I Love Spring

For a while, I was not able to find time to get out to Shaker Village, but lately I have managed to get out there a few times.  I love Spring, when the flowers start showing up again, and the smells are so heavenly. I wish I could capture the smells, and be able to post the sounds of the vibrant life that abounds out there! (I have the free blog site, so I am not able to post videos.) Today, while I was eating a quick snack, at a picnic table located at the back area of Shaker Village, on the Tanyard trail, a turkey flew in and looked at me, but when I tried to pick up my camera, it disappeared in the brush. Farther on down the trail, another one ran across the trail , and took off flying. I enjoy listening to all the birds, singing so cheerfully. I wish I could tell what kind of birds they are! I know quite a few, but there are always some out there that I do not recognize.

I came upon a giant swallowtail, (I had to look it up in a book, when I got home), it did not seem too giant to me, but the pattern was that of a giant swallowtail. It posed for me, so I did get a picture. I was able to get pretty close, without it fluttering off. I saw so many other butterflies, even a monarch, flittering around, seemingly so carefree! Also dragon flies made an appearance, and so many other things, and animals.

Well enough talk, here are some pictures, which do not do any of this justice! There is nothing like strolling along the trails, taking time to enjoy all the wonderful sights, sounds, and smells! If you go too fast, you will miss a lot. God has created such a lovely world, take time to stop and take in life!

Giant Swallowtail

 

 

The blackberries are blooming everywhere!

Lonely, or peaceful? The grass has since been cut.

Get out and enjoy the world around you!

 

 

 

Sloppy Trails But Still Lovely

The last couple weekends, I was out hiking, after not being able to get out there for a couple months. If you haven’t noticed, or you are not from here, we have had a little rain around here this past year, and we still have not had very many nice days. Thus the trails are a bit sloppy, but that does not deter me, to seek out the beauty along the trails at Shaker Village!

One Saturday, the weather was nice, and there were a lot of people walking along the road, but the next Sunday was cool and misty, and it had just stopped raining. If it had been this Sunday, it would have been very cold and icy. That normally would not stop me, but, I seemed to have picked up a soar throat and a bit of a cough, so I stayed in, not even going to church, and that is very rare!

Evidence of other elusive creatures out and about, and one main star of the show!

The next  weekend the weather was not as nice, but I love hiking in all kinds of weather!

The Creek was up quite a bit!

A final goodbye, from one of the local residents, as I was driving out.

Afternoon Tea At Shaker Village, A Winter Tradition

 

It has been a while, since my last post. I keep meaning to sit down and share the beauty all around us, and especially at Shaker Village. I have had other very important things keeping me away from my joy of hiking, but they bring me a different kind of and lasting joy . But I will be back. I grew my winter beard, for that purpose.

This post is about, what has turned out to be a wonderful tradition, with my lovely wife, afternoon tea at Shaker Village. It is always such a wonderful experience, but for some reason, this year seemed the very best! Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill has a wonderful afternoon tea, every Saturday, in the month of December. They use to hold it in the Winter Kitchen, which is so cozy, and romantic, but now it is held in the Trustee’s Building, in their restaurant. It is almost as cozy and romantic, but the Winter Kitchen is so enchanting. Nevertheless, if you enjoy afternoon tea, it is still a very special event! We are so blessed to have such a special place like Shaker Village in our community!

It started out with a very tasty cranberry scone, that really got your taste buds going, then they brought out an assortment of sweet and savory delicacies, one as good, if not better than the next! Here is a list of what followed:

Strawberry bread and sweet strawberry muffin, next country ham biscuit, and savory cheese straw with pecan on top, next the best pimento cheese sandwich, (which left me trying to figure out which herbs they used to make it taste so good), egg salad sandwich, and ham salad sandwich, next mint macaroon, raspberry bar, mint chocolate chip meringue, lemon cheesecake with strawberry, and a chocolate shell with a pink filling, which I could not remember what is was called. ( I should have taken a picture of the menu.)

