The Channels

Joe wanted to do something different than usual on Sunday.  So, instead of walking around here, we drove and hour and a half to walk around somewhere else.  I had seen something about The Channels in Saltville and thought it sounded interesting. 

It was purchased by the Virginia Department of Forestry in 2008, so it is a relatively new attraction.  There are only 10 parking spots, violators will be ticketed and towed.  There were 12 parked cars and another waiting when we arrived and another pulled in right after us.  Joe was pretty put out.  He thought that no one would bother to drive 30 minutes up a very winding road in the middle of no where to go on a hike.  I had already read that you needed to get there early to get a spot so I was not surprised by the number of cars there.  And since we were already there, I didn't mind waiting to see if a spot opened up.  It turned out we only had to wait about 30 minutes.  Then off we went.  The trail was 3 1/2 miles up hill the whole way.  

I enjoyed spotting wildflowers like these fire pinks, 

Mountain laurel, 

rhododendron, 

galax, 

goat's beard, 

blue eyed grass, 

And wild azalea.                                                                                                                                             

Finally, at the top there was a lookout tower.  Unfortunately, it was closed to the public.  

But there was a rock outcropping that had a beautiful view.  

I had eaten my lunch in the parking lot while we waited, but Joe packed his up the mountain and ate here.  

Then it was just a few hundred yards to The Channels.  

It doesn't look like much from the top.  

But it is amazing from the bottom.  

Joe said it would be a good spot for a Gunsmoke episode.   He said he could just hear Chester getting lost and calling out, "Mr. Dillon, Mr. Dillion."

I, on the other hand, thought about True Grit when Joe said he would take my picture.  I took off  my hat and my sunglasses immediately flew off and down into a hole.  I just thought about the snake pit.  Luckily, there was a stick near by that I was able to use to fish my glasses closer so I could reach them.  And there was no snake. 

We explored all of the nooks and crannies for about half an hour.  It was fascinating.  

Then it was 3 1/2 miles back down the mountain.  

It was a very enjoyable 4 hour hike.  We had no idea this was nearly in our backyard.  

 

Treacherous

Well, with temperatures staying from 0-20 and wind chills in the negative numbers, the 3 inches of packed snow and sleet has turned into solid ice.  

It may look pretty but it is treacherous.  Yesterday, Joe fell 5 times trying to get around to feed and bust water tanks.  Thankfully, he was not hurt.  It took me 3 times as long to feed the dogs last night.  The goats are preferring to hunker down under an old barn 1/2 a mile from the house.  

And when you have to walk with baby steps, everything takes longer.  

 

Hit And Miss

This morning I went out with Joe to move the 10 cows out of the horse field. 

Unfortunately, they were at the top of the hill.  But the morning view was a nice bonus.  

We drove them down the hill, 

and into the next field.  That was a hit. 

But Joe had noticed a goat not acting right and wanted to catch her so we could deworm her.   Not acting right did not include not being able to run fast.  That was a miss. 
 

Calm Before The Storm

Snowmageddon 2026 is being predicted for this weekend. 

As you can tell from the map, we don’t know a whole lot yet.  

But we could use a little moisture. The dry weather has been great for Joe to be able to get around the farm with the tractor feeding. But it hasn’t been so good to keep the water troughs full.   This one is in the horse field. The 10 cows from the cattle drive earlier are now here. They will have to be moved tomorrow so hopefully the trough will fill up some before the arctic blast freezes everything solid. 

On my way down the driveway going to work this morning I had to stop and take a picture of the beautiful sunrise. It looks like the calm before the storm  

I also have an update on my shades. I think they look nice from the outside.  But I needed them last month when we had a crew putting a new roof on the house. 

I will have to brag on the double sided tape I got to attach the fabric to the metal rod.   It actually came from Dollar General (I had a $3 off $15 that was good all month not just on Saturday). There were rave reviews. So far it is working great.   I would highly recommend it if you need strong double sided tape. 

 

25 Days Of Christmas, Day 22

The time has been flying by.  But I finally managed to find one before Christmas.  

A pony saddle that is.  I have been looking on Craig's list and Facebook market place for one but nothing has been showing up.  Then I checked on-line tack stores.  But I don't like buying something like that without seeing it.  Then I thought to ask a girl I know that gives lessons if she had a pony saddle she would part with.  And she did!  She thought it was a 10 in seat, but when I measured it, it was 12 inches.  I think it will fit Clyde and if the stirrups are too long I still have those that go over the horn.  So, hopefully it will work out.   After we had dressed Clyde up a couple of days ago, Allie said he needed a Christmas saddle.  I hope they like it.  

And just because the sky was so beautiful this evening...

 

25 Days Of Christmas, Day 13

I have a two parter today. First, the Christmassy part. 

I don’t think I showed  Emily’s finished Barbie tree after she let Sadie and Allie help decorate it. 

Emily had to do a little rearranging to make sure they were in order of most liked to least. The ones with more actual fabric usually rank higher. But hair style and facial expression also plays a part.  

Now for the non Christmassy part. Today we had to work the calves that were weaned 1 1/2 months ago. 

It was 22 degrees and very frosty. 

Since the cattle are use to Joe feeding them every day, he worked on getting them up and I took pictures and worked on not spooking them. 

We both were very successful at our jobs.  (I absolutely love this picture)

Plus, Mike came to help.  We sorted out some of the smaller ones and the heifers to keep for replacements.  Then we gave 3 shots each to 100 head.  They should be ready to head out to the feedlot in a couple of more weeks.  Joe will be excited to turn the feeding over to Circle 5.  

 

25 Days Of Christmas, Day 9

The little bit of snow that we got on Friday was mostly gone on Saturday.  I took the opportunity to work some more on my outdoor decorations. 

I had been eyeing this little grove of white pines along the driveway.   It looked like they needed some thinning. 

My big pots were looking pretty bare.  

But not anymore, instant trees.  

Since I didn't replace the fence in the border garden I thought I would add some height to it too.  

Now I have a temporary forest.  

And I added one to the arrangement at the side door.  

I finished it off with a few shatterproof ornaments.  

And I added some bows to the potted trees.  Everything looked great until...

Monday, when we got 4-5 inches of heavy, wet snow.  

I help Joe shovel out the feed troughs and forgot about the farrier coming.  I had not caught Otoelene and she was up on the steep hill in front of the house.  She apparently did not like me slipping, falling and flailing my arms around trying not to slide down the hill.  It was the first time that I can remember that she was difficult to catch.  The farrier said he had canceled all of his other appointments so he didn't mind the little extra wait.  

After I turned her back out I checked on Clyde and Hugo.  I have turned them together now and they are getting along fine.  You may notice that Clyde's tail is still braided.  I probably need to take that out sometime.  

Even though the snow was cold, wet and slick, it was still pretty.