strasburg Road dates from 1842 or 1843. It's been on the market for quite a while in spite of the price being reduced. I would guess that it hasn't sold because it needs updating and it's across the road from a cemetery.

We have nothing to do with the marketing of this property. I'm intrigued by it's history. It has stood in Waterlick since before the Civil War but I have no idea whether it was occupied by soldiers like the nearby church. The Warren County's history map that I recently purchased shows it as a little dot labeled "Paradise."

Farm in Fort Valley

Valley Scene, March 2013

Fort Valley was named for Powell's Fort, which was there in colonial times. Legends abound about Mr. Powell, sometimes referred to as Lord Powell, the most popular being that he buried a treasure that's never been found.

Before Powell and other settlers came to the valley, it was occupied by Native Americans, at least seasonally. Around 1748, young George Washington surveyed the valley for Lord Fairfax. During the American Revolution he considered using the valley as a last-ditch defensive position for his army should the need arise. There are only a few passes that an army could use to enter the valley and since they are surrounded by steep cliffs, they could easily be defended.

The valley lies within the Massanutten Mountains, which in turn lie within the Shenandoah Valley, so it's a valley within a valley.

Dry Run Church

On Fort Valley Road

We've stopped at this picturesque church to take pictures before. It's in Fort Valley which lies nestled within the Massanutten Range.

We wound up here yesterday because I chose the scenic route through "the Fort" to drive home from Edinburg.  That is, we took Edinburg Gap Road from U.S. 11, turned left at Kings Crossing, and enjoyed the scenery along Fort Valley Road. Eventually we drove through the national forest in a narrow pass cut by Passage Creek before emerging at Waterlick. This is a beautiful drive!

Red-bellied Woodpeckers

Why call this a red-bellied woodpecker when it's most striking feature is that red stripe on it's head? Well, the name red-headed woodpecker was already taken, and this one does have red feathers on it's belly. See the pictures below for some less-common poses in which the belly is exposed.

I took all these photos in our yard but they are not all the same bird. Look at the forehead! The forehead on the male is red but not on the female. (I'm not an expert; I looked it up on AllAboutBirds.org.)

They're both beautiful, aren't they?

Chair, Table, Late Afternoon

Light and shadow can make a mundane subject look interesting.