It’s been a while. Still recovering from 7 weeks in Bordeaux, and getting things up to date at home.

But we are on the road again. For a weekend trip we headed out to Roanoke VA. Among other things we wanted to travel along the Skyline Drive, see more of the Shenandoah Valley and finally, to visit the Appomattox Court House where General Robert Lee surrendered to General Grant, ending the US Civil War. 

The Skyline Drive was spectacular as usual. Here (below) are a couple of shots taken from the road that overlooks the Shenandoah Valley with the Blue Ridge Mountains in the distance.  

We also visited the Peaks of Otter, a series of mountains close to Roanoke, where you can take a bus up to the peak.  Except that once you get there, the “short walk” up to the peak is more like a climb on the rocks. Anyway, we gave it a try and made it most of the way up before turning back to catch the bus back to the lodge. Here (below) is a photo of a section of the trail that makes up the “short walk”.

The property that the lodge was on was quite nice; we visited a picnic grounds there next to a lake. 

The next day we headed off to the Appomattox Court House. More about that another time–but not too long from now.

JFB