Spring Flowers, part 4

This patch of azaeleas have been blooming for the last week or so - we'd waited all Spring to find out what color they were. They have been trimmed in an interesting shape, one my mother called "old fashioned" - they call to mind an old oriental style. This view from the terrace looks out over most of them.

There is a little garden by the driveway as well that has been splanted with bulb flowers, including daffodils, snow drops, and other similar ones. There is a lilac bush there that I mistook for a crepe myrtle over the winter and paired back. Fortunately, it looks like it is going to push out some blossoms after all so we will enjoy it this Spring.


In bloom right now are these little bell shaped flowers on long stalks - there are three colors: blue, white and pink.

All in all we've been pretty lucky with the legacy plantings.

This critter showed up in the garden last weekend. We'd been waiting for the right weather to put him outside - it's a ceramic frog we found at 10,000 villages last winter. We originally bought him to position him over the septic tank, so we would always be able to point to it if it ever needed service. We'd had it serviced on the first day of owning the place, but the workers coming out had to find it first - with that done, we made a point of keeping an eye on where it is.


We later decided the frog is too small for this spot, and we moved him over by the azaeleas, where there was a place that seemed just the right size. This fork in the path leads either up to the brick terrace or down to the side entry of the pool.





















Now we have to revisit what to put in the original place. Mary has suggested a Japanese Lantern - again referencing the Asian look to this part of the garden. My idea for a wishing well didn't fly...after all, this spot is over the septic tank.

Stanley Fire Update

Blogger’s Comment (added November 2009): In November, the Hawksbill Cabin blog site was visited by Terry Pettit. He read some back posts and came across these two posts on the 2008 brush fire near Stanley. Chief Pettit was concerned that my posts may not have clearly emphasized the volunteer nature of the Stanley Volunteer Fire Department, the value of its contributions, and how it is organized to respond to these events. He offered some additional insight on the process and organization – clarifications I am glad to receive. I have included Chief Pettit’s comments in full at the end of the original posts – and I invite readers to be sure and read them as well. JT

Over the weekend, as we made our stops around town and picked up the local paper, we learned that the fire last week actually involved 1,100 acres. We were surprised that you could see the burned forest land from the Food Lion (or as I like to call it, the Food Line)...here is a typcially blurry phone cam shot.

A couple of things we learned - one, the fire took 30 hours to fight and get under control. Although it rained this week out there, there was a period of low humidity that was said to have helped the fire spread. Secondly, the paper corrected the story and estimated that the fire fighting fee would be around $10K as opposed to that higher figure.

I guess one reason for the fines is that the town's fire fighter force is all volunteers, and this is a kind of assessment to run the department (Blogger's note - be sure to read the comment from Chief Pettit below about the Stanley Volunteer Fire Department).

Chief Pettit's Comments: Jim, I was looking at your website and noticed a correction that needs to be made reference to the brush fire in 2008 outside Stanley. The Stanley Volunteer Fire Department is an all volunteer department and receives no payments from any call we respond too. Donations are accepted. The Virginia Forestry Department by law has the right and will charge you for the cost of bringing a wild land fire under control and extinguishing it. The money goes to the State of Virginia. During the 30 hours the Stanley fire department was on the scene of the Lucas Hollow fire the 25 members that responded all as always donated their time and the cost of fuel and supplies came out of our budget. The department’s budget is $125,000.00 per year and the county of page supplies $45,000.00 of that total, we have to raise the rest through donations, meals, events, etc. I hope that the people that read your blog understand that we did not receive any money and get the wrong idea that we do on calls. Terry A. Pettit, Stanley Fire Chief

What dogs do at the cabin

Well, the old girls don't like the ride out to the Hawksbill Cabin, but they do seem to be envigorated by the experience of being there.



Yesterday, Mary was doing a little chore hanging a picture, and she had the actual hammer in her hand, shown here on the left. Gracie, thinking it was the toy hammer on the right, charged in and grabbed it from Mary's hand...there's a saying in the construction trade, "dumb as a bag of hammers...."

Seriously, most of the day Gracie and Sofie lounge around the place. Here they are napping on the brick terrace. Hard to see it here, but Sofie is in an ever vigilant state.

Ex-Berliners Nostalgia Moment

Back to the Hawksbill Cabin in a few...


