Late Summer, SNP

Blog Post 8445

Skyline Drive runs 105 miles through Shenandoah National Park. It is one of my favorite places, so I have taken many pictures there. These are from the middle section of the park. 

Garden Affair / Mosaic

These girls in traditional dress were with a large group of young people in a picnic area. Some friends really liked this picture so here’s another one with an oil paint filter added.

Park Critters and Effects

Seven Bends, Hollingsworth Road

 Our state park turns out to be a good place for a sniffari. That’s a walk where a dog gets to sniff a lot. And since Charlie’s a beagle, sniffing is an intense activity for him, and actually tires him out.

On Wednesday, I took him to the Hollingsworth Road entrance to the park. I was pleased to see the peacock again because I haven’t seen him in a long time. He belongs to a residence next to the entrance which also has geese. I believe this is a Sepastopol goose.

I parked in the lot by the river because I didn’t want to deal with the birds while walking the dog. The first time I met the peacock, he jumped up on my car and would not get off!

My photo of a man fishing near the swinging bridge was not very satisfying so I filtered it in an app. Friends liked the result, so I tried a painterly effect on a picture of some deer that ran through the park after a jogger startled them. They show up better now, but the trees suddenly acquired fall colors.

I don’t want to leave Charlie out of the special effects.

Yesterday in Leesburg

Black and White / Weekend Reflections / Floral Friday / #window

Cloud Column and Rainbow

I have seen tall columns of clouds before, and they are associated with rain. I looked it up before writing this post, and I believe it is called Cumulonimbus. I pulled over and got a picture because there was a partial rainbow. The rainbow disappeared quickly, but the cloud persisted.

The second photo was taken 40 minutes later on a country road west of Strasburg. 

 

Yesterday at Wilkins Lake

Winchester, Virginia 

This lake is between Shenandoah University and Hollingsworth Mill. I stopped by there yesterday after getting my oil changed at the Toyota dealer. I figured I could take some pictures of ducks and geese.

Some workmen were repairing the wall around the lake.

#wall / #H2O

Camp Jones at Bristoe Station

Prince William County

Interpretive Sign for Civil War Camp

Reconstructed Chimney for Hut

Links:

• Winter Quarter Showing Reconstructed Hut 
• Bristoe Station Battlefield Heritage Park
• Tuesday Treasures 
• Wordless Wednesday on Tuesday

Wall of Flowers

At Winchester Medical Center 

Bloom on a Bench

Mosaic Monday / Garden Affair

 

Pink Eagle Mural

Waynesboro, VA

These murals are on North Commerce Avenue near the train tracks. Waynesboro has had street art festivals, resulting in some colorful and interesting walls.

Monday Murals

Masonic Lodge in Waynesboro, Virginia

When I spotted this building from across the street, I thought it must be a church. Then I saw that it is Lodge #209. 

I don’t know if it was built as a masonic lodge or converted from a church.

Here is the building that is on the opposite corner, a hair salon. This style of butterfly mural is fairly popular in my area. You can pose between the wings to be photographed as a butterfly.

Charlie’s Back to School Update

I’m kidding. I didn’t really go back to school. I haven’t been to puppy training yet. It’s a long car ride to get there, and you know how I feel about cars. They are so scary! I try to chew them up.

I do go to day boarding sometimes at the vet’s office. There are some fun ladies who play with me there. And there are cats who live there, and sometimes dogs to sniff.

Caturday / Saturday Critters

We finally got some rain. That’s a good thing because the grass was turning brown, and some afternoons were so hot we could not even go to the dog park. Sometimes Mom took me to the dog park at Bryce Mountain because it is cooler there. 

Today we went to the dog park in Woodstock. Jubal showed up with his little brother and we had a good time.

That’s enough about me. I’ll show you a couple of critters, but I don’t know much about them.

Book Banners Roil Front Royal

"The books that the world calls immoral are books that show its own shame."
~ Oscar Wilde

A group of so-called religious parents are threatening the funding of Samuels Public Library. They insist that books that they deem unsuitable for children must be removed, and the board of supervisors is listening to them, and may withhold funding that the library needs to continue operating.

When I lived in Warren County, I used that library frequently. It is a very nice modern library, and I still drop in there occasionally.

Another group has formed to save the library without banning books. The library staff has done their job in evaluating all the children's books to make sure they are wholesome enough for the intended age group. They want all children to feel welcome, so they included selections such as a book telling the true story of a baby penguin who was adopted by two male penguins. Zealots fear this story might "groom" children to accept same-sex couples. 

Local Article: royalexaminer.com/warren-county-holds-library-funds-amidst-book-collection-controversy/

The Guardian: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/sep/02/virginia-public-library-defund-republican-lgbtq-books

One advocate for the library pointed out that in Virginia, “Pornography in libraries is illegal… if they find pornography in the library, they should take their evidence to the sheriff’s office and have the librarian arrested. But they won’t do that because there is no pornography in the library.”

You may remember that I recently told the story of how Front Royal got the nickname Helltown long ago,  due to the brawling and other misbehavior that broke out when boatmen came ashore for whiskey and entertainment. Today this mostly charming town suffers from culture clash. It is on the edge of the northern Virginia suburbs, and old-timers feel the threat of over-development and some recall the displacement suffered by their great grandparents when they lost their homes so the national park could be built for city folks. Add to that the discomfort that many people feel when faced with social change and the unending friction of religious differences, and you wind up with disagreements.

I believe that the library will survive. Most people in Warren County appreciate the library. County supervisors need to refuse to be bullied by narrow-minded people. 

A Few Evening Skies

Shenandoah County Fair took place last week. I did not go this time, but I got a few shots from a nearby parking lot.