Andy Guest State Park/PaveMint/Glen Manor

For our walk this week, Ann chose Andy Guest State Park in Bentonville for the ability to take a swim in the river mid-hike. She certainly didn't plan on an almost 3-mile traverse of open ground in the blazing 97-degree heat, nor could she predict that my hip would go south on this particular walk. In the picture below, you can see the open ground to the left of the river for the entire frame of the photo: yeah, we walked that in the blazing mid-day sun, me with a gimpy hip. Bad plan. Suffice it to say that although it was a beautiful walk, there were parts of it that we hated.

Our day started about 8:30am as we entered the park off of US340 and proceeded to the Visitor's Center a couple of miles into the park to use the restrooms. Once parked there, we looked at the map and saw that the hike we planned to take started just slightly more than a mile upriver but that there was a connecting trail from the Visitor's Center to where we wanted to be. Given that our hike was only about 8.5 miles, we decided to just hoof it the extra mile for a total of about 10.7 miles on the day.

This view of the park was taken on the Overlook Trail perhaps a hundred yards north and 30 feet below the actual wood-deck overlook for which the trail is named. This view is actually prettier because it is framed by the surrounding trees. The trees have been cleared around the overlook but otherwise the view is pretty much the same. The Massanutten Mountains to the west are in the background.

South Fork Shenandoah River, Andy Guest State Park

Looking Down on Brown-Eyed Susans

Backlit Moth Mullein

Although I have been expecting to see Hoary Mountain Mint during our hikes this spring and summer, I haven't seen any until this hike. I found a huge patch of it and another of what looked to be escaped Spearmint.

Hoary Mountain Mint, Pycnanthemum incanum

These American Bellflowers were so beautiful but there was no way really to photograph them in the very dim light of the forest understory. Just to get this, I opened my lens as far as possible and backed off to the minimum focal length. Unfortunately, with this setting, there is no depth of field and getting a decent view of a gorgeous flower was nearly impossible.

Pretty American Bellflower, Campanula americana

I've been keeping an eye out for all the lobelias, but this Pale-Spike Lobelia is the first lobelia that I have seen in bloom this year.

Pale-Spike Lobelia, Lobelia spicata

There are miles and miles and miles of trails at Andy Guest State Park, more formally known as Shenandoah River State Park, some winding along the cliffs and bluffs fronting the river, some in the floodplain along the river, and some running in and out of the glens and creek ravines of the surrounding woods. We worked our way south along the river through the woods for about three and a half miles and then worked our way back along the riverbank. We stopped for lunch at an observation point, a slight tree-covered promontory in the line of bluffs a few hundred yards off the river, on the northern end of the Redtail Ridge trail.

The network of trails is well-marked on the ground, but at times, relating what we were seeing on the ground with our map and with the written description of the hike was confusing. Still, with the river as an unmistakable landmark, it was easy enough to get where we knew we had to go, despite the slight confusion.

River and Floodplain from Redtail Ridge Trail

Enjoying Lunch at the Observation Point

I got a brisket in last week and so I corned it and used it in making our lunch for the trip. As Ann said, "This would be really good with a beer."

Corned Beef and Slaw Wraps

While we were stopped for lunch, Ann spied this prickly pear just down the dry slope from us. We missed the gorgeous yellow blooms (ours at home bloomed 4-6 weeks ago), but the fruits are starting to whiten. Later on this fall, the fruits, the tunas, will go red and will be good eating for something or someone.

Eastern Prickly Pear, Opuntia humifusa, Fruits Starting to Ripen

Beat up Spicebush Swallowtail with Spoon-Like Tail

Down along the river, the long walk in the sun commenced. Although it was a great opportunity to see wildflowers and critters, we kept moving as fast as we could, given my crappy hip, to get out of the sun. At times, Ann would be thirty or forty yards ahead of me in the span of time that it took me to go ten yards.