Many readers know that I was an Air Force Russian Linguist, stationed in Berlin from 1981-1986. While I was there, I lived on Tempelhof Air Base...an installation that has been in the news of late, to say nothing of its historical significance during the Cold War era.



There are articles in several of the major papers today reporting that citizens there have decided to close the airport. There is no surprise to this, even during my time it was hard to see how it could stay open, completely surrounded by the city. Most of the airlines have moved out to the other airports in the city, and a Dulles-like major facility is under construction there.


In any case, here are a couple of photos, one from the air, taken in December 2007, and another, showing one of the cargo planes - called "Candy Bombers" in the day - that flew in and out of Tempelhof during the Berlin Airlift. Both are AP sourced photos.


In the airfield photo, for three years I lived in a part of the bulding called H2 Long which is just out of the shot on the left center - until I moved to Washington, DC this was the longest I had ever lived in one place. Then for a year and a half I shared a two bedroom suite with Greg, aka Henry, in Head Building East, which is in the top left corner near the radar tower.



You can't quite make it out in this photo, but the building was designed to look like an eagle in flight from the air - it was originally designed in 1933 by Speer as part of the new Capital, envisioned by the Third Reich as the center of Europe. It remains the 3rd largest building in Europe, and by the looks of things, will be maintained as a historic building, although the airfield will probably be redeveloped.

Bold stream, forest views

Last Sunday during the rain, we took a drive with Chris, who was visiting for the day. We'd planned to work on the downed trees, but Mickey had taken care of that so we had free time.

We decided to drive through the George Washington National Forest over to Edinburg, Virginia - just north of New Market on the other side of the Massanautten Mountains.



There is a bold trout stream that runs through the woods, with a couple of choice campsites there along the way. I'll let the photos speak for themselves.

Now, the State of Virginia stocks these waters, as indicated on the poster below. The part of Hawksbill Creek that runs through Luray is also stocked, as are a few others nearby. I've heard they are pretty much fished out within two days of stocking. More info on the stocking program, including a stream by stream schedule, is at http://www.dgif.state.va.us/fishing/stock/troutstock.cfm ...it turns out that Hawksbill Creek was just stocked this week.

Spring Flowers, part 3

The last two weeks in Stanley have seen a profusion of dogwood and red bud blooms - here are two shots from around the Hawksbill Cabin.


In the first photo we have cercis canadensis - the Eastern Red Bud, which is a small tree that generally grows on the edges of forests, where it can compete with fewer trees for sunshine and nutrients. There are an awful lot of them in our area out there, and while they are in full bloom it is a beautiful show.


For my wiki research on this piece, I learned the following about the Eastern Red Bud, but I cannot recommend that anyone try this: "...The flowers are also used in salads and for making pickled relish, while the inner bark of twigs gives a mustard-yellow dye."




Next we have dogwoods, which have practically taken over the yard in Stanley near the house. I like these two, near the pool, for a couple of reasons, but have to confess, this may be their last year. The reasons I like them are that they are visible from the terrace and main room of the cabin. They've been a joy to see in bloom.



On the other hand, they have become overgrown with ivy, which at this point appears impossible to eradicate. Plus, on the left hand tree, the ivy blooms in late summer. This might be tolerable in the early spring - before the pool opens, but it happens in August. Leaves and flowers drop into the pool area, and there is the constant buzzing of bees doing their work with the pollen. So, it is likely they will come down later this year. Fortunately, we have quite a few others around the property.




Another beautiful site has been this patch of azaeleas. All winter I wondered what color they would be, and if they were all the same color. As a matter of fact, they are, and they began blooming just last week. Though the phone cam doesn't do them justice, it is a mound of color out there, very pretty in the sun.








Now who is this pretty little doggie walking through the posies?

Moving on - a wildfire in Stanley

Blogger’s Comment (added November 2009): In November, the Hawksbill Cabin blog site was visited by Terry Pettit. He read some back posts and came across these two posts on the 2008 brush fire near Stanley. Chief Pettit was concerned that my posts may not have clearly emphasized the volunteer nature of the Stanley Volunteer Fire Department, the value of its contributions, and how it is organized to respond to these events. He offered some additional insight on the process and organization – clarifications I am glad to receive. I have included Chief Pettit’s comments in full at the end of the original posts – and I invite readers to be sure and read them as well. JT


Last Friday morning, while I was planning my drive out to Stanley, I learned that there had been a fire nearby. At the time I read the article on the Harrisonburg TV station, the fire had burned about 10 acres. Tonight I learned that firefighters in Page County were working Saturday to put out the last remnants of the fire, which ended up burning 770 acres.

