Tree Mural Redone in Luray

It’s been a while since I drove through a particular parking lot in Luray, so when I saw that the tree mural had been replaced, I stopped to take a picture.

I posted a photo of the old mural way back in December 2014. There wasn’t as much foliage then, but it was winter, after all. Here’s a screen shot of that post.

It looks like I’ve been linking to Monday Murals since late summer of 2014. At that time it was hosted by Oakland Daily Photo. Sometimes I think I’m running out of murals to share, but then I see something like this one. Outdoor paintings don’t last forever.

Tall Trees and Sky

Edinburg, VA

Often I take Charlie to the town park in Edinburg after I stop at the nearby recycling center. 

The tallest trees there are pines, which appear to have been planted in rows many years ago.

Charlie enjoys sniffing the trees and exploring the park.

The Stone Church in Markham

It’s been six years since I’ve stopped at this church to take pictures. The only reason I stopped today was the Charlie was fussing in the car so we decided to take him for a walk. I had picked up Deborah and Frank to go for a drive in the country, plus a stop in Front Royal.

The church dates to 1819. There are some huge trees on the property that appear to be at least that old.

The Pileated Woodpecker Returns

 In late April, I saw this large woodpecker in my backyard, but he disappeared before I could take his picture. Fortunately, I heard him yesterday — they can be noisy birds! I looked out and saw him on a stump next to my deck. Unfortunately, the view was obscured by the railing. Then he flew up to a tree and I was able to get pictures, although at a distance. They aren’t the best woodpecker pictures I’ve taken, but they’ll do for now. He quickly disappeared again.

Here’s the stump that he’s been pecking on. I recently noticed that something had been tearing it up. I was relieved to see that it was a large woodpecker and not some sort of rodent. The stump is near my house, which is one reason that I had the tree cut down four years ago. The branches were brushing against my windows, and they also provided a bridge for a squirrel that got into my attic.

The tree was a Bradford pear, also called Callery pear. It had pretty flowers, and was a popular landscape tree until people noticed that it was reproducing itself as a thorny shrub. Now it is considered an invasive species.

I appreciate the woodpecker attacking this trunk. It must’ve been harboring insects, because the woodpecker has destroyed about a third of it. I hope he chips away at the whole thing.

Charlie and Rhododendrons

Yesterday afternoon I took Charlie to the park in Edinburg. After a short walk, I wanted to take pictures of the rhododendrons near the pool.  Charlie became focused on something under the branches and as soon as I got a picture composed, he pulled on the leash.

After a few failed attempts, I was able to get decent pictures of the pink blossoms. 

Then a butterfly showed up! Again I struggled to get a clear photo, but between the dog pulling on his leash and the screen on the iPhone being overly sensitive, I failed and the butterfly flew off.  (It seems like the phone switches modes if I so much as breathe!)

Then the tiger swallowtail returned. I pointed the phone at it and accidentally switched on “portrait” mode. That’s why the picture has a black background. I could’ve modified it in editing, but I decided to keep it.

By the time I corrected the setting on my phone, but butterfly disappeared again.

As you can see, some of the leaves look stressed. This could be from the prolonged drought or from the sudden frost, or both. 

When I reviewed the pictures, I saw a blue abstract that I did not recognize. It must have been taken as I pulled the phone out out of my pocket. My pants have a knit pattern in these colors. They’re some of my favorite colors so I didn’t delete the picture.

A Big Tree and a Tree Mural

Last week I went to the dentist in Front Royal. My appointment went quickly, and afterward I stopped at a farm store called The Giving Tree. I wondered if the name was inspired by the huge tree at the edge of the parking lot.

Inside the store, there’s a colorful collage-style mural of a tree.

When I looked at the big tree outside, I noticed it had the seed pods of a maple, but the leaves looked different. I took a picture of a leafy branch and asked my phone to identify it. It’s a box elder, which is a type of maple. There are also other names for it, and the latin name is acer negundo.

Box elder saplings sometimes grow in thickets near rivers. I remember feeling very concerned when passing through them because they looked like poison ivy, and I am quite allergic to it. Later I felt foolish when I found out what they were, but I was just now relieved to read in Wikipedia that saplings are often mistaken for poison ivy. I am so glad it was not just me being paranoid!

Also, the leaves are so different from other maples that some botanists think they are a totally different species. The seed pods, however, are distinctly maple-like, and will eventually turn brown and float down, spinning like helicopters. 

Mosaic Monday / Murals

Bright Walkway, Dark Trees

 Lindale Mennonite Cemetery 

Linville, VA

This cemetery on a hill "began in 1788 when pioneer Abraham Brenneman was bereaved of his wife Marie and newborn daughter. For their burial he set aside a small plot of his large farm. It became the oldest Mennonite cemetery of the area." It is next to Lindale Mennonite Church.

Spring Beauties and a Park Mural

Maurertown, VA

My dog loves to go to parks to walk and investigate. Sometimes we visit Shenandoah County Park, partly because it is near a recycling center. There are various paths to walk there, so it’s not the same experience each time.

The first picture shows wildflowers we call Virginia spring beauties, although it has other nicknames. I just read about them and found that Native Americans consumed the roots, both medicinally and as a starch. The Iroquois believed that eating the raw roots would prevent conception. 

I took a picture of Charlie in front of a mural there, and wasn’t going to share the mural again until I realized that I last posted it in October, 2014. That’s long enough that few will remember it. Students painted it the year before that. 

Monday Murals

In case you don’t recognize the disc golf target, here’s one in the park. The players aim a plastic disc, which we used to call a frisbee. The rules are modeled after golf, and I often see a boy or man practicing by himself. 

I posed in front of the mural too, using the timer on my phone so that I didn’t need both hands.

Pink Dogwood

Colorful Sights, Hupps Hill

This afternoon I ran an errand in Strasburg and Charlie came along. I decided to stop by the Visitor Center on Hupps Hill to take a picture of the redbud grove. But first, I spotted a painting on the back of a trash enclosure.

Monday Murals

Three years ago, I photographed the front of this box. Since then, it has been exposed to exhaust fumes and dirt from the parking lot, which is just a few yards away.

Some painted critters have appeared, a big caterpillar and a brilliant snail.

Charlie and I walked to the redbud trees. There’s an interpretive trail that goes in front of them. Charlie stopped to investigate the signs.

Here’s a close-up of the sign on the left. You can view the older sign, How Strata Shaped Strategy. on HMDB. It is one in a series telling about the caves here and the role that Hupps Hill played in the Cavil War.

Signal Knob is visible in the distance. I also took a picture of the flowering pear tree in front of the visitor center. 

Bunny Decor with Trees

A creative person decorated this medical office in Winchester.

I don’t know how to interpret the aquarium. The bunny is on the outside trying to figure out what’s going on.

I didn’t do anything special for Easter. It rained part of the day. I did some chores and paperwork. After the sun dried things out, I took Charlie to W.O. Riley Park for a short walk. Just before we got back in the car, I took a couple of pictures of flowering trees.

Heidrun’s Blog Hop

Virginia Bluebells along the Gokotta Trail

Seven Bends State Park

Although I was tired this afternoon, Charlie really wanted to go out for an adventure, and we didn’t take one yesterday because it rained just as I was preparing to go. I’ve been working on my taxes for a few days, and I was ready for a break this afternoon. I’ve seen pictures showing that bluebells are blooming, so we headed for the state park. 

The flowers are blooming along the river.

The redbud trees are blooming too. It was a lovely day!

Flowers that Bloom in the Spring

Spring Bulbs and Phlox

Redbud

Phlox