Getting to know Virginia – Wintergreen

February 23, 2015 by anyonecantakeapicture

Drove up to Wintergreen on Sunday on an unseasonably warm February day. After 3 straight days of temperatures hovering around 16 degrees, it suddenly turned 50 degrees! What better thing to do than drive up to the mountains and enjoy some snow. I’ve never skied before, but it was fun to watch other people swish down the trails.

I stopped at an overlook just past the resort.

Then I stopped quickly at the resort to take a look around.

Then headed back down the mountain.

I love taking pictures of old farm houses, and the snow adds such a romantic feel to them.

There isn’t much to do up there, other than ski and drink. There are several micro/craft breweries that have popped up over the years. Craft beers are THE thing now and there were plenty of places to stop! I stopped at Devils Backbone at the bottom of hill at the entrance to Wintergreen resort. I’m not much of a beer drinker, but am slowly acquiring the taste for more than just a lager. I tried the Dark Abby, not bad, but not that great either.

There are wineries, one place that brews (?) hard cider and even a distillery.

There were a few antique and souvenir shops, but some of them looked tightly shut up. I’m not sure if it was because it was winter and they are summer shops, or if it was the recent 12″ of snow.

I liked the pattern the wind made in the snow down this slope.

There is a lot of debate about a natural gas pipeline that would run through many counties in Virginia. Looks like the folks in Wintergreen are against it.

Upon first glance, this really looks like a bear and her cub, but they aren’t real.

Back to the houses!

Melting Pumpkins

January 18, 2015 by anyonecantakeapicture

Just because the calendar said November was over didn’t mean I had to throw my pumpkins away. They were still healthy and pumpkin-y. However, two months, sunshine, snow, and ice later, they are finally starting to deteriorate. I guess it’s time to throw them away now :(

Funky Pumpkins

October 8, 2014 by anyonecantakeapicture

If there is anything I love more than perfectly round orange pumpkins, it’s funky, bumpy, warty pumpkins! Thank you Trader Joe’s for setting up this awesome display!

Virginia Aquarium

September 27, 2014 by anyonecantakeapicture

I’ve been to many, many aquariums. I’m pretty sure I’ve said it before, but I stop at every aquarium in every city that I visit. The VA Aquarium is one of the larger ones I’ve been to, but the exotic-ness of the exhibits are a little bit lacking. Nevertheless, I’ve been twice so far, once in 2010 and again this year.

2010

Yes, that’s me in the bubble.

The aquarium consists of two buildings and there is a nice trail through the marshes connecting them.

I have no idea what this is but I love his face!

The sea lion exhibit near the entrance is a big attraction.

2014

I have a better camera than I did the last time so I have more photos to share!

Still trying to get a good shot of an octopus.

Clownfish looking at its reflection.

The sharks were hard to shoot; reflections, not enough light, people getting in the way, etc. I usually wait for people to move so I can get a shot without them, but they actually added to the scene so I didn’t mind them this time.

The way this shot turned out reminded me of a scene in Jaws 2.

The sting ray tank was probably one of the best ones I’ve seen. The water was clear and the glass was clean enough to actually see them clearly.

So clear I actually got a shot of its mouth! I’ve never actually seen one open and close its mouth.

You could see part of the sea turtle tank from the sting ray exhibit.

The other viewing side was amazing! I probably sat and watched them swim for at least 15 minutes.

Like the shark tank, I purposefully took some shots with people in them. The father and son were fun to watch. I think the dad was just as mesmerized by the sea turtles as his son was.

There was an art exhibit on display called Washed Ashore where all of the pieces were made from trash found in the ocean. It was meant to educate and create awareness of ocean debris and plastic pollution and its effect on marine life.