At first, the news said that the source could not be reported pending an investigation...we'd heard that there are stills around the area and were thinking that something saucy was going on. Turns out, due to low humidity this time of year, this was a litter fire that got out of control.



They say that if a fire like this gets out of control. the landowner has to pay the fees related to fighting the fire in Page County. They estimated these fees would run about $40K for this one. The Google Earth image points to the location of the fire, a few miles southwest of us.

Clarifying information from Chief Pettit (added November 2009): Jim, I was looking at your website and noticed a correction that needs to be made reference to the brush fire in 2008 outside Stanley. The Stanley Volunteer Fire Department is an all volunteer department and receives no payments from any call we respond too. Donations are accepted. The Virginia Forestry Department by law has the right and will charge you for the cost of bringing a wild land fire under control and extinguishing it. The money goes to the State of Virginia. During the 30 hours the Stanley fire department was on the scene of the Lucas Hollow fire the 25 members that responded all as always donated their time and the cost of fuel and supplies came out of our budget. The department’s budget is $125,000.00 per year and the county of page supplies $45,000.00 of that total, we have to raise the rest through donations, meals, events, etc. I hope that the people that read your blog understand that we did not receive any money and get the wrong idea that we do on calls. Terry A. Pettit, Stanley Fire Chief

Battle of the Species 4 - Snake in the Laundry

We begin with an article from Wikipedia:

“This species is a constrictor, meaning it suffocates its prey…though they do consume mice and rats, the Black Rat Snakes also willingly consume other snakes, chipmunks, squirrels, birds, and bird eggs. Adults can become quite large and are known to reach up to eight (8) feet…the record length for a Black Rat Snake is 101 inches (2,600 mm), making it (officially) the largest snake in North America. When spotted by humans, Black Rat Snakes may freeze and wrinkle themselves into a series of kinks. If cornered, they may attempt to mimic rattlesnakes' behavior by vibrating the tip of their tail, giving a buzzing low-pitch sound. Black Rat Snakes are usually non-aggressive, but may strike at anyone who tries to capture or harm them. They are non-venomous, and bites are not usually serious.”

So on Saturday morning, for the second time, I heard Mary say, “Jim, a SNAKE!” There it was, coiled up clinging to the wall in the laundry room. Further research will let you know that the rat snake is also a climber. I contemplated it for a moment to make a plan…I wanted to know, did it recognize me from last time? If I forcibly removed it from the house again a second time, would it remember and not come back?


Meanwhile, Mary dissappeared and I did not see her again until Sunday.


Looking around, I chose a weapon – a broomstick that I was able to quickly detach – visible in the battle photos here. I reached over the snake, still coiled, and unlatched the dead bolt from the back door, pulling it open. Then, I knocked the snake to the floor.


It was still sleepy when I took the first photo here…it decided to go hide under the dryer instead of the happy outdoors that I was showing it. I blocked it from the dryer, hooked it with the broomstick and flung it outside…only making it to the stairs. I needed some practice to perfect my flinging movement. Sorry for the blurry photo - this is an action shot!


Meanwhile the snake considered whether to go on upstairs and out into the sun, or whether the dryer would really be a better place for it to rest.


Nothing doing from my point of view, this time, I hooked it with the broomstick and got it all the way outside to the path, second photo. I believe this was the same snake we’ve seen three times now, first under the back shed during some demolition last Fall, and then again in November when it first came inside through the hosebib in the laundry room.


I decided this snake wasn’t going to learn anything after all, and that I was going to have to send it to the forest. From where it lay, probably another forty feet. I figured three flings would do the trick.


The snake was still not overly upset about going airborne. So I hooked it with the broomstick again, this time flinging it about fifteen feet. It landed and turned around to see what was sending it sailing through the air, this time noticing me with the broomstick. The displays above were all demonstrated for me, including the coiling – see picture three from Wikipedia, and the whipping tail. As I mentioned, Mary was not around to enjoy seeing this display.


