Clare has been spear-heading many of our family adventures, leading us on summer hikes to waterfalls and out of the way swimming holes. The one shown to the left is the upper pool of one known as "The Ponds" in the foothills of Shenandoah National Park. The pictures don't do it justice, honestly. This pool is the deepest and jumping in is a lot of fun.
The water is chilly but refreshing on a hot summer day. Worth the .8 of a mile hike in. We went with a couple of Clare's Starbuck's peeps and had a good time. I was fortunate in that one of our companions enjoys many of the same topics I do, which is a rare treat.
Other adventures have taken the family to Buzzard Rock, White Oak Canyon, and Elk Wallow up in the National Park. This is the first year we have been taking serious advantage of this amazing resource. The mountains are all around us here and boast plenty of hiking. However, it is all too easy to stay on the main roads and leave nature to itself. I don't think that's what God had in mind when He created it, though.
It's actually starting to feel like the summer is ending early with the very cool evenings we've had. I know Virginia is super tricky and fickle, however, and do not underestimate its powers to bring us back in to 100-degree temps in short order.
So yah, summer adventures. We have a few still on the docket, culminating in an eventual beach trip. I'm looking forward to that. And then it's on to the heating season, Fall colors, firing up the woodstove, and hopefully, the new Cherokee.
I love summer, but Fall is going to be sweet to be sure.
Over & Out,
--Nick-Dog