Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.

Henry David Thoreau

Visits from Friends

Monday & Tuesday  August 24-25, 2015                                                       Previous Post:
Lewis Mountain Campground                                                                           Evening on Lewis Mountain – Hightop the Next Day
Shenandoah National Park, Virginia

 

 

MONDAY

Today our long time friends Ted and Lynne Deucher come up from Charlottesville to visit and go for a short but steep hike to Dark Hollow Falls.  The trail to Dark Hollow is very close to Big Meadows but we are currently camped at Lewis Mountain so we have to drive the 7 miles between the campgrounds.  On the way we stop at an overlook since it is a beautiful day and the views of the mountains are among the best we’ve seen.

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On the way to the trail head, a couple is stopped in front of us trying to get this tiny little ringneck snake to pose for their camera.  I’m sure he is scared to death. He keeps slithering through their hands.  I get this shot and sure hope they don’t hurt him in their quest.

 

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Hiking down the trail from the top rather than up the trail from the bottom, we reach the first of the cascades.  Ted takes a picture of Lynne and I get one of her too.

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I’m piggy backing on the pictures of others.  Lynne takes one of Ted and David on the trail.  I take this of Lynne taking them walking down to the second cascade of the falls.

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We decide this is the place for a little lunch.  Very fine!  Lunch spots don’t get much better than this one.

 

 

 

While we are eating, the sun shines just right so we can see this web weaver who has wisely put her web far off the trail.

 

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We hike on down to the bottom of the falls.  It seems that a lot of people think the first falls at the top is the only one.  It is a lovely falls with several water flows and three cascades but the one at the bottom is equally lovely so if you come to see the Dark Hollow Falls, remember there is more than one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lynne looks pretty happy for someone with a steep hike up in front of her.

 

This is the easy part.

 

When we reach the top, we decide we have enough energy left to go to the VC and see the excellent exhibits on the park.

I’ve been wanting to get my picture taken with this handsome CCC Boy ever since we got here and David says today is the day.

 

The center’s exhibits are thorough and really well done.  The last section is particularly lovely and artistic.

 

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We head back to Winnona for dinner and of course I take no pictures of that.  But I do manage to get Ted and Lynne relaxing in our anti gravity chairs before they have to head off back down the mountain.  It is great spending the day with them. 

We’ll see them again at the end of the week when we head down for their daughter Allegra’s housewarming party.  She’s recently moved back to her home town from Boston.  After the brutal winters they’ve had there for the past several years, who can blame her?  I think it’s wonderful that she’s so close now.  Can’t wait to see the house.

 

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TUESDAY

 

More luck comes our way today.  Syl contacted me last week and said she and Gin were going to be camping at Shenandoah River State Park this week and they’d like to come up and see us.  YES!   We haven’t seen them for ages and it takes us a good while to catch up.   I get this picture of them when they first arrive and then I set my camera down.

 

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That means I have no pictures of our dinner in the screen room to avoid the gnats or of the hilarious game of ladder ball we play.  I warn Syl that I am an amazingly bad player.  She says she is too but that doesn’t turn out to be exactly right.  She wins the first game and then forfeits the second one since by their rules if you go over 21 the opponent wins.  Lucky for me!  So now we are tied.  We enlist our better playing halves to join us for the tie breaker and amazingly David and I squeak out a win.   I hope this means they feel determined to set up a repeat to whup us good.

I’m so sorry I don’t have any photographs of how really funny this all was.  I remembered my camera at the last minute as they get into their new fancy Dodge Ram truck to head back home.   I promise I’ll do better next time.  I seem to manage to remember to take pictures when I’m hiking but send some good friends my way and all bets are off.

Thanks so much you two for coming to check up on us.  It was great to see you.  Hope it’s not so long between visits next time.  

 

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19 comments:

  1. I understand from David that Allegra is living in my neighborhood. She's not that close to me, but if I would start running again, . . .. :-) Thanks for sharing. Take care!

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  2. Really enjoying your hiking photos and descriptions and how wonderful to have friends to share hikes with!

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  3. What fun, having friends join you. I love the spider web photo. Isn't nature beautiful?

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  4. How fun!! Great hike with Ted and Lynne...looked like a great weather day for that! I bet the ladder ball game was really fun ... and hilarious! I can definitely imagine that :) Friend visits are the best!!!

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  5. Friends to share hikes, food and games (with or without photos) REALLY do make everything more special!!!

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  6. It is so much fun reuniting with friends. That snake is so dang cute!

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  7. Probably one of the very best parts of the RV life, finding good friends and then having time to reunite wherever your paths cross. Very special times, indeed!

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  8. How fun to reconnect with good friends and share the fun of your "neighborhood". Love the big delicate web and the teeny tiny snake. Lunch by the water is always a good spot, and that looks like a pretty great one. So many times I've forgotten to pick up my camera until "it" was over - but writing about it does help with the memories :-)))))

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  9. It is always fun to visit with friends, but got to say, nope, not me, I wouldn't care how little the snake was, I wouldn't be holding him.................NOPE, NOT ME!!!
    May your travels be on the wings of God’s Angels
    Till next time
    Cyndi & Budhi
    OUR BLOG: http://newbeginningswiththebudhis.blogspot.com/
    OUR YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRcN6tAgp25EryngtCSX7wQ

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  10. There are so many beautiful sights in the SNP, and you are showing us so many of them. What a place to have lunch! I'd find it hard to leave, but more beautiful spots are just around the bend. Love the spiderweb, although they are a nuisance when you hike early in the morning.

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  11. Nothing better than a Gin and Syl hug to make a great day even greater!

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  12. Two friend meet ups! How nice for you and David. It is always fun to catch up with those we haven't seen for awhile. Great hike and perfect lunch with a view spot:) Aren't spiders amazing with those beautiful webs:)

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  13. It was a lovely day and we really enjoyed our visit. Forgetting cameras... I got you beat cause ours stayed in our MH many miles away.
    Syl

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  14. How nice to have friends stop by! Even nicer for you to share your experiences with them :)

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  15. Gorgeous lunch place. Thank goodness that web wasn't across the trail. I can see why you'd like to hang out with that handsome CCC boy. How nice to have two days of company. I'm also bad about taking pictures of people.

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  16. Love the West but if we ever do get a camper, there is so much to do in the Shenandoahs that I'm not sure we'd ever leave> Thanks for the pics and it was good to see you both theis weekend.

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  17. Meeting friends whom we have not meet for a while is always fun especially if you get to hike with them.
    That is the second CCC boy I saw that is mounted on the ground with out a stand, Cool. I too got to pose with him at Fort Lincoln State Park, ND.

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  18. Reconnecting with friends (either those from home or those we've met in our journeys) is one of the best parts of our traveling lifestyle. I think it's a good sign that you're having so much fun that you forget to take photos!

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