Pictures taken: June 30, 2013 from Craggy Gardens on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina
Linked to Wordless Wednesday on The Jenny Evolution, 5 Minutes for Mom,
Showing posts with label mountains. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mountains. Show all posts
Wednesday
Wordless Wednesday: Mountain Tops
Pictures taken: June 30, 2013 from Craggy Gardens on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina
Linked to Wordless Wednesday on The Jenny Evolution, 5 Minutes for Mom,
Off the Mountain Path
One of the benefits to living in the mountains, near the mountains and surrounded by the mountains is that you don't have to travel very far to get to the mountain air. You know, the calmness, the beauty, the tranquility that the area exudes....or in my case the splashing, laughing and energy that 5 kids can exude.
A couple roads down from our house is Bear Farm Road. It dead-ends at a couple of old logging roads, which are just perfect for walking. There are also some nice areas to play in the water. Paved on the bottom for vehicles to drive through and your average river rock bottom on either side.
With all the rain we've been getting the water was moving pretty quickly the last time we were there. Annika had to stay near the edge or she would get knocked down. The boys, however, ran through, attacked the water, and shredded sticks and weeds in the rapid water.
We spotted this little guy moving upstream across one of the paved areas. He was hard to see with the glare on the water, but Cale managed to nab him.
Annika and Lakin busied themselves with a couple salamanders they found along the bank.
Annika refused to leave the little things alone. She would try and catch them and put them in the water and watch them swim back to shore. She was content to follow their path until they finally disappeared in the wet leaves and sand on the bank.
While the boys, played their favorite throw-the-biggest-rock-you-can-find game. It's the perfect place to cool off on a hot summer afternoon.
This post has been linked to Family Friday,
A couple roads down from our house is Bear Farm Road. It dead-ends at a couple of old logging roads, which are just perfect for walking. There are also some nice areas to play in the water. Paved on the bottom for vehicles to drive through and your average river rock bottom on either side.
With all the rain we've been getting the water was moving pretty quickly the last time we were there. Annika had to stay near the edge or she would get knocked down. The boys, however, ran through, attacked the water, and shredded sticks and weeds in the rapid water.
We spotted this little guy moving upstream across one of the paved areas. He was hard to see with the glare on the water, but Cale managed to nab him.
Annika and Lakin busied themselves with a couple salamanders they found along the bank.
Annika refused to leave the little things alone. She would try and catch them and put them in the water and watch them swim back to shore. She was content to follow their path until they finally disappeared in the wet leaves and sand on the bank.
While the boys, played their favorite throw-the-biggest-rock-you-can-find game. It's the perfect place to cool off on a hot summer afternoon.
This post has been linked to Family Friday,
Sunday
The View From the Blue Ridge Parkway
Saturday we took a drive down the Blue Ridge Parkway. I wanted to see the fall colors and the boys have never been up that way before.
The leaves are nearing peak and are absolutely gorgeous. And the mountains are amazing- as always.
We stopped every now and then to take pictures and enjoy the beautiful weather.
And stopped at the Mt. Pisgah picnic area for lunch. I haven't been up in that area since I was a kid. You can see Mt. Pisgah from our road, and one day we hope to take the kids to hike up to it.
We continued south on the parkway until gas started to get low and Annika started to get grumpy.
We made one last stop- as requested by the boys. We hung out here for awhile- letting the boys laugh and joke about the name on the sign. And letting Annika get some energy out.
Then we headed home. This picture is overlooking Hominy Valley. Somewhere in the middle of those peaks is our home. I could look at the leaves and the mountains forever- it's good for the soul.
Luckily I can sit and look the mountains and colors anytime I want because this is the view from the south side of our house- Little Pisgah Mountain and the view from the front and north side are just a beautiful.
Thursday
Field Trip Friday: The Cradle of Forestry
This week I am sharing our trip to the Cradle of Forestry. Although you can walk into the Pisgah National Forest from my back yard, we had to drive almost an hour to get there! If I had some stronger stomachs in the car who could handle very curvy roads, we could have cut the time a bit and driven through the mountains, but it was a nice drive nonetheless.
The Cradle of Forestry is considered the Birthplace of Forest Conservation on America. And it's a place I would definitely recommend visiting. The Discovery Center has a ton of exhibits on forestry, conservation, nature and the forest service. There is a simulated helicopter ride, tunnel and a scavenger hunt for the kids.
Once we thoroughly experienced what the center had to offer on the inside, we headed outside into nature.
There are a couple trails to take- the Biltmore Campus Trail- which gives a look at life at the first school of Forestry or the Forest Festical Trai- which has many points of interest along they way to learn about logging, conservation efforts and other topics regarding the forest. We chose the Forest Festival Trail, but will definitely be back to take the other one at some point.
The trail was paved and makes about a 1.3 mile loop through the forest with numbered points of interest along the way.
Rylan's enthusiasm for trees tends to rub off on the other boys. And they sprint around the trails looking for signs of trees we've not encountered before- other than in books. There was lots of "Rylan what type of oak is this?" and other such questions.
So we noted the names of the trees and observed the bark and leaves.
And anything growing on that bark or on the forest floor...
There was an old steam powered engine at the sawmill. Where we read about why it was such a dangerous place to work.
And the logging locomotive was a big hit. They could climb up and ring the bell. And see the logging cars and the log loader at the end.
The trial snaked around past an old hatchery, the remains of a homestead, an area of forest dedicated to conifers and their growth needs and ended up back at the discovery center.
If you are in the area, or plan on visiting you should stop by, I don't think you would be disappointed. The Cradle of Forestry is easily ascessible from the Blue Ridge Parkway (around mile post #411) or from interstate 1-26 and is located in Brevard, NC.
The Cradle of Forestry is considered the Birthplace of Forest Conservation on America. And it's a place I would definitely recommend visiting. The Discovery Center has a ton of exhibits on forestry, conservation, nature and the forest service. There is a simulated helicopter ride, tunnel and a scavenger hunt for the kids.
Once we thoroughly experienced what the center had to offer on the inside, we headed outside into nature.
There are a couple trails to take- the Biltmore Campus Trail- which gives a look at life at the first school of Forestry or the Forest Festical Trai- which has many points of interest along they way to learn about logging, conservation efforts and other topics regarding the forest. We chose the Forest Festival Trail, but will definitely be back to take the other one at some point.
The trail was paved and makes about a 1.3 mile loop through the forest with numbered points of interest along the way.
Rylan's enthusiasm for trees tends to rub off on the other boys. And they sprint around the trails looking for signs of trees we've not encountered before- other than in books. There was lots of "Rylan what type of oak is this?" and other such questions.
So we noted the names of the trees and observed the bark and leaves.
And anything growing on that bark or on the forest floor...
There was an old steam powered engine at the sawmill. Where we read about why it was such a dangerous place to work.
And the logging locomotive was a big hit. They could climb up and ring the bell. And see the logging cars and the log loader at the end.
The trial snaked around past an old hatchery, the remains of a homestead, an area of forest dedicated to conifers and their growth needs and ended up back at the discovery center.
If you are in the area, or plan on visiting you should stop by, I don't think you would be disappointed. The Cradle of Forestry is easily ascessible from the Blue Ridge Parkway (around mile post #411) or from interstate 1-26 and is located in Brevard, NC.
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