As I approached, I figured two more tosses and this snake is in the woods. Just then, he struck at me. I dodged. He recoiled and restruck. I dodged again, but before he could coil for a third strike, I hooked him and threw him most of the way to the woods…only about six feet left.


Two more strikes – one time, he got a mouthful of broomstick – and then I hooked him a final time and got him to the woods. As with the last time the snake was in the laundry, it stood coiled to defend itself for a long time after I walked away.


About 15 minutes later I went back outside to make sure it was headed in the right direction – into the woods, not back into the yard – and so it was. It was moving slowly off, stretched to full length…we had a five footer there.


It’s gone from the yard for now. I have my misgivings about this, because it is a good thing to have this particular kind of snake around. I can only hope that he will stay nearby, eating our mice and helping keep other snakes away.

Deer Damage

Deer LOVE hostas.

That's what we have been finding out - at the Hawksbill Cabin, one of the main garden features has been extensive plantings of hostas all over the property. There are more than 50 spread in the various plantings around the house, all are mature and make for a wonderful display once they have fully leafed out and when they are in bloom.

We know that there are as many as four deer frequenting the hollow across the road from us, and from time to time we've seen them crossing the street into our yard. We already had learned from last year that they come up into the gardens to feast on our plants.

So far this spring they have been coming up, most likely during the week when we aren't there. The damage is confined to the plants along the driveway further down the hill, where the deer have been munching on the tender shoots as soon as they come up above ground.

We, and the dogs, are in the other parts of the garden too often to make those attractive, although if they are hungry enough and we are not around, nothing is safe!

Tree Clean Up

Our friend Mickey came out to clean up the felled trees last week. I was finding it hard to put the time together to get this done, so we decided to take him up on getting the two trees taken care of. As it was, I would be working on this project until April 2009...

Mickey cut both trees down into firewood sized sections, then moved them up to the garage/shed to cure for the summer.

For the branches too small to use for this purpose, he burnt in place down at the bottom of the hill, near the edge of our lot - preventing another "unsightly" brush pile.

This wood will need the summer season to cure, and then we will use it in the firepit during the fall. Also, I've offered a share of it to Chris, who will use it while camping in the GW National Forest over in the Massanautten range.

Preliminary Project List for 2008

In a couple of past posts I've mentioned some of our prospective 2008 projects. We've begun to make progress on two of them - estimates are in for completing the paneling in the addition, and the pool estimate is being put together as well.

Here is the list of interior near term projects, meaning they are the focus for this year.

Addition portion of the house:

• Insulate (to R18) and panel ceiling, panel over old adhesive mirrors, and add recessed hall lighting and outlet
• Insulate walls with blow-in insulation
• Install MBR door
• Install hallway closet doors
• Fix moldings on window vent and baseboard in MBR
• Relocate dryer vent (currently vented below house)

Original/stone portion of house:

• Relocate electric box and complete necesary rewiring
• Repair living room outlet near fireplace
• Install weather stripping on front door
• Replace kitchen counter lights
• Install new window A/C units in main room and MBR

And for exterior projects we have the following:

• Complete pool retrofitting and necessary repairs
• Relay bricks on front terrace and repoint retaining walls
• Remove built-in planter near pool and repave with bricks
• Replace foundation board on rear exterior of addition, install new flashing
• Remove remaining siding on facia boards, repair any damage, and stain to match the rest of the house
• Rescreen porch
• Repair carpenter bee damage on window and door frames
• Repair porch and ramp to rear entry where needed
• Replace exterior light fixture
• Install new drain cover at rear door
• Reattach downspouts to stone walls and bury new black drain tubes

There are a few prioritized long-term projects, but with the completion of this list we will be substantially far along with everything.

New Nats Stadium

My friend Dennis has been a season ticket holder with the Nats since their arrival in 2005. We've been to a few games together and they've really been fun - he has good seats in the new stadium and I am looking forward to joining him for a game soon. When we are able to get to that game, I'll post an update - his seats are very good, I hear.









It's still early in the season, and another friend, Yiming, was in town from Denver on business. Early in the week he asked if I'd like to join him for a game at the new stadium and so we went.





