Traffic tie-up in Dayton

The people in the Town of Dayton are protective of their town ducks. Several signs beside the road read “Watch out for ducks!” Not being a Shenandoah Valley native, I don’t know how long the ducks have resided along Cooks Creek. I see them as I’m making my way down Silver Lake Rd. and across the one-lane bridge.

Traffic came to a halt for several minutes at the bridge a few evenings ago. As I approached the scene, I wondered if there had been a collision on the bridge or some other vehicular difficulty.

It wasn’t anything to do with vehicles after all.

It was a long line of ducks marching across the bridge. There had to be at least 50 birds in this duck detachment. The first segment had no hesitation in following the two lead ducks to their roost spot along Cooks Creek in the pasture on the other side of the bridge.  After a short delay, the second group headed bravely in the same direction.

From the looks of the birds, this was a congregation of mom and dad ducks with this year’s offspring–who are almost the size of the parental units.

Once all the ducks were safely on the other side, vehicular traffic resumed.

I wish I’d had a good camera to capture the scene, but alas, no.

I’d be interested in hearing how long this group of ducks–known as a badelynge–has been around Dayton. If anyone has pictures of the Dayton ducks, I’d love to see them!

Here’s a link to a walking tour of Dayton , with plenty of history included. Maybe you’ll see some ducks when you’re in town.

~~Colleen

At the fair with Leroy and Elmer

I’ve attended the Rockingham County Fair almost every year since moving to Virginia. The sights, sounds, and smells of the fair were all new to me the first time I visited. Now I look forward to the livestock barns, the crafts, the petting zoo, and the rides. Oh, and I can’t forget about the food. All these are part of the last hurrah of the summer. For me, the end of the fair signals the start of a new school year and the coming of fall.

I almost missed all the fair this year. Saturday was the only day I was in town, and the rain negated any thoughts of venturing out during the day. By evening the barns were emptying and the time for the all-you-can-ride armband was fast running out.

I did get to see an animal show featuring a liger, a cross between a tiger and a lion.

What else to see on Saturday night? A horse pull.

The Horse Pull was a new experience for me this year. Having grown up in suburbia in South Carolina, I had no idea what to expect.

I’m glad I went.

Eight teams of draft horses competed on Saturday night. Two teams hail from the Shenandoah Valley: Dan and Ricky, driven by Randy Wonderly of Grottoes, and Leroy and Elmer, driven by Vernon Herring of Broadway. I was pulling (no pun intended) for the hometown teams. How can you go wrong rooting for a team whose participants have names like Leroy and Elmer?

Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be Leroy and Elmer’s night. Dan and Ricky tied for second place in the heavyweight division.

The last of the barns have now been cleaned out, the crafts picked up, and the rides transported to another site.

Time for school, cooling temperatures, and the color show of fall.

~~Colleen

Glad to be back

As Dorothy said in The Wizard of Oz, “There’s no place like home.”

I’ll heartily second that view. Leaving the Valley for more than a few days always gives me a better appreciation for where I live upon my return.

I recently spent a few weeks in an urban environment. The “city life” felt crowded and rushed. There were trees, but not the lush landscapes of home. When I’m away from the mountains, I feel I’m missing something.

I was glad to finally leave the concrete and congestion behind, and get back to the beautiful Shenandoah Valley.

Spring hadn’t completely finished sprinkling the landscape with bright new blooms as I got closer to home. Even the mountains looked wonderful in their new green blankets. I welcomed the sight of silos and barns, as well as the new lambs and calves. After weeks of cars speeding past me as if going to a fire and buildings jammed together with little open space, these were refreshing sights, indeed.

There’s nothing better for making me fall in love with the Valley all over again than being gone for a while.

The next time you’ve been away from the Valley, notice when you return whether you appreciate the beautiful place you live just a little more.

~~Colleen

Still learning after all these years

Living in the Shenandoah Valley seems be a continuous education for me.

Never before had I encountered a horse and buggy on the road prior to moving here. Now, as I travel around Dayton, buggies are routine. No longer am I surprised when a tractor or horse goes past my house, deep within a residential neighborhood.