 

Shaker Village is a very romantic place, no matter where you are on their property, whether walking down through the village, or visiting the farm, or viewing the different buildings! It is also a very romantic place to stay overnight, in one of the rooms of the original restored buildings, or eating at the restaurant! They also have a lot of very different items for sale in their gift shops. They had some major renovations, this past year, updating some of the systems and replacing some things like windows and roofs.

Shaker Village is one of my favorite places, because it is so magical, whether you are in the village or on the trails, with all the waterfalls, streams, animals, birds, history and so much more! There are different events all year to match anyone’s style!

Be sure and check out the Illuminated Evenings, every Saturday in December, up to Christmas. The last one is this weekend, December 22nd 2018. Check out this link:

https://shakervillageky.org/events/illuminated-evenings/

or go to the main website for the schedule of other events.

http://www.shakervillageky.org, or check them out on Facebook.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all! God bless you!

 

A Nice Sunday Afternoon Stroll

Last Sunday , I went for a little hike, while my lovely wife was reading. I love hiking the trails near the creek, after it has rained a lot, because otherwise, several of the streams  and waterfalls would be dry.

Here are a few pictures of my stroll.

Bottom of Chinn Poe Trail

Along Chinn Poe Trail

Another view at the bottom of the Chinn Poe Trail

David’s Vine, ( David knows what I am talking about)

Along Shawnee Run Trail

Along Shawnee Run Trail

I love my muck Boots, they are great for fording creeks!

Overlook along the Shawnee Run Trail on this day’s hike

Another view of David’s vine

The Shawnee Run overlook, at a different time of the year

This is the drop to the creek of the watershed from pictures up above, and this was in March of 2017

 

It Is Well With My Soul

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!

Philippians 4:13

God is good!

 

And most important is Family

And there is the incredible blessing of CRHP 3, (Christ Renews His Parish) 2016

No Takers For A Hike With Me At 3 Degrees

Everyone thought I was crazy, for wanting to go hiking in 3 degree weather, and they were calling for -10 degree wind chill. It was 3 degrees, but no wind, so the wind chill was not bad. I asked a few people if they wanted to go hiking with me, but I did not get any takers! I do not understand why, It was beautiful out there!

I started at dawn. As I was driving past the frozen lake at Shaker Village, I saw what I thought were tail lights, in my rear view mirror. A couple seconds later, I saw it was the sun starting to come up. It was huge and beautiful, but I did not want to stop to take pictures, because I wanted to get on the trail. I knew it would be a short 2 hour hike, because we were going to visit our daughter, son in law and grandson, and I never want to be late for that!

It was a bit nippy, and though some thought I was crazy, and I did not expect to see anyone on the trail, but I passed 3 other guys, with as much love for the outdoors as me, riding trail bicycles out there. They were going up a pretty good hill on the trail too. More power to them and the ones that run these trails. It is enough for me to hike them. It is not hard for me, but I doubt I could run up or ride up these hills!

A quick note for anyone new at hiking in the cold, that I learned real fast, the first time I hiked in the cold with my hyrdropack, I fill it up with warm to hot water, and I put socks around the tube, and cover it up with my jacket. The first time I hiked in the cold, a few years ago, and I did not do that, my tube was frozen in about 10 minutes, and I did not have water for that hike. Today when I got back to my truck, I enjoyed a Poweraide slushy. I always take a bottle of Poweraide, to drink when I get back to the truck, and it was partially frozen.