Common Soapwort, Saponaria officinalis

Despite the oppressive heat, I confess to taking a minute to watch a group of Red-Headed Woodpeckers hawking bugs from the top of a large Sycamore and the top of another immense Cottonwood tree. Though we think of woodpeckers getting their food by pecking insects out from dead snags (or the ground in the case of Flickers), Red-Heads are unique in that they act like large flycatchers, sallying forth and taking bugs mid-air on the wing. It is very impressive to watch. I wish I could have stayed longer.

Red-Headed Woodpecker, Click to Enlarge

Successful Mission; Enlarge to See Insect in Bill

Skittish Doe; Wild Parsnip in Foreground

About a mile along the river, we came upon an opening down to the river and Ann was off, trying to cool off from the long march in the sun. She was surprised at the current in the north-flowing river. After saddling back up with another mile to go in the sun, we saw a lot more wildflowers from here on out as we veered slightly more inland from the river, but we really didn't stop to admire them as the sun was so fierce.

Cooling Off!

Butter and Eggs

A Sunflower, Jerusalem Artichoke?

Common Teasel, Dipsacus fullonum

Cutleaf Teasel, Dipsacus laciniatus

Tickseed, Coreopsis verticillata

Back at the Visitor's Center, after getting off the trail, we were brutally hot and Ann was at the point of heat exhaustion. We sat in the car with the AC blasting on full for a long time before setting off home. Ann had wanted to stop by Glen Manor on the way back, but after the hike, she just wanted to go home and who could blame her? So you can imagine my surprise when as we were pulling in to Front Royal she asked if we could go to PaveMint for a beer and lunch. Well, all right then!

Ann Liked This Dogfish Head Namaste

Wings

Fish and Chips for Ann

Duck Tacos for Ed

About a half an hour after we arrived at PaveMint, about the end of beer number one, Mike texted me that he was on his way to Glen Manor, asking if we wanted to join. Ann wanted to head home after lunch, so I demurred. Meanwhile, Kelly texted Ann asking if we would come later for a mystery tasting. Methinks Mike and Kelly were working in cahoots. And so after we finished our lunch, we headed off to Glen Manor.

Look Who We Found!

Although the tasting room closes at 5:00, the staff couldn't shoo everyone away until about 5:30 at which point we set up tables on the back patio and Kelly brought out another of her huge ("impromptu") spreads.

Pimento Cheese

Cookies; BLT Dip

Miraculously Recovered!

There were three brown-bagged mystery wines on this occasion. The first had a nose of sulfurous stone fruit and white flowers with medium gold color, good body, and OK acidity. It could have been Chenin or Viognier or a bunch of other things. It turned out to be Chilean Sauvignon Blanc. I've tasted all kinds of fruit profiles on SB except this: live and learn. The next wine had a bit of oak to the nose but wasn't very aromatic otherwise. It had plenty of body, light melon fruit, and was lacking acid. It could have been manipulated (oak/malo) Chardonnay. It turned out to be a local Roussanne. The final wine was a very aromatic red that was dull ruby going brick around the edges. The nose reminded me of cool climate Nebbiolo, but the alcohol was very high. The palate reminded me of Nebbiolo too except for the fruit was a bit too briary and extracted. I was stumped. It turned out to be 2012 Cabernet Franc from next door at Chester Gap Cellars.

Mystery Bottle: Local Roussanne

The Home Team

Jeff and His Domain, Skyline Drive in Background

The Huckster, Late Arrival to the Party

For those who know the vineyard, this photo will appear reversed; the new vines being on the north side and not the south. This is actually a picture of the vineyard reflected from the winery window.

Mirror Image of Vineyard

About dusk, the Barn Swallows made a raucous appearance, coming in to roost for the night and we knew it was time to leave. We helped Kelly clean up the mess and then made our way back home, having bitten off a bit too much today. Ann was unconscious by hiker midnight. I was soon to follow.