After more than a decade in the Valley I thought I had grown used to the rural life. But my education continued recently at, of all places, a shopping mall.

The day was warmer than it had been, which brought a multitude of shoppers to the stores. Walking through the parking lot, I heard sounds coming from a nearby pickup truck.

Was it a couple of rowdy dogs I heard?

I moved a little closer to listen.

Baa! Was the sound emanating from the back of the truck.

Baa?

I can truly say that sound was one of the last I expected to hear in a suburban parking lot.

I peeked inside the truck’s shell and saw several lambs milling around.

Sheep. In the city.

Apparently I still have much to learn about things around here.

I can’t help but wonder what else life in the Valley will teach me. It’s one of the reasons I love living here.

A crocus and a robin bring hope

This is probably my least favorite time of year. The anticipation and excitement of Christmas is past. The days are short and cold. Sickness usually strikes our family at least once.

It’s enough to make me long to hibernate at times, and not come out until the temperatures are back in the 60s.

Two things have given me hope this week that spring is not far away: a crocus and a robin.

I was in my back yard with one of our dogs earlier this week and happened to notice a bright yellow crocus that had pushed its way out of the frozen soil.

This morning, as I ventured out in the gusting winds to get the newspaper, I spotted a robin, the first one I’ve seen since late 2008.

Both these heralds of warmer things turned my mind momentarily away from contemplating another dreary month to envisioning light breezes, daffodils and tulips, and waking to the sound of birds twittering in the trees on a beautiful morning.

Of course, I’m not naive enough to think that mild weather is a mere week or so away. When I first moved to the area 13 years ago, I was astonished that chilly, even snowy, weather lingered into mid-April. Having grown up in the Deep South, I previously took for granted that things warmed up by the end of March.

The anticipation of Spring that a crocus and a robin awake in me is one of the things I love about the Shenandoah Valley. After a long, cold, and sometimes snowy winter, it’s good to look forward to renewal as Creation reawakens.

~~Colleen

History everywhere I look

Sometimes I enjoy being a passenger rather than always driving. Unencumbered by the responsibilities of piloting the vehicle, I’m free to contemplate the scenery unrolling before me like a scroll. Over the years, I’ve seen things that made me scratch my head as well as beautiful things that led to introspection.

If you’ve been around the Shenandoah Valley for long, you’ve noticed the old barns, houses and outbuildings that pepper the Valley. I’m always intrigued by these structures. I think my favorite is a silo in the middle of a pasture — the barn it was once attached to is long gone.

If these barns and houses have been standing long enough to fall into disrepair, I wonder when they were originally erected?

Were these structures silent witnesses to the strife and destruction in the Shenandoah Valley during the Civil War?

What were the hopes and dreams of the people who lived in the old houses I see along I-81?

Did the owners of the now-weather-beaten barns expect to use them for decades, or were these people in the Valley temporarily?

Every now and then I’ll see an old, abandoned house that was surely once a beautiful domicile. I’ll indulge in a bit of day-dreaming about the history of the house. I’ve created entire families in my mind, along with particulars of the lives they might’ve led in that old house.

I’ll have to start bringing my camera along with me to capture these beautiful pieces of Valley history.

–Colleen

Calm even in the flurry of activity

During the busyness of December, getting swept up in all the preparations seems inevitable. Sometimes I feel the last weeks of the year are a blur of family dinners, company, Christmas preparations, and Christmas celebration.

Last week I spent time purposely looking for some of the small things of life that could easily be missed in the all bustle. Taking the focus off the overall rush helped me slow down, at least for a while.

Here are some of my favorites sights last week:

• A horse, blanketed against a frosty morning, hitched outside a store
• Christmas trees stacked in bunches in a lot
• Canada geese winging South over a pond
• Lights twinkling high in the mountains from houses decorated for Christmas
• A crackling fire warming a chilly night
• Children singing Christmas carols

Spend some time this week looking for the details of life in our beautiful valley.

Merry Christmas!

~~Colleen

Shenandoah Perspectives

We’re adding to our family of Shenandoah Living bloggers. Meet Colleen Dixon, a local freelance writer. Check back frequently to read about her perspectives on Valley life.