Enough chatter, here are some pictures from my hike:

Frozen Lake 

Frozen Lake 

End of lake towards parking lot

Creek at the bottom of the hill going towards the West Lot

Frozen creek beside the road to West Lot

Frozen creek beside the road to West Lot

Frozen creek beside the road to West Lot

Frozen creek beside the road to West Lot

Frozen creek beside the road to West Lot

Frozen creek beside the road to West Lot

Frozen creek beside the road to West Lot

Frozen creek beside the road to West Lot

Frozen creek beside the road to West Lot

Frozen beauty caused by mine vent hole along Chinn Poe Trail

Frozen beauty caused by mine vent hole along Chinn Poe Trail

Frozen beauty caused by mine vent hole along Chinn Poe Trail

Frozen limb hanging over mine vent hole

Frozen beauty caused by mine vent hole along Chinn Poe Trail

Frozen beauty caused by mine vent hole along Chinn Poe Trail

Frozen beauty caused by mine vent hole along Chinn Poe Trail

Frozen waterfall beside Chinn Poe Trail

Frozen waterfall beside Chinn Poe Trail

Creek at the end of the Chinn Poe Trail

Creek at the end of the Chinn Poe Trail

Creek at the end of the Chinn Poe Trail

Creek at the end of the Chinn Poe Trail

Creek at the end of the Chinn Poe Trail

Creek at the end of the Chinn Poe Trail

Creek at the end of the Chinn Poe Trail

Creek at the end of the Chinn Poe Trail

 

Creek at the end of the Chinn Poe Trail

 

Going in

Coming out

 

 

Friends Waterfalls and Village

This was a fun day back on December 6th, 2017

 

Uhh, You might not want to eat that!

I told you so!

Enter a caption

Behind the waterfall

Lock 7 Low water

back at the village at dusk

This guy had never been down here or seen the boat!

Inside looking out from behind the waterfall

Another picture of Lock 7

Back at the village again

Friends and my wife at home, in front of our tree

 

Cold Weather Hikes January 2018

I love to hike, no matter the weather, except for if it there is lightning around. It does not matter how hot, or how cold, or if it is raining or snowing. The most important thing to remember is to be prepared for whatever comes, and make sure you have enough water, In very cold weather, I fill my hydropack with hot water, and cover the tube with socks and keep the end under my coat. One thing I do when I hike, is take a bag with me to pick up trash.

Here are some of the pictures I took on some of my hikes.

Waterfall on a watershed. There are 2 creeks that meet at the top of this waterfall, one straight back, and one coming from the right.

 

Water going over ledge forming ice

 

 

Water going over ledge forming ice

 

Along the creek

Along the creek

Along the creek

Along the creek

Here are some pictures of ice formed coming up from the ground.

This was for all those that would like to see the cold weather sights, from the warmth of their house.

 

 

 

Images along Shawnee Run September 2017

Here are a few pictures from my hike at Shaker Village on September 23rd, 2017. This is something short to get myself back to blogging.

 

 

 

 

Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill Kentucky a Place I Love

Front of Trustee House decorated for Christmas.

My favorite place, in my area, is Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill. It lies in the rolling hills, on highway 68, going from Harrodsburg Kentucky to Lexington. Part of their property is on the Kentucky River, where they have a paddle boat you can ride. They have 14 trails, 37.5 miles of beautiful scenery, wonderful sounds and smells, and diverse wildlife. There are miles of stone fences, and old mill sites, and waterfalls, and creeks.

Hiking the trails is free, but donations are encouraged to defer the cost of the trail maintenance. The Preserve is open daily, sunrise to sunset.All trail users are required to sign a property usage waiver. (You can do this at the Trustees House.)

I will add more pictures at a later date.

In the bend.

 

 

The Village is a historic site, where they have tours to see the buildings and hear about the history of the site, and the people who live there. You can see displays of dancing and music from times gone by. You also can dine at an excellent restaurant, in a historic setting. You can visit the farm, and see all the animals and learn about how farming was done here.  You can stay at one of the many historic dwellings on the site.

 

They also have wonderful events, and programs going on all year long, like the Chamber music of the Bluegrass, (which some of the concerts are held in the event barn, where you will hear the quail and other wildlife chime in with the music.) You can learn about bees and honey production. There are many wildlife programs, and craft fairs. There is the Craft Brews and Bands event, and so many more exciting things to see and do. Something for everyone!

More Christmas decorations at Shakertown

 

Building at West Lot, excuse the finger

 

Another view of West Lot building