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A Glorious October Friday

Today was a glorious day. The weather wasn’t picture-perfect, but I wasn’t working, I finally got to visit Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge in Delaware, where I saw lots of cool critters, and I ended the day in Ocean City, Maryland with two former colleagues and a friend of theirs. We got to do some catching up over an Italian dinner that was way better than I’d ever expect for Ocean City. And tomorrow I’m going to do a 5k.

The weather not being perfect was actually a good thing. If it was a bright, sunny day, I wouldn’t have gotten as many cool pictures as I did. Too much bright light is bad. Especially in Fall, when leaves are past peak and the colors are all so darn warm. If the light were too harsh, the images would not have looked nearly as dramatic.

It’s late and I have a 5k to do tomorrow morning, so I am just posting a few of my favorite images without commentary.

Remember, if you want a better look, click on each image for a larger view.








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Capon Springs, West Virginia

Hubby and I love our WV home. It’s cozy. And peaceful. The dogs LOVE it here. Amazing motorcycle roads are abundant. It’s the perfect weekend getaway for us. The only bad thing is that it’s too close to Capon Springs.

The WV Place is located in Hampshire County, West Virginia, a county that straddles the edge of the Eastern Panhandle and Potomac Highlands regions of the state. It just happens that the Capon Springs and Farms resort/spa is also in Hampshire County. Which means, even if it is the coolest little place ever, it would feel sort of stupid for us to go and stay there.

This map shows our place (the “A” pin) in relation to Capon Springs (the “B” pin) and our Maryland house, which is about halfway between Baltimore and Washington, DC.

It’s not that we’re spa people or anything. It’s that the place is just so darn cute. It’s exactly the sort of place we like to stay when on vacation. It’s old (est. ~1840), very well maintained and situated on 4,700 acres in the Allegheny foothills just outside a piece of the George Washington National Forest.

We discovered it by accident back in August. Back then, I knew I wanted to return to explore more. That’s what we did on Saturday. Although it was a beautiful day, our motorcycles were out of commission. Both needed new back tires, which Hubby bought and mounted on the wheels, but he left a crucial part at the Maryland house. So we just took the truck.

It really is a neat little place with all sorts of stuff to do. There’s hiking, golf, fishing, tennis and swimming. Did I mention the full-service spa? The outdoor volleyball court. The croquet course set up on the lawn?

This place manages to be quaint without being the least bit tacky.

It really is a spring, too, as in water. There’s water bubbling up in a variety of places (like the ornamental ball in the above image). Their Web site says, “A bottle of refreshing Capon Water is provided in all guest rooms. Please take it home with you when you leave so you may enjoy the benefits of good healthy spring water between your Capon visits. You are also welcome to bring your own containers and fill them at any of the fountains around the grounds.”

Speaking of the grounds, there’s this neat swing on the lawn. There are Adirondack chairs everywhere you look. There are also hammocks and other assorted benches scattered strategically in spots that are sure to inspire deep contemplation.

In case you’re wondering, this is not a paid endorsement. We’ve never even stayed at the place. It’s just so darn charming, I figured I’d tell the world so maybe a friend or two could come and enjoy it.

I’d guess the best times are Fall (mid- to late-October) and Spring. There are huge old rhododendron bushes in front of several of the cottages. Plus little flower gardens galore.

Here are some more images of the place…







If you decide to stay there, do let me know how it is. It’s a bit weird to talk-up a place you’ve never stayed. But, really, it’s just so darn charming.

After we left Capon Springs, we drove up to Capon Bridge for dinner at our favorite Hampshire County restaurant, El Puente. Then we took the scenic route home, which is where I snapped the closing image I have dubbed…

Fall on the Cacapon River

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Our Distracting Visit to DC

Hubby and I took Thursday off from work so we could drop Shannon off at Dulles Airport. She had to be at the airport at 7:30 AM, which meant we had a whole day to kill. We could either go home and be sad all day or find some interesting distraction. Opting for the latter, we headed into Washington, DC.

