Autumn afternoon road trip to apple country

Apple Country was calling this afternoon so after whittling away the morning, we decided to hit the road to Paugh’s Orchard in Shenandoah County. I’m not even sure how long it takes … maybe an hour? … but it was a sparkling sunny drive. We left.... (Photos, continue reading here)

Leaf peeping on the back roads of Rockingham County

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
October 27, 2013

October afternoon on the back roads of Page County

Sunday was a perfect autumn afternoon in the Shenandoah Valley with cool temps and sunshine during the 2013 leaf season. SWAC Son and I set out with our cameras to roam the back roads along the western slopes of the Blue Ridge Mountains, stopping and snapping leaves, creeks, ponds, and mountains.

 Leaves are at three stages -- some are still green, others are brilliant reds and oranges, while some trees are already bare, their leaves fallen to the ground. Many oaks had dull brown leaves waiting to fall but we were in search of the brilliant reds and yellows that stand out on the mountain slopes.

 Horseback riders under the tree prepared for an afternoon ride deeper into the mountains.

 Leaf color seems a bit more muted this year but the colors still made a beautiful display.

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
Adventures with SWAC Son
October 27, 2013

Signs of fall

 SWAC Husband has been busy. He cut down a huge 60-foot dead locust tree in the back yard and then sawed it in lengths, split it, let it season out, hauled it, and now is getting ready to stack it. This is one pile ... there's two more like it of oak, maple, and ash that will need to be stacked.

Time to rake!

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
September 25, 2013

Signs of fall in our rainy yard

  

 Tomorrow is the first day of fall but the signs are already there....

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
September 21, 2013

Perfect Fall day in the Valley....

The temp is in the mid 60s ... low humidity ... sunny. It's the perfect fall day in the Shenandoah Valley. So why am I on the computer? I brought in a load of clothes from the clothes line and quickly jumped online to check email and scan Blog Net News.

But the day calls me back outdoors as we work in the garden, put away flower window boxes, hang the fall wreaths and welcome plaques, clean the chimney, and rake leaves in the back yard.

SWAC Husband is working on the woodpile, splitting wood as we anticipate a bad winter since the Farmer's Almanac has promised the winter of 2009-10 will be cold, cold, cold for much of the country. Even thought it says that here in Virginia we will have average cold and precipitation, it goes on to warn that those on the coasts should not think they're getting off the hook. It's not been cold enough for the woodstove yet this fall but the usual time frame calls for fires by early- to mid-October which is right around the corner.

And so we prepare on these mild days for the cold days ahead. The garden is still producing peppers and tomatoes ... cabbages, cauliflower, and pumpkins are coming along to be harvested in October. Apples and black walnuts are heavy on the trees with the critters getting to them before we do. There's an urgency to finish with outdoor projects now that the leaves are beginning to turn and some nights are in the 40s.

The calendar may say it doesn't begin until Tuesday but it's fall in the Shenandoah Valley....