Our First Geocache!

At an impromptu stop at Rucker's Gap, we happened upon this tucked in behind an old grave on the mountainside.

Woo-hooo!  Although I can't get our own GPS to work, we stumbled on this with no modern technology at all....just old fashioned curiosity...

And we found quite a stash inside - the girls each took a trinket and I added some band aids and first aid cream.  We'd come unprepared to reciprocate 'donations'.

Here's the grave site we'd spotted in the woods.  The story I looked up later was sad:  He was a local boy whose stomping grounds included these beautiful woods at Rucker's Gap on the Virginia/West Virginia line.  He and his best friend promised one another that whoever died first would have the other buried in their favorite part of the woods. 

This was another grave site nearby. although I don't know the history.

I worked and worked on getting our GPS figured out.  I finally gave up and considered selling it on EBay to raise money for a new one.  THEN I read the instructions and I think I understand what to do now.  If I'm right, there are dozens of caches locally and I am looking forward to incorporating 'hunting' into our regular routine!

Train Ride

One of Hannah's birthday presents for her recent 6th birthday was a train ride!

We took a round trip ride on Amtrak from Clifton Forge station to Staunton, Virginia.

 

 Exploring the train....walking between the cars...

 The plan was to use the hour and a half layover to grab a bite to eat at the restaurant adjacent to the depot....but, when our first train was over an hour late, it made lunch in Staunton impossible. So we waited on the platform for a mere ten minutes for our return train.

There were pretty sights to see while we were waiting.....

A nice parrot in a studio window....

Here it comes!!

Last of Layman's...

I hope I haven't bogged you down too much with pictures from our adventure at Layman Farms.  We had a great time (but did I mention it was HOT?) and enjoyed a field trip with Daddy.  Of course, he doesn't often get to come on our trips, but this time he took the day off  and we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. 

Have you ever been in a corn maze?  Do you know what it is?  There was a hay maze at the Triple-R Ranch one year made out of hay bales stacked so that you had to crawl through them up and down and back and forth on your hands and knees.  No Thank You said the Claustrophobe - although usually I don't mind crawling under and through, the fact that you couldn't SEE and that it was touching you on 4 sides was a turnoff. 

This is actually a maze cut into the corn that you walk through with a little map and clues (turn right/left) posted at strategic intersections throughout.  The thing about a corn maze is that on a hot day, with the sun beating down from overhead, there is not much air movement and the temperature is about 10 degrees warmer inside the maze than on the open field.  I did not know this.  If you're already bundled up for a day at the farm (boots & jeans) and are better suited for Birkenstocks and shorts, then it is an unpleasant matter indeed. 

You can see part of the maze cut in the cornfield to the right of the entrance.

Therefore, while we can honestly say that we walked [in] the corn maze, that is all that we can [honestly] say.  Only our small family and Julie and Luke know the truth.....and we'd like to keep it that way....for now, anyway!  Moving right along now to ... Duck racing!

This made up for that hot hike through the cornfield.  We buried our legs and hands deep into the corn and it was cool just beneath the surface.  See the red cheeks on the girls?  This brought our temperature back down to normal, by just sitting in the shade and burrowing into the cool. 

 

While it was fun to watch the girls slip, swim and slide in the kernels, I learned just how dangerous that could be to a farmer getting stuck in a silo filling up with the corn.  You really can't get on top of it!

All in all, a good day.  We prepared for the trip by reading Corn is Maize by Aliki, which is a very thorough review of the history of corn, corn's uses today and how it is harvested.  We also looked through the pantry for items with corn syrup in them and learned the word, "ethanol."  Of course, we avoided the politics associated with growing crops for fuel, etc.....maybe in high school....

Cow Train

Weekend before last, the homeschool group met for a one-of-a-kind adventure at Layman Farms.  We were still in the middle of the heat wave, with drought conditions, but nonetheless, five families braved the scorching valley between Lynchburg and Roanoke for a visit. 

The first activity was the "Cow Train."  The pictures - well, words fail me.  There were 13 or 14 drums outfitted as "cows," complete with names like "Oreo" and "Maggie," "Belle."  This lady on the tractor was whipping this cow train up and around this hill at a right quick pace - faster than Bessie headin' to a fresh bale'o'hay!  I laughed and laughed, and once the train got rolling, the kids laughed and giggled uncontrollably.  No one wanted it to end!

 Not quite sure what to expect...

See the corn maze in the background?  More on that later.  (Don't worry, Julie, our secret's safe!)

The gazebo-type structure there on the left is the "corn crib," and it was filled with dried corn kernels.

What a beautiful backdrop!

Cow train in front of the chicken coop and goat pens....

J-- ready for another ride!