After taking about 3 pictures, I realized my camera battery was almost dead. Not only did I not have a back-up, the car-charger was at home in my camera bag.

It was still pretty early at that point. Way too early for retail stores to be open. So we went ahead and walked around the Tidal Basin for a close-up look at the Jefferson Memorial, which is yet another national icon I’d never actually seen despite living like 45 minutes away.

After poking around there for a bit, we headed to Alexandria in hopes of finding a cheap battery charger. (I mentioned the trip to Alexandria on my blog yesterday.)

We saw this cool little ranger vehicle on our way back to the car. I guess if you have to be a Park Ranger in DC, the least you could expect, or hope for, is a cool little vehicle to drive.

After returning from Virginia, we visited the World War II Memorial, which Hubby hadn’t seen yet. I saw it on my last trip to DC.



This wall of stars, which is part of the WWII Memorial, is known as The Freedom Wall. It’s comprised of 4,048 gold stars. Each gold star represents one hundred American service personnel who died in the war (or remain missing). The 405,399 American dead and missing from the Second World War are second only to the loss of more than 620,000 Americans during our Civil War.

From there, we headed toward the Capitol and Library of Congress, which were planned stops. We figured we’d just stop and see things as we walked, should the urge strike us.

There was lots of activity on and around the National Mall. Preparations were under way for the Solar Decathlon. It was sort of annoying, really, having all those moving trucks and construction equipment and people around. But we made the best of it.

We would have gone to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, which is really a very moving (as in emotional) tribute to the people who fought there. But we’d already had enough emotion for the day, thank you very much. Same goes for the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, which I really want to see someday.

We saw some cool buildings along the way…

This a the Smithsonian Castle Building. I have to remember to go back there and visit the gardens. We were going to, but were starving and decided to look for a meal instead.

Right beside the castle was the Arts and Industries Building, which is closed for renovation.

I can’t imagine what sort of stuff one would see inside such a building, but the outside of the building is very cool.

I consulted the Smithsonian brochure I’d picked up inside the Castle to determine where we should eat. Hubby and I both wanted to see the National Museum of the America Indian. Hubby joked that maybe they had a restaurant serving Indian tacos on fry bread. As luck would have it, they actually did.

Unfortunately, while the taste was okay, the fry bread was rubbery and the meal was way overpriced. But then, we were in DC in a museum, a double whammy as far as inflated costs goes.

The museum was nice–the building is amazing–but it was a bit more historical/educational than we’d anticipated. Not to mention depressing. Knowing what the white man did to the Indians depresses me, especially since Hubby and I have seen, many times, how poorly the Indians in this country live.

I did enjoy quite a bit of the art, though. Like the painting above and these masks…

Hubby just doesn’t understand art, I guess.

Though I think he was just trying to make me laugh. He did.

After that, it was off to the Capitol and Library of Congress.

I just love the Great Hall at the Library of Congress, as evidenced by all of the pics below.




The next image is from the main reading hall. Something I need to go back and check out further.


The level of detail in all of the paintings, mosaics and ornamental marble inside is amazing. The detail on the outside of the building is also quite impressive.


I’ll leave you with this last shot of the Capitol. Hubby is the one who first noticed the sun streaming through the clouds.

I hope you enjoyed our visit.

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And She’s Off

Aside from today being Eric’s birthday, which was traumatic enough, today was also the day Shannon set off for Europe. That’s just the first stop in her round the world tour.

Hubby and I drove her down to Dulles Airport this morning. Of course I had to take my camera. And make them pose for a goodbye pic.

They were both looking all sad, so I had to give them a hard time.

“Come on. Smile,” I commanded.

And they smiled. Sort of. But that’s better than being all sad, right?

I mean this is a great adventure for Shannon.

Then it was my turn to say goodbye…

‘Nuff said about that being sad stuff.

Hubby made us smile, too.