Over the years, since we met in language school in Monterey a billion years ago, Yiming and I have been to 20 or 30 games in various venues, including Baltimore and spring training - the Dodgers in Vero and the Astros in Kissimmee among them. We also took a week long baseball trip to Chicago in 1989 for the last O's game in old Komiskey, the All Star game, and the Cubs second half opener with the Dodgers.





Here are some photo highlights of our game last Thursday. The stadium is definitely an improvement over RFK, although the old stadium had its charm. I wasn't as impressed overall as I was with Camden Yards - there had been a lot of hype building up the new place, but I just didn't find it all that exciting.









Our seats were in Section 106, just inside the left field foul line. We were rewarded with a home run coming down in our section in the third inning, and being able to catch the first metro train home after the game.



Definitely had a good time and I am looking forward to catching quite a few more games here.

the beer I had for breakfast...

Well, not exactly - but hopefully my readers will join me in a sing-along to finish this line from the Kris Kristofferson song: "...wasn't bad, so I had one more, for dessert."


On Sunday morning we decided to go out for breakfast. We were up early and though we might beat the crowd to the Hawksbill Diner, but by 9:30 it was nothing doing over there. I counted 20 pick-up trucks in their lot, ensuring that every table was taken.


We drove into Luray, where the choices would be Uncle Bucks or the new place - Farmboys - which opened two months ago and has already established itself as stiff competition there.



We remain loyal to Uncle Bucks but enjoy both. However, as we rolled into town Sunday, we hadn't yet made a choice, until we encountered this sign.







It turns out that "Rednick Benedict" is a creative mixture of southern breakfast cuisine: a biscuit layered with a peppary sausage patty, scrambled eggs and gravy. And they dressed up the plate with an orange slice to boot. What's not to like?

Bridge Construction - part 2

Just as traffic was moved onto the new span over Overall Run, which I posted about yesterday, I started noticing heavy construction equipment moving into place at Jeremy’s Run, which is in Page County and only 10 miles north of Luray. Mary and I were concerned at what appeared to be a widening of US 340 – and impending development – a constant concern in what is mostly farm country.

There are also some pretty rigorous and spectacular hikes along these two tributaries of the Shenandoah – here’s a photo of the only waterfall on Jeremy’s Run. There are two 10-mile plus hikes along this stream that feature climbs, stream crossings, and other adventures.

It turns out that the JR bridge is a deck truss bridge, similar to the span that collapsed in Minneapolis last summer. It's a coincidence that the bridge needs to be replaced due to age on the heels of the other bridge's collapse. Page County transportation officials recently announced a $7.7 million VDOT project to construct a replacement, to be completed in 2009. In this case, the old span (built in 1938) will be demolished, unlike the one at Overall.

Bridge Construction

Since we changed our normal driving route to the cabin - we take I-66 to Front Royal and US 340 down, there has been an ongoing bridge construction project at Overall, right on the border of Warren and Page Counties. There have never been traffic jams here, although you must slow down because of the tight constraints on the road there.


This new route replaced how we used to drive out last summer - we may return to the old route as summer approaches - we used to take I-66 to 647 at Marshall, then US 211 over the ridge at SNP. Since this route goes through Thoroughfare Gap, a major park entry, we did encounter traffic there from time to time.


In any case, the bridge construction is nearly complete - the new bridge deck has been opened, but there are some final lane changes that need to be completed. According to the local Northern Virginia Daily, "The two-lane bridge about 10 miles south of Front Royal was needed because of the age and condition of the existing span."



Here is a photo from the paper of the new bridge.



Also of interest, 'The contractor won't destroy the old bridge because of its historical significance..."The Overall bridge is just one of two steel, arch truss bridges left [in the state]," said Bob Chidress, VDOT Luray assistant residency administrator, in January. "The other one is in Jeremy's Run in Page County."'


Passing under the bridge is Overall Run, which has headwaters in SNP and flows into the South Fork of the Shenandoah right next to the bridge. There is a popular waterfall hike in the Park that follows Overall Run, and Virginia DOT has included a pedestrian observation platform in the construction at the new bridge.

Carbon Dating

We've noted earlier what we know about the history of the little Hawksbill Pines neighborhood, that the original plan was to sell small quarter acre cottage lots for weekenders. We've learned that the developer was involved in the CCC efforts during the Great Depression, and some of the houses may have been built by the CCC'ers in training to build Shenandoah National Park. All of this is still heresay, we haven't found specific documentation.


