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"In the right light, at the right time,
everything is extraordinary."
~ Aaron Rose
I believe this is a widow skimmer dragonfly.
Print Available - HERE
Sunday
Pretty on Pink - Common Buckeye Butterfly
"It's the little things that make up the
richest part of the tapestry of our lives."
~ Robert Ward
Print Available - HERE
Saturday
Rock Church Along the Blue Ridge Parkway
Print Available - HERE
The Blue Ridge Parkway area is the home of several "rock" churches.
I call them Stone churches but I see them referred to as Rock churches.
I believe this one to be the Bluemont Presbyterian Rock Church.
From the "Virginia Is For Lovers" website I found this
VERY interesting information:
"Nestled in the Blue Ridge Plateau of Southwestern Virginia in south central Carroll County, Bluemont Presbyterian Church is one of six rock churches built by Rev. Bob Childress. Subject of the book, The Man Who Moved a Mountain by Richard C. Davids (1970). Largest of the six rock churches. The forerunner to the present church was opened in 1920 as a wooden structure. Church was encased by native stone in 1945-1946. Bluemont derives name from the abbreviation of the word Blue Mountain, for the Blue Ridge Mountains. Visitors who wish to view the property are encouraged to do so, but tours are not available. The six churches are a popular regional attraction. Church can be viewed from the Blue Ridge Parkway. Services are conducted every Sunday of the year and visitors are welcome. Service 10:30 a.m./ Sunday School 10 a.m."
Source: https://www.virginia.org/listing/bluemont-presbyterian-rock-church/4506/
Wednesday
Stone Arch Bridge - Blue Ridge Parkway
Print Available - HERE
The National Park Service website tell us about these bridges:
"The most distinctive architectural feature of the Blue Ridge Parkway is its outstanding collection of bridges and grade separation structures, which allow the parkway to cross streams or pass safely over or under other roads. Many of these 168 structures have a rustic stone appearance that blends well with the mountain landscape; others are sleek modern steel and reinforced concrete structures. Bureau of Public Roads engineers and National Park Service landscape architects collaborated on the design of the parkway bridges. Many of the grade separation structures appear to be old-style stone arch bridges but are actually reinforced concrete structures. They were constructed by erecting stone arch rings, abutments and spandrel walls, then pouring concrete on a network of steel reinforcing rods. The stonework is not merely decorative, but serves as the form for the concrete frame. All but one of the overpasses, or grade separation structures carrying roadways over the parkway, are stone-faced arch structures. Many underpasses bearing the parkway over other roads are stone-faced arch structures as well.
The stone facing for these structures was a hallmark of the rustic style of architecture employed by the National Park Service, which dictate the use of materials that would enable structures to harmonize with their environments. The stone was generally obtained from quarries located near the construction site. In other cases, stone was obtained from rock cuts created during the construction of the roadway. As the parkway traverses several distinct geological areas over its nearly 500-mile length, the type and appearance of the stone used in the work varies from location to location.
Different arch shapes were employed, the choice being dictated by the length of span and topographic conditions. Most were segmental arches rising from straight-sided abutment walls. The elliptical arch was occasionally used where there was sufficient horizontal clearance to carry the arch all the way to the ground, usually where the parkway intersected primary roads. Circular arches were employed for some narrower spans. Many bridges are curved or skewed, crossing a road or stream on a diagonal so as not to interrupt the flow of the roadway."
Source: https://www.nps.gov/blri/learn/historyculture/bridges.htm
Sunday
Gray Hairstreak Butterfly
"Summer afternoon—summer afternoon;
to me those have always been
the two most beautiful words in
the English language."
- Henry James
Print Available - HERE
Sunny Days
Summer has a flavor like no other.
Always fresh and simmered in sunshine.
Oprah Winfrey
Print Available - HERE
Tuesday
God Bless America
"God bless America, land that I love
Stand beside her and guide her
Through the night with the light from above
From the mountains to the prairies
To the oceans white with foam
God bless America, my home sweet home"
- Irving Berlin
Saturday
Summer Fun
“Many eyes go through the meadow,
but few see the flowers in it.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
Print Available - HERE
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