Then she was off…

At 5:08 PM ET I received an e-mail from the SPOT Satellite GPS (mentioned in yesterday’s post) that Shannon’s carrying with her. The automated message, set up to let us know she’d arrived safely as soon as she turned it on, said “Checking in to say that I’m okay and having a great time!” There was a link, too, which showed her exact location. See picture below or click here to follow the link for yourself (you can zoom in if you do).

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The Final Countdown

There’s an 80s song stuck in my head today. And I know exactly why (for a change!).

It’s The Final Countdown by Europe.

Shannon, who is asleep in my guest room as I type this, having completely checked out of her apartment, leaves for Europe tomorrow.

She has a countdown timer on her blog, which has been slowly but surely ticking off the days as she made all kinds of preparations to get ready for the trip.

It was really weird to see it at ZERO days! When I did a screen shot so I could show the timer, there were just over 17 hours left. Now it’s down to 16:47:03.

It really is the final countdown. She flies off to Barcelona, Spain tomorrow morning. That is in Europe, by the way. So, see? My song of the day really does fit!

We’re really going to miss her, but are very excited that she gets to do what many, many people only ever dream about. I’ve already told her that if she meets up with someone and tries to stay that we are going to hunt her down and drag her back.

I got to test-fit her backpack last night. It contains all the stuff she’ll need (hopefully) to get through the next year. She’s been very thorough in her preparations. She’s been fully immunized. She’s hooked herself up with a huge network of folks at Couchsurfing.com, which is basically people from around the world who have agreed to let complete strangers sleep on their sofa, in a spare room, on the floor, whatever, at there place for a night or two. She’s equipped herself with a satellite tracking device so that if she can’t get to a phone or computer, we’ll still be able to tell where she is.

In other words, she’s really ready. As ready as she’ll ever be, anyway.

Jack Kerouac would say “crash at their pad” or some such dated expression. Who’s he? He wrote On the Road, which is touted as one of the most important novels of the century. Though I’d been wanting to read it for a while, when I finally tried, I couldn’t get into it because of words like “threads” and “pad” and other hooey from the Beat generation.

I bring that up only because I really am a nomad at heart. And as much as I’ll miss Shannon, I look forward to following along on her voyage of discovery. Her crazy, solo, backpacking trip around the world.

I’ll be taking her to the airport before the crack of dawn tomorrow.

Wow. This is really happening.

As a friend of hers said, “How exciting. How exhilarating. How enviable. How BOLD.”

This friend of hers has always had a way with words. So I’ll quote him again in closing, because he really did have the best parting words for her…

“Godspeed as you traverse the map, safe travels as you find new adventures, and warmth as you find yourself; the self we know and love.”

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Last Fall…

…I took a short road trip to Maine. I’d never seen Maine, had always wanted to, and had this overwhelming desire to just go.

So I went.

The light was amazing.

Autumn light is as soft as it gets. What’s that mean? Colors just look richer. Fall has officially arrived for me when the air becomes crisp, I start seeing lots of pink in the sky at dawn and dusk and colors in general are just warmer-feeling.


After sunset, looking across Gloucester Harbor (Massachusetts).
Do the dark colors in that image depress you?
Or do you find it soothing?

This shot was also taken in Gloucester, but at the Inner Harbor.
I shot this one 30-45 minutes before the first one.

This picture is from Rockport Harbor, also in Massachusetts.
It was taken at 6:43 AM, but I was facing sort of north,
which is why you don’t see the pinks in the sky.
You need to face east or west for that, don’t ask me why.
All I know is, quality of light is about angles.

This shot was taken at about 12:45 PM.
Eagle Lake at Acadia National Park in Maine.
The warmest colors here are the leaves.
Midday is the worst time for pictures.


The Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse in Maine.
Just before sunset.
That’s the Golden Hour for photographers.


The light was perfect for this one.
It was completely accidental.
I saw this when I turned to leave the lighthouse.
Looking east at 5:12 PM from Bass Harbor Head.
That was after sunset on October 7.
Maine is the easternmost US state.
And that spot in Maine is pretty far east.

I hope you enjoyed the quickie road trip.