There are more than 20 lots in the development - thankfully, it was never fully built out - and the vacant lots are either unbuildable or owned within the community. In terms of newness, there is the recently completed cabin next door to us, another dating to the 60's or 70's just up the hill from that, another dating to the 50's, and ours, which we know was build from 1949 to 1951.



How do we know that, you might ask? Fortunately there is an inscription on the concrete foundation in the stone portion of the house, shown here: "Thanksgiving 1949" ...



As I took a walk around the neighborhood yesterday, I took a closer look at the stone house that is currently for sale. It was built in either the 20's or the 30's and is a charmer. The lot backs up on some pastures, allowing a view to the north with both the Massanautten and Skyline ridges in view.

While I was in the back of the house, I found this hand built picnic area and stone barbeque pit...it is a nice surprise and reminds me of so many "greatest generation" projects I've come across. What you can't see in the picture here is a marble placque on the chimney, with the fellows name (I'm going to write it down next time and Google it) and the date the outdoor area was built - 1947. Pretty nice outdoor space all in all - for a family enjoying some well-earned recreation and relaxation in the Post War times.

Masters of the Domain

In some past posts, we have featured photos of forsythia - the bright yellow bush that is currently in its flowering season. It is especially prevalent out in the Shenandoah Valley, so much so that I thought it was a native plant until I did my research: http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioimages/species/frame/fovi.htm . Most varieties are native to Asia, although one species is native to Albania/Kosovo.



Still, we are seeing the plant just about everywhere we go in Page County - large plantings that form hedges, clumps that have gone wild and form large yellow clouds along the roadside, and even little flashes of colors peeking out from the edge of the woods, as with this small "wild" plant growing at the back of our lot.





Mary had spied some nice forsythia plants at Home Depot recently, and so that became our weekend project - we drove down to Harrisonburg (from now on: H-burg) to the Home Depot and bought three, with the idea that we could use them to take back a part of the yard that is now overgrown with ivy. Here is the planting after we finished it on Sunday afternoon.



The soil here is clay, as it is in most of Virginia, including Alexandria. We added some organic material to help the plants get off to a good start, and then mulched over the area to help kill off the ivy. These plants will hide the little scrap wood pile there as it decays; there is also a small wild rhododendron right there with them.



Also, we planted some seeds for summer color: cone flowers, cosmos, zinnias, rudebeckias, and hyacinth bean. We're keeping our fingers crossed the deer will leave them alone long enough that we will see some flowers here and there.

Update on Clarendon Demolition

I was back in my Arlington office for the first time in nearly a week and found that the site prep of the lot across the street is nearly complete. Most of the large machines have been removed and all traces of the old building are now gone. They have left a large hole in the ground for now, quite interesting, but late Friday new fill dirt was being delivered. Also, while we don't yet know what will be built on the site, we know who will be building it: Clark construction.

Pool Plan

Last weekend we got started on making serious decisions about the pool. We had an estimate about what to do, way back in August when we bought the place…a five figure price tag that we weren’t sure about.


Also, there are pros and cons about having a pool, such as, “Does it really add any resale value,” “will we really use it enough to make the expense worthwhile,” and, “would a deck with a hot tub be more useful to us” – all of which lead me to think I need to do an analysis of alternatives and business case analysis to make this decision.





Photos 1 and 2 – the pool and pool cabana.





A new pool company called “Uncle D’s” has opened in Luray. They were featured in the Page County paper a couple of weeks ago, and we went in and met with Darris – “D” – to talk about our situation. As a result, he is coming out this weekend to take a look.


The way I see it, there are three main alternatives about what to do here:
1) Get the pool – as built – repaired and start enjoying it
2) Demo the existing pool and install a new fiberglass one
3) Partially fill-in the pool, and build a deck over it


“D” is going to help us cost out that first option. There are some repairs that need to be made, but he believes we can use a liner system as opposed to doing expensive plaster work. Also, the pool motor and related systems, along with the drain will need to be replaced.

Photos 3 and 4 – motor, and photo of the existing skimmer and drain








The last step in this process involves relocating the motor from where it is to a new location under the deck, the main candidate location shown here in photo 5…Then we'll have to buy the water, which we will have trucked in from someplace. More to come as we get additional information.