Let the good times roll!!

Local Travels

I wanted to get out of the house so badly this past weekend, but we just couldn't pull off a camping trip.  It was my fault, really, because I let the laundry get hopelessly behind and I had a few last minute things to get before we started school yesterday.  But we were at least able to get out for a drive over to Peaks of Otter to look at their nature center and walk on their trails a bit. 

Touch-me-nots by the stream

hmmm....the picture is of the moth, but I see a spot of bleach on his shirt, too....

Spitting apple chunks to the fish in the lake (?!)

One of the things I love about this area is that there are so many natural things to see....just being outside in a different setting calmed the girls who were being especially naughty on the trip over there.  We had a little "hike" which would have been longer had Abbo not been beset with blisters from wearing her sandals on the wrong feet the day before. 

Exploring an inviting climbing tree in front of the Peaks of Otter Lodge

The tunnel under the Blue Ridge Parkway and a lesson in erosion

Lincoln Logs in the Lodge

It was a good time together, nonetheless.  Again, though, many of our pictures didn't turn out well....

but some did!

Local travels

A quick break from grocery shopping posts....

Do you ever visit state parks?  They're a great, free resource for family fun.  This weekend we visited Beartown State Park in Hillsboro, West Virginia. 

I left the perspective in this picture to show that most of the place is boardwalks.  Its at about 3000' elevation, in the trees, and very damp and cool.  What a nice change from the weather we've had lately!  There was no danger in letting the girls take the lead - except for the slippery wood in places - they couldn't get off the path!

Now, this is probably the most beautiful place we've been in weeks and weeks, and for the life of me, I couldn't get a decent picture of us or of the surroundings. There was so much moss, so many ferns and so much texture. I couldn't capture it all with the camera as I was too busy soaking it all in myself!

(Andy, do you want me to delete this picture?

Ignore the man in the picture...he's not pickin' anything - he's on the first day of a cold Abbo shared with us.  Perspective, again - they're looking down between the rocks - Hannah is telling us that this where Indians live....

Anyways, as we were leaving Beartown, a real live bear sauntered across the road heading into the woods!  As is the case with every other bear I've seen, it just melted into the woods so that by the time we made it to where he entered, he was nowhere to be found. 

A short drive up the road brought us to Droop Mountain State Park.  As a Virginian, I often forget that West Virginia was on the Union side during the Civil War, and that there were many battles fought in this area.  Droop Mountain was the site of the last major Civil War battle in West Virginia. 

We drove through the park, climbed the observation tower and let the girls get out some energy at the playground before the ride home.  Many thanks to that kid who seesawed with Hannah - there's rarely anyone around her size to play with her on the seesaw and she really appreciated it!

I just have to remind her, though, that she needs to give warning before getting off.  The boy got off, too, rubbing his back end.  No hard feelings, though - we'd seen him and his family at Beartown and told them about the bear.  He thought it was pretty cool and I heard him ask his parents if they'd take him back over there.....

day trippin

We took a drive over to Amherst County to surprise the girls by taking them to their first Native American Pow-Wow. It was held in a beautiful setting - in a cattle field (of course!) just beside the Blue Ridge Mountains:

We watched the opening ceremonies and the introduction of the dancers, the Monacan Chief and the other guests of honor.

It was SO hot. I made the girls' dresses out of thin cotton fabric I got from WalMart. Most of the dancers were wearing heavy buckskin, leather and feathers - and headdresses of one sort or another. I don't know how they managed all day with the sun beating down on them. We only ended up staying for 2 hours - too hot!

Hannah was reticent at first as far as having her picture taken with the dancers, but after awhile she got used to the idea (once she was assured there were no tomahawks in sight....)

We met a friendly red-tailed hawk and her dad:

Han and Abbo had no qualms at all about sharp talons and a beak that can crush bone merely inches from their heads...

They each even rubbed her belly to see if she purred like the kitty.

Next up was a visit inside a REAL tipi!

Here they are with a couple of "squaws" - they looked so cute that another lady wanted to get their picture, too (they being the girls + these ladies)!

On the way back we stopped for a quick hike up the Appalachian Trail over near Buena Vista. I didn't know that Han had made a face until I had uploaded the pictures :)

A mountain stream dripping down from some cliffs. Cool relief for our faces and hands.

We crossed this bridge over the James River off of Route 501, and came across these folks beating the heat:

It looked SO FUN and SO WET and SO COOL! I was laughing just as hard as they were - it was hard to show restraint and not join them!

How much fun is that! Tight!

A quick stop at the Ben Salem Wayside on the other side of Buena Vista for the obligatory picnic before the last leg of the journey - then home after a fun day full of adventure!