Nelson County Rocks

About 45 miles of the Appalachian Trail lie within or around the border of Nelson County,  and I’ve resolved to hike them this summer.

My son Nic, grand-daughter Cally, nephew from Germany Felix, and I  did the first stretch of the AT in Nelson County, starting at Salt Log Gap in the George Washington National Forest (about 3 miles south of the Nelson border) and ending at Route 56 (Crabtree Falls Highway) about 18 miles to the north.  It is a relatively easy stretch that goes through varied woodlands, passing interesting rock formations, including Spy Rock, which offers a 360 degree panorama view which is one of the most spectacular along the Virginia Blue Ridge.  We camped at its base and then continued on the next day over Maintop Mountain and then The Priest, the highest mountain in the region.  While wooded at the top, The Priest has fine rocky viewpoints below the summit on both sides.  Depending on elevation, the forests were abloom in Flaming Azalea, Mountain Laurel, and Rhododendron, and many wildflowers (including two of my favorites, Fire Pink and Yellow Lady Slippers) graced the sides of the trail.    At the end of the overnight hike, across Route 56, Nic, Cally and Felix  cooled off in the Tye River by the AT suspension bridge which marks the beginning of the climb up Three Ridges Mountain, the next trip.

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Our fourteen chicks, which arrived on April 27th, will be five weeks old tomorrow.  Starting out in a plastic tub, they grew so fast that they soon had to be transferred to a 4×4 foot brooder which we constructed.  Three days ago they moved into the chicken coop we’ve been constructing with a friend for the past several months–first into the hen house for three nights and today into the roofed run as well.  Monika’s nephew from Germany, Felix, grand-daughter Cally, and my son Nic helped move the chicks into their new home.  Today we opened the door to the run and, gingerly, out they came.

Eggs aren’t expected until September or October, but they’re providing a fascinating show in the meantime, and they appear to love their new digs.

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Today I pulled our spinach and kale plants, which were bolting in the heat, and this seems representative of the shift from the spring to the summer garden.  We’ve been harvesting lettuce, spinach, collards, kale, swiss chard, turnips, kohlrabi, radish, and snap and snow peas, but now the potato (6 varieties) and tomato plants (14 varieties) are flowering, and squash, pepper, eggplant, beans, and edamame are planted and on their way, in addition to longer-maturing spring plantings like beets, fennel, and parsnips.  Starting a number of plants from seed under grow lights indoors gave us a head start. Onions and garlic, planted last fall, will probably be harvested in late June.  So far it’s been a good spring for growing–regular rains and temperatures not too high.  The eating has been good!

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