Nelson County Rocks

First, a new discovery near Holly’s place at Lake Monticello: the Scheier Natural Area, bequeathed to the public by a couple who established a homestead to “live off the land” on this one-hundred acre property, now managed by the Rivanna Conservation Society.  The place is a gem, with nine interconnected ponds and lovely trails through the forests.  While sitting on a bench by Cunningham Creek, Holly (see if you can find her in the middle picture above) wondered why a branch of a nearby beech tree looked white, almost as if it were covered by snow (right picture above).  We subsequently claimed in a Facebook posting: “Twerking’s origins were discovered yesterday by Holly and me in a walk in the Scheier Natural Area in Fluvanna County, Virginia! See for yourselves in the video below of Beech Blight Aphids, which, according to Wikipedia, have “a defensive behaviour in that it raises the posterior end of its body and sways from side to side when disturbed.” No kidding! 🙂

click here for Facebook video (no log in required)

Second, a familiar route with a new face: we walked a section of the Blue Ridge Railway Trail, just down the road from my place, with Holly’s son John, who was visiting for the first time.  A nice, peaceful afternoon, graced by a great blue heron by the river and a flock of wild turkeys that crossed the trail.

We drove over the challenging road to Crabtree Meadows, where we were quite surprised to run into Barbara and Marion from Grace Church.   Holly and I then walked a mile down the trail to the top of Crabtree Falls, and then explored the Crabtree Meadows and its wildflowers.   Later in the month we walked around beautiful Lake Sherando on the other side of the Blue Ridge.  We’ve been blessed with many perfect days this summer: sunny but not too humid or hot.

We ended our little outing that day at Milmont Nurseries where I snapped the picture below of Holly getting ready to snap her own of the beautiful Blue Ridge to the east.

(note: as with all pictures on this blog, click on image for an enlarged version in a separate window)

   

Holly hadn’t climbed Humpback Rocks for many years, so we hiked up there early in June, partly in preparation for Spy Rock.  On the way Holly spotted the red eft above, and subsequently we saw a mid-sized bear near the Humpback Rocks picnic area.

That weekend we joined four friends from the Grace Church retreat at Montebello in climbing up Spy Rock, which offers a 360 degree view of almost total wilderness.  A challenge, but all made it to the top.  We were fortunate that the rhododendron were in full bloom at the higher elevations, including on the rocky dome itself.

 

      

 
Along the Blue Ridge Parkway in late May

Flaming Azalea and Rhododendron along AT on The Priest

Lunch on the deck and cooking for Thankful Thursday dinner at Grace

Picking Strawberries at Seaman’s orchards with an incredible view

Along the Blue Ridge Parkway in late April

It was a winter that seemed like it would never end.  And of course it was the winter of Monika’s gradual and then dramatic decline and death, and subsequent months of deep mourning and loneliness.  So the belated arrival of spring, with its promise of renewal and rebirth, its virtual explosion of color and sense of new possibilities, has been most welcome.  And it has given a new direction to my life through my serendipitous meeting of Holly at a Sierra Club meeting in Charlottesville, where a brief conversation alerted us to a quite extraordinary congruence of interests and passions, which has only increased as we’ve gotten to know each other more.

 

  

My wonderfully perceptive and supportive sister Eleanor has captured these developments beautifully:  “I’m delighted that you found someone like Holly who shares your love of nature, hiking — and that the two of you enjoy each other’s company.  That pix of the two of you is adorable.  It never hurts to remind ourselves that we have only one life to live; I’m impressed (as I’ve been many times) with how much you accomplish and how fully you enjoy life.  That you’re sharing your life now with a sympathetic, attractive person is good news indeed.  (And, as you say, it does not in any way diminish your wonderful years with Monika nor your fond memories.)”

 

I haven’t gotten much hiking in this summer, but on this beautiful early fall day I hiked up The Priest, the highest mountain in our region.  For the first time I climbed it via the Appalachian Trail from the Tye River, a route that gains over 3000 feet in elevation.  A demanding but perfect day.

more pictures available here

 

We were a cozy group of four for Thanksgiving.  Tim and Megan joined me in climbing up to Humpback Rocks in the morning, their first time there.  Lots of fellow hikers, but the rocks and the views are always spectacular.

Two weeks later, we headed up to Pennsylvania to celebrate our grand-daughter Paityn’s birthday with Dave, Sue and brother Cody.  John came up from Maryland as well.  Both kids were adorable, and it was great to have an extended period of time with them and their parents, since we don’t travel much these days.

 

   

We stopped off in Maryland on the way back to see Sylvia (now a high school senior and recently accepted by Harvard!) perform in the Montgomery County Youth Orchestra concert.  Tim and Megan joined us.  Below: a picture of Sylvia from afar, and family spectators.

 

Having hiked the 45 miles of the Appalachian Trail in Nelson County last year, I’m starting on the trail as it goes south into Amherst County.  Today I hiked, with Dave Pfeiffer, an 8.5 mile stretch from Salt Log Gap to Route 60 that includes two cleared summits, Tar Jacket Ridge and Cold Mountain, that offer great views in all directions. Most leaves had fallen at the higher elevations, but there was still nice color below.  A beautiful, if somewhat hazy, fall day for a hike.

    

   

Spy Rock on the Appalachian Trail nearby remains my favorite local walk, with a 360 degree panorama, almost all wilderness and mountains.  Autumn foliage wasn’t quite at its peak, but the colors were still nice.

  

Reminder: all pictures on this blog may be clicked on for a larger one

Biking the Blue Ridge Railway trail along the Piney and Tye Rivers

Meeting my former Harvard roommate Joe Persky (and his son Dan)
at Big Meadows, Shenandoah National Park

 

Hiking along the James River Heritage Trail from Lynchburg across Percival Island and over to the Amherst County side of the river and back.

Revisiting outlooks over Rockfish Valley along Blue Ridge Parkway and I-64 that helped convince us to move here.