We Have Half a Dog

Front Royal, Virginia High 79 Low 57

Today was warm and sunny, a very nice day.

We went to Winchester today. Cindy wanted a haircut.

While I was waiting, I got a few pictures of the fall colors. We are seeing more and more signs of the beautiful fall leaves.

Last night when we were washing Penny, we found a lot of mats in her hair. We haven’t been a diligent brushing and combing her as we should have been. We are new puppy parents and didn't know any better.

When I tried to comb the mats out it pulled her hair so much that she cried about it. We had bought a puppy kit that gave us some money off a pet grooming and decided to take her to the Petsmart in Winchester and see if they could do anything with her hair. It was so bad that they told us the only thing they could do was give her a haircut.

She didn't like it at all and really shivered the whole time. Now she looks like they traded us dogs and this one is only about half as big as the other one. We are hoping her pretty coat grows back and we will take better care of her hair.

She is the same dog and has the same temperament, but she sure is hanging close to Cindy and I. It was a very traumatic experience for her. She looked cute in her pink bow, but she hated it. It didn't take her long to take it out.

Thanks for visiting. 

Penny and Quilts

Front Royal, Virginia High 75 Low 55

Today was a nice day, not too warm or too cool.

Cindy finished a quilt today and got a good start on another one. I’m one more behind.

We went for a ride in the country trying to find an apple orchard, but were unable to find any. We had been told that the apples were ripe. On the way back to the camp the other day we stopped at a roadside stand and the man selling the apples wanted almost $2.00 each. The lady we talked about it asked us “did he think they were made of gold”? We thought it was a little (read a lot) high.

This afternoon we decided to give Penny a bath and at first she was OK, but soon got tired of it and wanted to get out of the tub. Drying her off, I think Cindy got wetter than Penny got dry. We also found out she hates to be brushed. Her hair was getting tangled and badly needed brushing, so we both took turns and now she is a lot softer that she has been, not to mention smells a lot better.

Other than that we are just hanging out, kind of taking it easy.

Thanks for visiting.

President Hoover's Retreat

Front Royal, Virginia High 77 Low 52

Today started out foggy but as soon as the fog burned off it was sunny and bright.

We had reserved a Ranger tour of Rapidan Camp, President Herbert Hoover’s retreat away from Washington DC. It is only a short way from the Visitors Center on the Skyline Drive.

He purchased the land and all the materials to build the Camp and the Marines did the construction. It was originally known as Camp Hoover.

After his Presidency, he donated the Camp to the National Park for the use of future Presidents. FDR only stayed there once and said he couldn't use it because of his wheel chair. The Ranger also told us that FDR hated Hoover, and he made his own retreat, which is now known as Camp David. The only other President to stay there was Jimmy Carter.

He told us that the Hoovers were millionaires long before he had any political desires. He was more or less drafted to run for president in 1928 and won by a large majority. He was sworn in in March of 1929 and the Stock Market crashed in October, which many blamed on President Hoover.

The Camp originally was 13 building, of which only 3 remain. Hoover named the main building the Brown House because that’s where he stayed when not in the White House and it was brown in color.

Mrs. Hoover didn't want anything disturbed that could be left and we could see where the house and decks had been built around trees. One was a 250 year old Oak that had to be taken down when it started to lean and threatened the Brown House. From the picture, you can see where the tree used to be.

This is part of the old road leading to the Retreat.

Outdoor fireplace near garden.

This was a working gravity fed fountain in Mrs. Hoover's garden.












One of the buildings that remain has been converted into a Museum. The third building is used as sleeping quarters by the volunteers that give tours of the Camp.

The Ranger told us that Mrs. Hoover had garden with paths which were lined by rocks. The Marines painted the rocks white and when she saw them, she told the Marines that she would have liked the rocks to be natural color. Within a week all the painted rocks were gone and had been replaced by natural stones.

When we compare FDR’s “cottage” on Campobello Island with the Brown House, The Brown House is like camping out, while the Home on Campobello Island is a 2 story mansion.

One of the signs in the Museum talks of President Hoover’s love for fishing. His personal Physician tells how sometimes he put his rubber boots on and went fishing without changing out of his suit.

President Hoover fished from a bridge at this location. The actual bridge was washed away by flash floods. This one is only 10 years old.

We learned a lot about President Hoover from the tour and think it was well worth while.

Back at the Visitors Center there is a bronze statue dedicated to the CCC “boys” that worked on the Park and other public service projects in the 1930s.

Thanks for visiting.

Shenandoah National Park

Front Royal, Virginia High 75 Low 52

The day started out cloudy and foggy, but thanks to Jan for sending the nice weather from Indiana, we decided to go and see the middle third of the Skyline Drive.

We knew we would be a while and decided to take Penny with us, but she still gets car sick, so we don't think we will take her on such long rides again.

We got lots of pictures of the scenery and some of the leaves have changed color. There was a lot more fall colors than a week ago, but it still has a long way to go.

We stopped at the Marys Rock Tunnel overlook. It told some of the history about the tunnel. It took 3 months of drilling and blasting to carve the tunnel through 600 feet of solid granite. Right after the tunnel was completed in January 1932, venturesome motorist started to use the tunnel. There was another sign that told of the controversy of building a tunnel versus going around, and it was decided that the Park would have less impact by building the tunnel than by all the fill and guard rails that would have had to been built.

At the Visitor Center at Big Meadow, we found out about all the people that were displace when the National Park was established. There were lawsuits to try stopping the Park from taking their land, and after every thing had been refused by the Supreme Court, notices of eviction were issued in January of 1934. One man had to be forcefully removed by law officers.

The day and the drive were a lot nicer than the one we took last week.

We saw one section of the Appalachian Trail that looked very steep and difficult. The marker was right by the turn-off.

Thanks for visiting.