Report from the Winter Escape. . .

 

First view of the Great Smokey Mountains

Well. Our winter escape trip has definitely been a snow escape, but wintry temperatures followed us all the way to Asheville North Carolina. I exaggerate a bit. It was cold both day and night through Blacksburg VA, but the day temperatures have been in the 40's and 50's since arriving in Asheville. We also had a beautiful day on the way down, visiting John's sister in Fairfield PA. 

Hellebores in M's garden

I couldn't help but notice that our beloved central Maine is expecting snow this coming weekend. We won't be home at that point, but it makes the point that last winter (when we returned in late March to all snow melted and gone) really was a mild one. Or at least, a shortish one for the area. Some Maine hiking friends are also on vacations to warmer climes, so I don't feel like SUCH a weenie for wanting to see soil and feel sun for a bit. 

Early in the trip, Jasper developed a nasty limp in his right back leg. We think it was a result of snow-leaping in Bennington VT.

Virginia forest in early spring

Bennington was a wonderful surprise. We stayed at The Paradise Inn, an old-fashioned resort hotel, complete with pickle ball court, swimming pool, and a ton of outdoor spaces designed for warm weather activity and interaction. It reminded us of a movie from the Poconos in it's heyday. When I walked into the lobby to check in, I was greet by a Golden Retriever named Taylor. The hosts were great, and the room was fabulous, with a slider that went outside, and large grounds for strolls whenever we felt the need. 

View from our room at The Paradise

Jasper was limping pretty badly at that point, so it was great to be able to take a bunch of short walks rather than our usual extended hikes. Let me say that limps in dogs have resulted in Very Bad things in our experience. Lacey's limp turned out to be a terrible case of hip displasia, and Moxie's was an osteosarcoma that signaled the cancer that soon took her life. Fortunately, Jasper's has healed, slowly over several days, so we're cautiously optimistic that it was a pulled muscle. The snow was pretty fabulous.Note to self: Old dogs should be careful about ecstatic leaping. . .

Water. Always welcome. . .

The snow disappeared as we moved southwest, and we were delighted to arrive in Harrisonburg VA and find it a very fun town. It's home to James Madison University, which was larger than we had expected. Lots of nice eateries, though it still wasn't warm enough to eat on a patio with Jasper. He's a very tolerant boy, though, and I think the back seat of the car feels like a large crate to him. Not that I ever am comfortable caging him, but sometimes needs must.

While the daytime temperatures warmed, the night temperatures were well below freezing. We were heating up on one Asheville hike, but the cold night temperatures were still obvious by the icicles on some of the rock formations.

Icicles in the forest

 

 

Still, signs of spring are everywhere. Birdsong is much more complex than at home, and the groundcovers are exploding from the soil. A welcome sight. Jasper seems to be completely healed, no residual swelling, and he is walking over 2 hours with no more apparent discomfort, though his age is showing. He'll walk as far as we ask him to, but only cavorts for an hour or so. Which is ok. No more pulled muscles!

Si

Today is our last full day in the Asheville Airbnb, which is a terrific place. It was drizzly when we woke, so John went fishing, and Jasper and I stayed here to take care of some details, which always take me longer than I expect them to. We may go to the Biltmore Gardens this afternoon, but regardless, we'll start wending our way back north tomorrow. Lots of stops on the way, so the trip is still in play. Afoot, as the famous detective said. . .

Snowy March

 

By Maine standards, February was light on snow. Not so March. The image on the left is of our door to the patio. Mind you, there are stairs down to the patio, so the snow is actually about 2 feet higher than in appears in this image! We haven't been able to use this door most of the winter, because not only does snow tend to blow this way, but the metal roof periodically drops a load as well; hence the pile. When the snow kerthunks off the roof, it also gets nicely packed, so moving this to allow an exit is completely impractical. That's especially true since John is now the sole snow shovel-er due to my back issues.

Jasper still gazes out the window from his bed. He can view the yard through a narrow slice to the left.

The snow has periodically made walking him tough. Right now it's melting. . .we've had temperatures in the 40's on several days. . .but it was recently belly high on him, so he couldn't do much. A couple of joyful leaps, and he's done! 

The walking has also been complicated by both John and I getting pretty sick. We aren't Covid positive, but the illness delivered a whopping head-full/sore throat combination. Thank goodness we didn't have any stomach issues.

Today was a beautiful clear blue sky day with a high of 41F. Really beautiful. More on that later. 

With the exception of a few sick days, I've been able to continue work in the studio. The latest project is a chickadee birdhouse. I researched it enough to find out where the entry hole should be, how big it should be, and what other features are useful, including ventilation holes and a removable bit that I can use to clean it out. It was an amazingly fun project, though it turned out to be a little more complicated than I expected.  The image to the right is greenware still. . . it's in the kiln firing to bisque as I type. I'm thinking of keeping the colors pretty neutral. . .no brilliant fuchia for the chickadees. I'll probably add some color to the appliques. I'm also working on a door knob for our new pocket door in the main bedroom, which I've just learned is no longer referred to as the "Master Bedroom".  That is proving to be a very fun project. It's a very small canvas, which is my favorite kind!

And getting back to the beauty of today, Check out the video taken on today's walk. John and I are both feeling better, and looking forward to a small vacation to the south next week. I expect that's when the Maine weather will decide that spring Might Just Come!