So a few days have gone by since my last post. They have been very full, happy and for the most part sunny days. So much of my time has been spent outside enjoying the wonderful autumn weather. Much of the day has been spent digging rocks out of the pasture, then mowing other parts of the pasture and also cutting and stacking more firewood.

    Lucky for me that in between bouts of hard physical labor have been pleasant interludes of pretty much doing nothing. Saturday was spent cooking up 4 quiche and two batches of zucchini cake for a party Rima had planned for Sunday afternoon and evening. Along with everything else going on that day, Rima had several of her kids show up for the night, so it was fun to sit around and talk to them while we were busy scurrying around the kitchen. They seemed to have an inordinate amount of interest in my zucchini cake, so when they all went out on the town it seemed prudent to just leave a loaf of it out on the counter for them when they got home.

   When Sunday finally rolled around the loaf of zucchini cake was gone as if a plague of locust had swooped in and attacked it. Actually it was rather gratifying to know that it tasted good enough to provoke that kind of reaction from some younger folk. It was also painfully obvious that more food needed to be prepared for Sunday, not only for the party but also for the family who were staying here.

   I got busy and made up a couple more quiche and another batch of zucchini bread as well as a big pot of my Chicken Tangine. It was a lot of fun to cook again and it was a lot of fun to have someone  along side helping out. By 4:00 in the afternoon everything that could be done was in place and people were starting to show up. By the time it was over more than 50 people had come and gone, tons of food and drink had been consumed and we were all exhausted. It was lot's of fun though and I think Rima had a very pleasant birthday.

    Since then the kids have mostly gone and routine has finally gotten back to normal. Mowed some more pasture on Monday and cut firewood  yesterday. Still not enough to last her through the winter, but at least it's a good start. Will continue on with that quest a little bit today as the sky is starting to clear up from the rain that came into the area last night. I'm afraid that I am fast running out of time though. Tomorrow I will be packing up the trailer and head back out on the road again. Headed for Nashville first and then on to Austin after that. Really looking forward to being back out there again... but a big part of me will also be thinking about what I am leaving here. In the meantime; here are a few photo's from a trip over to Natural Bridge and Caverns a few weeks ago.

 

 

Natural Bridge and Caverns in Virginia - Oct 2013

At 215 feet high, 40 feet thick and 100 feet wide with a 90 foot span between sides, this is one of the highest natural spans in the world. It even has a highway running over it. U. S. Route 11.

It seems beyond me that such a small stream could cut such a magnificent monument. But then if you have about 500 million years in order to do it, even a little bit of water can do amazing things.  

Rima enjoying the walk up the creek beyond the bridge.

A happy moment.

A nice walk way along the creek.

The end of the path ends at a beautiful little waterfall.

One last look at the bridge. Turns out that Thomas Jefferson once owned the land here at Natural Bridge. It is also neat that George Washington surveyed this plot of ground when he was young and carved his initials into the wall of the bridge. So it seems that even the 'father' of our country was not opposed to writing a little graffiti at times. We discovered that the company that owns Natural Bridge and all the other attractions may be going out of business and that they are trying to interest the State or Feds in buying it and turn it into a park. I hope something can be done to save it, but it is hard to see either agency coming up with the money needed.

Also associated with Natural Bridge is the deepest cavern in the east. Having been discovered several decades ago and open to the public for many of those years, there isn't much left in the way of spectacular formations. Still,  there are a few left and if all goes well there will be even more in about a million years or two.

Another view. 

The largest formation in the cave 'Goliath'. This piece of flowstone is more than a million years old.

At about a 1/2 an inch every 10,000 years, this little stalagmite is only about 80,000 years old.

More formations.

I liked this little bit of flowstone.

Part of the Natural Bridge complex includes a butterfly room. This is just one of the many in there that day.

Another one of the many butterflies.

A different one.

One last specimen.