A Lazy Sunday Afternoon

I love the fall! I can't say it enough times. It's the season for all my favorite holidays. I love the cool crisp air, anything that has to do with pumpkins, hot cocoa, and jeans. Most of all I love the beautiful fall colors. It's a time when the long hot days of summer have finally passed, and we can settle in with our slippers and cozy up on the couch with a fuzzy blanket. It just gives me that warm feeling on the inside, and in my opinion there is no better place to celebrate the beauty of fall that right here at home.

 On Sunday afternoon we decided to celebrate International Earth Cache day by taking a drive through the mountains to Lover's Leap at White Top Mountain (GC1N7WA). We drove through my hometown of Chilhowie, VA, up to White Top, and then home through Damascus, VA. One big lazy circle. The trees were absolutely beautiful on the way up. Oranges, reds, yelllows, and browns, with just the slightest hint of evergreens remaining in between. It is a sight I look forward too every year. It means that Halloween, Thanksgiving, and the Christmas season is right around the corner.

Once we reached the balds of White Top the view wasn't as spectacular, until we stepped out on Lover's Leap. You can see for miles and it was georgeous. At least it was for me. My hubby and Batman aren't as fond of heights as Thunder and I are, so they stayed back with our pups Ruby and Rusty. The trees were absolutely glowing with color. It reminded me of that line from an old song "fire on the mountain, run boy run" but there were no devils here. Only the bright glow of the fall leaves below us.



We made our way back to the car and picked up a couple of other caches along the way, but the focus of this trip was just enjoying the fall colors, taking some much needed pictures of my kids, and being lazy. When we reached Damascus we stopped at a local park and snapped some pictures of the kids. I'm still working on my processing skills and getting to know my new camera so they weren't as great as I had hoped they would be, but I still got a few good shots. All in all we had an enjoyable day together.

I hope one day my children look back at their childhood and remember all the beautiful places that we have visited. I hope they learn to respect nature and share the same love of the outdoors that I did as a child. Sure, times have changed a bit, and gone are the days of riding bikes in the street and walking down to the river with your best friend to fish by yourselves, but there is still so much untouched beauty in our world that I want them to experience. Much more so than television and games. Those things have their place but not when they take the place of days like this.

Batman

Thunder

Bay's Mountain Trail Mix

Another week has come and gone. I worked, I cooked, I cleaned, and I cached! I love geocaching events. They are an awesome way to get out there, meet new cachers, and grab a few more caches. This particular event was hosted by my friends the Cache Cracker Jacks. You can still view the log book at GC3PJYC if you don't believe me when I say that events are great!

The weather was perfect, but I left my good camera at home. I didn't think juggling two kids, an anxious boxer, a backpack, and a camera would be feasible. Unfortunately the pictures aren't that great of a view, but I hope you consider giving Bay's Mountain a chance. It is a 3, 550 acre park located in Kingsport, TN. A short drive for us, but it is always worth it. This park has a little something for everyone. There is an adventure course complete with obstacles and zip lines, animal enclosures, and even a planetarium. There are also miles of trails for hiking, a beautiful lake, and a little waterfall or two. Everytime we have ever visited the park we have had a great time. Batman and Thunder love to visit the animals which currently include some birds of prey, wolves, deer, racoon, a bobcat and otters I believe. I hope I didn't leave anyone out. There is a reptile exhibit with snakes, turtles, frogs and other things of that nature. Also, the park includes a nature center with a watershed area and even a cross section live bee hive. It is a very interesting place, but I have to say that I really believe the city needs to provide a bit more funding for the upkeep of the animal exhibits, especially the indoor ones. It does take away from the expereince slightly, but it's not  deal breaker by far.

Anyway, back to the event. We met up with a wonderful group of cachers at 9:00 AM.....lets be honest about 9:13 for us cause we were late....but better late than never! We finally met all the people that we have been talking to on Facebook for months and finding all their caches for the past year, and what a great bunch of people they were! I really enjoyed getting to know everyone there. We headed out on our 4.5 mile hike around the lake at about 10:00.

The weather was perfect, cool and crisp but still warm enough to enjoy ourselves. We completed the whole Lake Road Trail which consists of about 32 caches but there are many more nestled throughout the park. We found traditional, puzzle, Earth, multi-stage, and even a few incredibly creative field puzzles. This is certainly a great place to introduce someone new to the geocaching sampler platter. Best of all we spent a day with one of the nicest groups of people I have ever encountered. We joked, we talked, and we cached. We enjoyed the beautiful sights of fall all around us.

