I broke the drought last week.

You can hold your applause. We consider it a public service, our breaking the drought on Tuesday of last week. (It wasn’t just me, it was both of us together. I know how to share.)

Or maybe you need to credit my husband. After all, it was his brilliant idea that we take a weekend in the middle of the week, drive FIVE hours to Hawk Mountain in PA so we could hike and take pictures of migrating raptors and lovely fall foliage. We were gonna leaf peep!

It hasn’t rained in central Virginia in too long. Lake Chesdin can be walked across. Probably could find a spot in the James to do something similar, if you were a betting (crazy) man. It’s been DRY. I haven’t even been able to grow good weeds in my yard this summer. And that’s saying something. Weeds have been my specialty.

Anyway, we took off on Tuesday morning for points north. We were going to have lunch with Arlie in Bloomsburg, and then drive down to Kempton, which is near New Tripoli (pronounced Tra-POLE-e) which is– well, if you know where Allentown is, go a bit to the west and hope. Timmy had found a lovely little bed and Breakfast, Pamela’s Forget Me Not and we were going to bunk down there for  the night. 

 It was beautiful. The B&B that is. The weather was not. It started raining in PA about the time we left VA. Dunno if they were having a drought, but if they were, we took care of that one, too.

It rained all day. And all night. And all the next day. So we went up to the mountain on Wednesday, and we sloshed along the shortest, easiest trail for a bit, and pretended like we were having the time of our lives. My camera was under my coat, and I on occasion pulled it up, and aimed it at the great gaping air.

We were IN the clouds, so the wonderful effect of autumn, with it’s garnet and ruby and fiery gold was obliterated. Replaced by something soft and delicate and impossible to focus on.

We drove home then, the long way of course; and the little rain cloud stayed over our car through the afternoon and into the night. And when we arrived home, it parked right over Richmond, and it continued to rain for another 36 hours. I certainly hope everyone appreciates the efforts we went through on behalf of the residents of Virginia.

This cloud is, by the way, a familiar traveling companion. It has joined us before. It went with us on our honeymoon. To Niagara Falls, and points west as far as the Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. (Don’t tell Timmy, but it’s MY cloud. Even before I met him, it used to join me on vacation. Ask Ken and Libbey about their wedding someday )

We have asked the cloud to leave, however. It’s needed in SoCal, where my brother and uncle and cousin are battling fire.

Go here for some of the photos that we took on our trip. (or look to the right and work from there!)

Enjoy!