Barn Swallows Coming in to Roost

Chipotle Rockfish with Mojo Black Beans

Chipotle Rockfish with Mojo Black Beans

We had some scraps leftover at the restaurant this weekend: trimmings from two huge Rockfish that I butchered and the tail end of a huge can of black beans. I brought them home for dinner Tuesday night.

I have taken to throwing fish scraps on a sheet tray and roasting them in the oven until done. They're not picturesque, but it seems better than throwing the scraps into a stock pot. These I tossed in a bit of oil, salt, and chipotle adobo before roasting.

For a couple of days, Ann has been talking about mojo. That got me thinking about the black beans. Because it is so warm now, I decided to try a black bean salad with a mojo dressing. It worked really well though I never had any reason to believe that it wouldn't be fantastic.

To the black beans (about a half a gallon) I added a quarter of a yellow onion in small dice, a diced poblano, three small tomatoes in dice, the supremes* from two oranges, and about a half a cup of thinly chiffonaded culantro. The dressing was pretty simple: juice of a lime, the juice from squeezing the remains of the two oranges, a splash of EVOO, cumin, salt, oregano, and a healthy splash of chipotle adobo for heat.

Really simple. Really fresh. Really good. The beans are a keeper.

*supreme is the fancy chef word for seedless and rindless orange sections.

Little Devil's Stairs/Glen Manor

We've seen more bears this year than ever; we seem to have a bumper crop and I'm starting to worry about bear-human conflict. We all know the bears won't win. Sunday was no exception; as we drove down Keyser Run road about a mile before the Little Devil's Stairs trailhead, we saw a big black bear galloping down the middle of the road in front of us for about 25 yards before going crashing into the woods next to Keyser Run.

The sun wasn't up terribly high by the time we hit the trailhead at 8:30 and the woods were even darker, especially up in the canyon that is Little Devil's Stairs. Taking photographs in this dim light was a non-starter and so there are no photographs of the canyon itself or of Keyser Run coming down through it, which is a shame because it is ruggedly beautiful.

The first half a mile from the trailhead and parking lot was an easy walk through the woods. From there, the trail climbed a thousand feet over the next mile. Trekking poles were of no use going up and Ann stowed hers. The trail, as it meandered back and forth across the stream between the canyon walls, required handholds in a few places. It took me a little while to get used to climbing with my pack on. I'm not terribly used to the altered center of gravity which is not noticeable on most hikes.

From the top of the stairs, we continued the gentle climb to the Fourway intersection with the Keyser Run fire road and continued across on the Piney Branch trail, staying to the left at each trail intersection making a big counterclockwise loop that ultimately saw us rejoin the fire road at the Bolen Cemetery, a reminder of the hardscrabble life that people led up in the hollows before Shenandoah National Park was assembled in the 1930s.

Bolen Cemetery: Life Before SNP

After gaining a thousand feet in a mile, we spent the next five miles giving all that elevation up going gently downhill along the Piney River or Piney Branch. We took a break for lunch (goat cheese, arugula, sun-dried tomato pesto, and chorizo wraps along with a couple handfuls of blueberries) just at the point where the trail crosses to the opposite bank of the creek, shortly before recrossing the creek for a quick climb up to the cemetery and a final mile of fire road down to the parking lot. The hiking sites say we did just over nine miles; our GPS said 8.5. I tend to believe the GPS; the hike didn't feel all that long.

Cooling off in Piney Branch

Hiker Lunch: Goat Cheese, Arugula, Sun-Dried Tomato, and Chorizo Wraps

Here and there through the woods, I found patches of sunshine (and flowers making use of that sunshine) for photos. Many of the following photos are iffy, the lack of light and lack of a tripod being what they are. We walked through large patches of White Bergamot, Monarda clinopdia, but I could never get the camera to focus on the very airy bloom heads in the dappled light. Ditto for the off-white bloom spikes of American Wintergreen, Pyrola americana. We were both surprised to come upon a patch of Squawroot still in bloom. In my book, it's a late spring flower, not a mid-summer one.