Channels State Forest in SWVA

I think it would be only fitting to kick this thing off by sharing my most favorite view to date. A few weeks ago, I got together with my mom and a couple friends and we decided to make the 6 mile round trip hike to the Channels State Forest in Hyter's Gap, VA. For some of you 6 miles may not seem like a lot, but for me it was a huge milestone. There is no doubt in my mind that a year ago today I would have never been able to make the hike. I've been trying my best to live a healthier lifestyle and instill it into my children as well. That included a summer filled with hiking, geocaching, and just spending time outdoors, together. They may not have loved every minute of it, but they didn't complain much either.

For this particular trip I decided my youngest, Batman, was just a bit too young for that long of a hike. I wanted to enjoy it and not have to worry about his comfort and him tiring too quickly. Yes, I said that out loud. Not everything I do is for my children. I love them dearly but sometimes I need my time too. Thunder, my oldest of 9, tagged along, as well as, our two cousins and my friend's daughter. This place was right up their alley, being between the ages of 9-12. A younger child may be able to make the trip, but accomodations would have to be made for them such as more frequently breaks and drinks. I would advise anyone considering this hike with children to know their difficulty level and stamina before you go and plan accordingly. That is true for anyone of any age, actually.

For all of my geocaching friends out there our goal was earth cache GC3TG5Z. This is a long hike, for some, but the change in altitude is dealt with through a series of swtichbacks. The trail is well maintained and not too steep at any one point. The actual trail is the Brumley Mountain trail which runs from Rte. 80 at Hyter's Gap, VA to Hidden Valley Lake in Abingdon, VA. Near the top you will take a left on to the Channels Spur Trail. If you want to complete the trail from end to end it is about 14 miles one way. At this time camping is not allowed along the trail. From the parking area to the Channels there are currently 3 traditional caches and 1 earth cache. We found them all :) The earthcache was actually our 400th cache!

At this point you may be wondering what on earth the Channels are. This brochure can best describe it for you. They are a geological formation of huge limestone rocks with gaps in between them that form channels or a maze-like structure that you can explore and climb on top of. That description simply doesn't do it justice. This is the most amazing place I think I have ever seen, from a geological stand point anyway. It is absolutely beautiful in every way. We all felt like little kids as we spent a good hour walking through the channels and exploring the various colors and patterns in the rocks. The age, the beauty, and even the sense of accomplishment from making the hike were almost overwhelming. From the top of the Channels you can see miles of mountains and valleys. If that wasn't enough, there was an old firetower, and the remains of the care taker's cabin too. The fire tower and the cabin aren't in the best shape and for safety reasons I would not advise trying to enter either, but they both serve as the remains of the rich history that surrounds Southwest VA.

A previous caretaker and writer for our local newspaper, Jack Kestner, wrote a book based on his experiences living in the cabin and manning the tower during the 1960s. The book entitled simply Firetower is available through Clinch Mountain Press. I have not had an opportunity to read the book, but it's something I plan on doing soon. I was excited to find, what I believe are, his initials carved into the cement at the base of the tower. I can only imagine the solitary life that he, and the other caretakers, led while manning the towers in the area.  

So on with the views:

Jack's Initials maybe?



Firetower

Caretaker's cabin

Perspective
 

Rock Formations

Sunlight Through the Cracks

Old Man of the Channels....can you see him?

See how huge they are?

View from the top.

Beautiful Clouds

Another amazing view!

Perfect Weather

Welcome to my Blog!

Welcome to my humble journal. Spinning Yarns wasn't really my thing, so I've been missing for awhile and decided I wanted something a bit simpler. Life can be a bit overwhelming at times, but I've decided to keep it simple....simply me. I want to share with you my love of family, kids, boxers, small town life, and ...yes....even geocaching. Those that know me best have caught on to my newest obsession. It has reaplaced my love of baking which has done wonders for my waistline! Not really, but we are trying our best to live a healthier and more active life. We're taking it one step at a time and enjoying every inch of this amazing world around us. Sometimes enjoying life means slowing down and just enjoying the view. I hope you join me on this journey and....I hope you are inspired to start enjoying the view around you, as well