Just a frog on the Lilly Pad

Fall weather, good wine... there is no better way to spend a fall day. I got an opportunity to spend some time with my friends on their boat on the Potomac River. I hope you enjoy this story, and the pictures that go along with it. Dave ************************************************************************************* Friends Paul and Pam Bosch invited me to enjoy an afternoon on their boat. Although the November evenings had been cool, the daytime temperature was in the upper 60’s. They told me to bring a heavy jacket and a hat, because it would be cold on the water. I met them at in Stafford at Hope springs Marina. As we were boarding, someone stopped and asked them about the name of their boat. I hadn’t noticed but it was not painted on the back and apparently this is bad form in the world of boaters. Paul paused for a second as if he hadn’t considered the question before and then blurted out “The Lilly Pad.” It was an obvious description of his power boat with green top and green markings. Theirs is a beautiful 27 foot boat with a cabin down below. The cuddy has a full Galley; a Head; seating and sleeping for at least 4. A month had passed since they had taken the boat out and the spiders had taken nest. As we unzipped the windows of the bimini, spiders of all sizes were startled that we were moving into their comfortable spaces but with a flick and a foul word, they were gone. With the boat cranked up, Pam and Paul worked together to get the boat out of the slip and we slowly began moving out of the protection of Aquia Creek. At the helm Paul brought the boat up to speed, its big engine began to hum and the deep brown water of the Potomac sparkled as a bright, crisp cusp of shimmering wake in the sunshine. A smile on his face, gave hint that he was more than happy to be back on the water. We sped across the river to the cliffs of the opposite shore. With no protection from the wind, the water in the river was choppy but the big boat plowed unhindered through the waves. The sky was deep blue and sun beat down. Most of the leaves had fallen from the trees, but patches still held the bright colored reminders of how beautiful this fall had been. We anchored. Pam prepared a tray of cheese and crackers, while I opened a bottle of wine. Paul made jokes the implied that Wine and cheese were more appropriate for a sail boat instead of his fossil fuel burning water missile. We sat here for an hour or more in the breeze and sunlight watching the wildlife and talking about everything and nothing at all. As the sun began to set we decided to head back to the creek. In the creek the water was smooth and what was left of the sun reflected beautifully. The dark blues of twilight were pushing the sun back into the horizon. Slowly it disappeared making the color of the sky change from bright yellow then to orange and then to gone. This is when Paul allowed me to take the helm. I navigated the boat slowly through the creek. It was 40 feet from shore to shore with a deep channel in the middle of the winding waterway. With the sun gone, Paul’s knowledge of the area and the lights of the homes on shore allowed us to navigate. The stern of the boat yawed from left to right as I steered us deeper into darkness. The temperature had turned cold and it was time to trade the sunglasses and shirtsleeves for warm fleece and stocking cap. We traveled for a long while till we reached a spot that allowed us an opportunity to turn around. Paul maneuvered the boat and began back down the creek heading towards the marina. Without being behind the wheel, I was able to see that people were out. Some were fishing, and some on shore were allowing a bonfire to stave off the chill that was settling in. As we slowly motored home, I couldn’t help but feel smug. There was no better way to spend a fall day than with friends on the water. Like frogs on the Lilly Pad.

Fall Morning Hike

From October 09

This seems to happen to me every year... I forget how much I enjoy being in the woods. I get busy during the summer with vacation, yardwork and the like and literally forget to spend time "out". Its not like I dont know it.... the issue is more like I forget just how much I enjoy it. Anyhow, Fall of the year is an excellent time to go for a hike. The temperature is moderate, the bugs are almost non existent. Good company and a picnic lunch are a recipe for a great time. Enjoy this months post Dave PS - CLICK ON THE PICTURE ABOVE TO SEE 80 MORE.. ;-) The pace of life gets really fast during the end of the summer season. Chores around the house take precedence over having fun with friends and family. Sometimes you have to just break away, steal some time and head for the woods. That’s exactly what my girlfriend, Katherine and I did. Just 55 miles southwest of Fredericksburg in Criglersville is the White Oak Canyon trail. This is a 10mile (round trip) trail that sits beside the Rose River – the trail promised waterfalls and at least 5 miles of relaxing and vigorous exercise. We started off at the trail head. The first cold night of October left a chill in the air on the trail. This first part was an easy trek. Wide trail led to two “formal” bridges over the river which being fair was more like a swollen creek. As we crossed the second bridge we looked down to find that someone had stacked stones. In this practice, stones of various sizes are literally stacked. The edges of each river stone are meticulously placed, finding the matching surfaces that will allow the lower stone to act as a foundation for the next precariously balances stone. Adding new stones without interfering with the previous ones requires incredible focus. The practice has become a popular form of meditation and in some ways art. The sunshine shone through the colorful canopy of fall leaves, illuminating the path. With the river and its soothing sound running alongside, we strode up the trail. The incline was becoming more severe as we made more distance. We reached the “lower falls”. Although beautiful these falls were not quite ordinary. Instead of water pouring over a precipice and plunging to a distant pool below, this was a fast flow of water down what appeared to be a water slide. No joke, the falls gave the appearance that if you started at the top you could ride the water down the smooth sided crevices in the incredibly huge rock faces down to a deep pool at the end. It was obvious by the significant carved out path of the water that it had been at this job for hundreds of years. After spending a short appreciation time we continued and the trail took a turn upward. By this point, we were doing less talking and more deep breathing. The trail had changed from a wide open soft path to a more closed in, root laden path with many rocks that had erupted from the earth into the path. Each step was from root to stone and then over again. I was no longer able to allow my gaze to wander; instead my attention was required to navigate my way upward finding each blue blaze to ensure I was heading the right way. A stop to touch of the water told you this was no longer the cool flow that would refresh on a hot summer day; this was the cold water that had adapted the temperature of rocks which cool quickly with the fall equinox. We made our way to the “upper falls”. The vantage point was significantly different from the lower falls. We had a precipitous perch from which we could see the water flow below us. The same slide-like grooves had been cut into the stone. After a quick lunch we made our way back from the direction that we had come. Although another hiker had thrilled us with the tale of a bear sighting, the only other excitement was when Katherine fell in the ankle deep river doing what she called ‘stealthy walking’. I heard her fall and as I turned around to help, I saw she was in a state of perpetual falling. Each of her individual attempts to get up allowed another river stone to fall loose under her making it appear that she was wallowing in the river. We laughed as I helped her up and other than a bruised pride bone she is fine.