Blowing Rock

Sue and I took a day trip up to Blowing Rock the other day. It was a beautiful, sunny and not too warm day for a road trip, and we hadn’t been to Blowing Rock in years, so it seemed like a good place to go and catch some fresh air and sunshine. Everything looks so fresh and clean when you’re several thousand feet above everything else.

The views are spectacular, 3,000 feet up with a stiff wind blowing all year long. At times the gusts can be over 150 miles per hour. Hang on to your hats! The cause of the stiff winds is the sheer when the wind hits the side of the mountain and causes a severe updraft.

At times, during the winter months, you can actually watch the snow “falling” upward with the wind. This is no optical illusion, as with the Empire State Building, where the refraction of the sun’s rays can make it appear that the rain is falling upwards. That phenomenon is just a mirror like reflection of the reality. At Blowing Rock it is the reality.

Of course, the best part of any road trip is the people, and pets, you meet along the way. This fellow, Gus, was waiting in the car outside of the chicken place in eager anticipation of a wing or two.

Landsford Canal State Park - Revisited

This is the same area that Sue and I visited to look at the turtles and walk in the old Landsford Canal about one month ago. There was not a single lily in sight then. Just rocky rapids; which is why the canal was built in the first place. So, when we heard that the change was really remarkable to see, we weren't skeptical; but let's just say that we were reserving our judgement until we saw it for ourselves. Well, now we have.  As you can see from this photo, although it is still early in the season, it is all it is cracked up to be.

And, with the scent of honeysuckle hanging in the air, it is a remarkable place. The lilies bloomed a bit earlier this year, due to an exceptionally mild winter. They usually start blooming in late April, reaching their peak in June and then lingering on through August, as the weather changes. This is a beautiful place to go, even when the lilies are not in bloom. But, somehow, with their annual appearance, these exceptional plants make it even more so.