There were lots of Doll's-Eyes in various stages of ripening, but only one that had fully turned white and that was in a little glimmer of sunlight. Too bad they are poisonous.

Actea pachypoda (Doll's-Eyes or White Baneberry)

White Sweet Clover, Melilotus albus, Surprising in the Woods

The pale touch-me-nots have just started blooming along the stairs but in a couple of weeks, the stairs should be awash in golden blossoms. This is probably the most common plant along the moist part of the trail and at times, we had to wade through them so tight were they packed alongside the narrow trail.

Pale Touch-me-not, Impatiens pallida, All over the Stairs

For the past several hikes, I have seen lots of Geums in the woods and none in enough light to photograph. This one is missing a petal and the white bloom is blown out from overexposure in the dim light.

A Geum, probably virginianum, Missing a Petal

A Beautiful Heal-All

Moth Feeding on a Heal-All

Meadow Rue in Full Bloom

Possibly Common Nipplewort, Lapsana communis

I am surprised that this is the first and only Columbine that I have seen in bloom this year. I must be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Columbine, Aquilegia canadensis

Fly Poison, Amianthium muscaetoxicum, a Lily

Indian Pipe

Also Indian Pipe??

For weeks, I have been trying to get a decent photo of long-leaved bluets, which are often found trailside in the woods. The light is too low and the blooms are too small. This is the best of dozens and dozens of frames.

Long-Leaved Bluet, Houstonia longifolia

Very Few Roses Still in Bloom

We had yet to encounter any Purple Flowering Raspberries this year but all along this trail we found them almost everywhere there was a little clearing. They are a most beautiful and spineless raspberry, but sadly the fruit isn't all that good to eat.

Purple Flowering Raspberries, Rubus odoratus, Everywhere

Black Cohosh Along the Fire Road

I thought these maidenhair ferns were beautiful. Though I don't pay too much attention to the ferns growing alongside the trail, I don't recall seeing maidenhairs elsewhere.

Northern Maidenhair Fern, Adiantum pedatum

After our hike as we were heading back in to Front Royal up and over Chester Gap, Ann wondered aloud if we could go to see Jeff and Kelly. I mentioned that we were on the wrong side of the mountain, but cut across to the west side as soon as we got to the foot of the mountain in Front Royal. Soon enough, we were pulling up to a full parking lot and a jam packed tasting room. It's always good to see them busy.

Enjoying a Well-Earned Sauvignon Blanc

It seems that I knew pretty much all of the guests in the tasting room and being grubby and tired after a hike, I just wanted to get a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc and head outside under the shade of an umbrella. So I just kind of bypassed a whole lot of line, gave Kelly a hug, and asked her if she would grab me a bottle of SB. And with that, we went outside to drink our wine, rest, and wait for things to die down so that we could socialize a bit.

Kelly invited us to stay for the staff blind tasting afterwards. Once all the guests had left, we all gathered on the back patio and tasting four blind wines. Had I known that this was going to happen, I would have brought a bottle along. We tasted a Virginia Rkatsiteli, a Willamette Pinot, a Piemontese Barbera, and a California Petit Sirah. Begrudgingly, we had to leave around 7:45 and got back to the house just before hiker midnight, 9pm. After a shower, that was all she wrote for Ann. Too much fun made her a sleepy girl!

So-So Sushi

So-So Sushi

Tuesday night I was scheduled to be off, but when I arrived at the restaurant, I found a message from an old high school friend that he and his wife were traveling north and would be in town for dinner at the restaurant. I couldn't not see him and so I suggested to Ann that we meet him and his wife at the restaurant for a drink and then we would leave them to their dinner and go out ourselves and get some sushi. That is, turn it into date night. To my surprise, she was OK with it. I expected her to resist; she is rightfully jealous of our time together.

