Color in Canaan!

This month we celebrate our thirtieth year of married....yep....the big 3-0!

It's been the best and he is the best! 

We started the party early by going to my pal Sally's place in Canaan Valley, West Virginia!  

Sweeeeeeeeeeet!

First thing we did is climb Olson Tower.

 One hundred and thirty-three steps to the top with 360 degree views of heaven! Elevation 3736 feet.

 View was great looking down too!

 Yes, this is really how beautiful it is out there in the gorgeous state of West Virginia right now!

 Peak color for sure. It just went on and on and on!

Next day's adventure was a 4.5 hour round trip train ride on the Cass Scenic Railroad.  This was one of my gifts to hubby. It's a part of Cass Scenic Railroad State Park and you don't have to ride the train to enjoy the park! 

  This powerful Shay locomotive climbs up 11 miles to Bald Knob, WV.

Elevation over 4700 feet.

Third highest peak in WV!

Here is a look at the boiler...powermaker....mountain buster....Steampunk at it's best!!

The engine alternates between pushing and pulling as there are two switchbacks on the ride to navigate the steep terrain.

Looking from the top of Bald Knob to the distant mountains of home!

Down in the valley over the middle ridge of mountains is the home of the Green Banks Telescope. 

  It is the world's largest fully steerable radio telescope and world's largest movable land object!! 

It is 60% taller than the Statue of Liberty at 485 ft! 

The parabolic dish covers 2.3 acres....that's a lot of pasta!

That highest ridge is Bald Knob....where we went on the train!

Read here about the 13,000 square mile Quiet Zone relating to the telescope...fascinating!

On the ride down we stopped at Whittaker Station, a recreation of an authentic logging camp.

Boxed lunches were provided as were benches in the middle of the coaches but most of us stood the whole way up and down...too, too much beauty not to be missed!

The next day (after sleeping in til 11 am!) we drove up to Oakland, Maryland, county seat of Garrett County, MD.  Unbeknownst to us we drove into the middle of the annual

Autumn Glory Festival, Small town goodness at it's best!

 Heading back to Canaan we turned at a historical marker sign and drove down another small road to see what is called the Fairfax Stone. It marks the source of the north branch of the Potomac River and used to be the stone that marked the most western point of the land granted to Lord Fairfax by the King of England in the 1700s!

  (Above is a map showing the Fairfax land grant and where the stone in in the upper left.)

Lord Fairfax owned all the land from there south the to the Rappahannock  River...around 5,000,000 acres (2023428.211 hectacres...yes I figured it out!:)!!!!  Hard to even fathom!

Done with the history lesson!

 Onward we went to Blackwater Falls State Park.  

Photos toward the sun do not turn out very well!

 But from the other side of the canyon the color sure conveys!

 So many overlooks and trails....so little time!

 First time we saw the Falls (many years ago) they were covered with ten inches of snow.

Not this time! Afternoon shadow kind of dulls the colors but still spectacular.

The drive to WV and back home is amazing too. As we drove down, down, down...

...the colors were just starting to peek out here and there.  

Next few weeks here at home should be peak for us!:)

Thanks so much Sally! xo

Happy Anniversary Honey-man!

xoxo

~d