Photos from my weekend roadtrip to Pocahontas County:
CThe State is putting up these swings everywhere, and in my opinion, ruining a lot of beautiful views.
This one is at Big Ditch Lake, near Birch River, WV.
The old mill at Millpoint. A young man was restoring it on his own dime, but I have not seen him there the last few times I have been by. You can see inside and reas more about the mill in this post from 2014. Yes, I stopped in the middle of the road to take this photo. There isn't much traffic here, so no worries.
The Greenbrier River
The road to my friend's camp. I stopped by, but didn't stay there this time, opting for the comfort of a nice b&b.
At the evening jam
Bubbles being blown by children on the second floor porches above the jam laned in a mass on the hood of a truck.
Jim Berry, who is over 90, looking at the bubbles.
He couldn't figure where they were coming from. Magic!
The most photographed barn in POCO
All for today.
Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.
71°f/21.7°C. I think Europe's heatwave is coming here to visit this week! Rained all day yesterday and most of last night, finally beginning to clear.
What a great trip that was to Pocahontas County. It was such a pleasure to see so many old friends...and I do mean old. We are all getting up there! And it was surprising to see how much everyone had aged since I last saw them 3 or 4 years ago. Well, I have too, and I am sure they noticed my many new wrinkles and abundant gray hair! Ah, we were so young when I first came to Allegheny Echoes. All in our 50s and full of sass and vinegar, staying up til the sun came up, sipping on 'shine, singing and laughing and listening or playing music!
Now the conversations are often about what joints have been replaced (used to be joints meant something entirely different to most of these folks!), what medications everyone is taking, where we hurt and why...and everyone is in bed before 2am. What changes time hath wrought.
Which is the reason I very much wanted to go. Time is passing quickly now and I don't want to miss chances to meet up with friends whenever I can. But did I take photos of everyone? Nope, completely forgot because I was too busy being in the moment.
But I did take some videos of the fine, fine music. So here's a taste. First, the Bing Brothers Band. Mike on mandolin, Dave on guitar, Tim on banjo, with Jake Kracke on fiddle and Tim Corbett on bass. These guys will be inducted into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame next April. The Bings, along with my writing mentor Kirk Judd, were the founders of Echoes.
The evening concert featured the teachers and visiting Masters in various instruments and creative writing.
And then later, jams back at the Marlinton Motor Inn, where most of the teachers and students stay, and where many of the classes are held. Classes are also held in various locations in town, as the community really supports this event, and has for the 30 years it has been held.
So I got my music fix, for now. It seems that as I get older I want to hear live music more and more often. That's a good thing, I think.
Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.
62°f/17°C, threatening rain as I left this morning.
A few quick shot taken before I left home this morning.
The large gazing ball gives an idea of the size of this bloom!
Gardens are growing nicely.
The messy end of this flower bed.the chicken wide deters deer coming down from the woods, sneaky things. They have to go around, which means the dogs can see them.
The girls, back in their old coop, and seeing pretty content. But I think it is time for us to give up having chickens. I think.
All for now. I had my blood test that I was supposed to have back in October (all pretty good), went to the bank, filled up with gas, got my driver's license renewed, and then drove across state to Marlinton for a visit with friends and a fantastic concert this evening. Hopefully I will have more photos to share next time.
Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.