Long story short, our favorite sushi place was closed for a well-earned mini-vacation after the 4th of July break, so we ended up at another place to which we had never been. As usual, I let Ann pick what we were having and so we ended up with an assortment of nigiri and maki. The fish quality was so-so, the portions were small, and the craftsmanship was minimal. If you click on the picture you can see that the ginger is hanging off the plate, the eel is beat up, and the hamachi is not the right color, indicative of poor quality fish. The spicy tuna roll didn't even look like tuna and wasn't spicy. Maybe it wasn't the correct order, but in any case, either way, it shows indifference. And indifference I don't need. I won't be going back.

July 4th

Monday July 4th was a great day because I got to spend it with my wife. We (read I) wanted to go hiking, but for a lot of reasons, that just didn't work out. But we got a lot of other things accomplished instead.

The morning started early as do all Mondays at our house with me taking the dogs out. As I walked to the back door, I could see a red fox in the backyard, staking out the rabbit burrow under the back stairs. This is the first time that I have actually laid eyes on said fox, but I have known of it for a couple years from plentiful scat and from tracks in the snow. About this time, Charlie spotted it and commenced to barking and carrying on. The fox cocked its head and looked at the dog going crazy, then trotted off in the direction of the hedgerow behind the house, where it sat for a while before heading out of sight. I would see it a few more times throughout the morning as it was scoping out the rabbits. Persistent bugger.

Coffee with Grace the Lap Cat

The weather was a bit misty/chilly so we took our coffee in the sunroom before Ann headed off to yoga. While she was away, I planted and transplanted several plants in the garden, created a new bed for our cucumelons and another for some iris that we would get later in the day, and dug a hole for a newly acquired prickly pear.

When she returned, we went to the annual July 4th plant sale at the local nursery. We save our pennies all year and give ourselves a $100 budget. This year, though we only found one thing out of four on our wish list (irises), we managed to score 22 pots for $96. Our meager funds go a long way though. For example, two pots of irises I divided into 12 plants, but your guess is as good as mine about what colors they will be. That's the downside of the big sale; very little is marked and often it's a crapshoot. Our other crapshoots in years past, Rose of Sharon and wisteria, turned out great and no doubt these irises will too.

A bonus was the overcast, chilly, and slightly rainy weather that kept a lot of people away from what is usually one of the biggest circuses of the year. It was raining lightly by the time we were checking out.

Quick Lunch Out at Thai Winchester

From the nursery, we headed downtown to the restaurant to get a bottle of wine for dinner and my heavy workgloves so that I could plant the prickly pear. Ask Ann about those spines! It was midafternoon and we were starving, not having had any breakfast, so we popped across the street to Thai Winchester for a quick lunch. Look how fabulously skinny Ann looks in the photo above tackling her Singha.

Siu Mai at a Thai Restaurant???

By the time we walked to Thai Winchester, it was raining solidly and we were pretty wet and chilled. There was never any doubt that we were going to order bowls of roasted duck noodle soup. Ann surprised me by ordering "steam dumplings" for an appetizer. They turned out to be pork siu mai, not something that I would ever expect or order in a Thai restaurant. They were fine but I've had and made a lot better. The soup was fabulous as ever.

Roasted Duck Noodle Soup

Back home, we spent a couple hours out in the rain putting in all the plants that we bought in the morning and were thoroughly wet and miserable by the time we were done. After hot showers and a bit of rest in front of the TV, I made us lamb burgers with cucumber-yogurt salad. Dolmades were on the menu too, but Ann pulled them out for late afternoon snack while we were watching TV.

Lamb Burger, Cucumber-Yogurt Salad, Dolmades Absent

We had planned all week to have lamb burgers for the Fourth and so I made them at work on Saturday morning, starting by grinding a leg of lamb. The mix contains EVOO, cream, salt, pepper, pimentón, oregano, garlic, and feta cheese. I would have grilled them except the weather sucked and we ran out of gas last week and forget to get a new tank. The cucumber salad is cucumbers, Greek yogurt, salt, sugar, and rice vinegar. We had a Barolo with our lamb.

It was a really good day, just Ann and me. I would pay for the day off later in the week, but it was still worth it.