Picnic Day in Fooleryland

Three of my many blogging friends who feature photography on their sites are Chesapeake Bay Woman (CBW for short), Daryl, and Country Girl Kate. They regularly capture such beautiful images of their corners of the world that yesterday I was inspired to pull my camera out of my purse and shoot. Humble Black Butte Lake can't top the beauty of CBW's Mathews, Virginia, or the tiny things that live in Kate's Maryland back yard, or the cultural richness of Daryl's Manhattan, but it will have to do. It's my favorite part of Fooleryland.


                                                                                                                          
My mom proposed in impromptu picnic at the lake yesterday, and we were all in favor, so the girls and I went with her for the short drive into the western foothills for a quiet picnic in perfect weather.   
                                                                                                                                                                       


Drought has left the lake very low this fall.
   


Summer is over and the water skiers and campers are gone.


 
You can't believe how quiet it was.



They've erected a cool new play structure since we were last here, so the girls had to check it out. Sparky announced that it didn't match anything at the lake; I had to agree. Maybe we have a future designer or architect?


 
We drove to the top of the dam where there is a lookout point. I could live up there.



The late afternoon October sun is unforgiving.


 


Once upon a time on such a picnic my friend Shirley and I swam across that far bay, holding our fishing poles aloft and out of the water. The sucking mud was so thick around the edge of the lake, and the cockle burrs so numerous and sharp, that swimming across seemed like the better option. That was 35 years ago at least. Facing the same choices now I would just buy fish at the store.







Glad I wasn't around when this baby came hurtling out of whatever volcano used to be here.

Part of Black Butte dam, with Farm Sanctuary West in the background. They do good work rescuing neglected farm animals.



The last time I water skied I got hit on the head by my ski right in this bay. Explains a lot, right?



The water skiers may be done for the season, but the fishermen don't give up as quickly.



Looking homeward, out across the valley. And now you've seen so much that you can cross Fooleryland off your bucket list.

Please visit CBW's "Life in Mathews," Daryl's other blog "Out & About in New York City," and Country Girl Kate's "Chronicles of a Country Girl," to name but a few wonderful bloggers who take stunning photographs.

Comments

[foolery]

Fooleryland would love to have you, Miss Meg. Just give me a few days to clean up. Weeks. Well, months.

[Meg @ Soup Is Not A Finger Food]

Love the photos and the treasure that is so close to where you live! But I don't feel as if I've crossed Fooleryland off of my list of places to see; I still want to come see it in person.

[foolery]

The chickens were home preparing for the storm thats hitting now, Daryl. Scratch...scratch...peck-peck-peck...scratch...and YES the girls are growing fast, SHUDDER.

[daryl]

what a glorious part of the world .. I am however disappointed there are no chickens or mentions of chickens in this post ... and YOWZA those girls are getting so tall ... xoxox

[foolery]

Thanks CBW! I think curvy is groovy, too. #10 is my favorite. And speaking of CURVY, who told my daughters it was okay to grow up?! AARRGGHH!!

[Chesapeake Bay Woman]

First of all, I LOVE these photos, esp. #3, 10, and 12 because of the curvy shoreline. In #3 the curvy shoreline goes with the curvy lines of the picnic table and the curvy tree.

Curvy is groovy.

See all those technical photography terms I've just tossed around? Curvy and groovy?

Second of all, thank you for the shout out, but Kate and Daryl are the real, true photographers.

Third, your daughters are growing like weeds! Beautiful.

[foolery]

Frances, for obvious reasons (see post) I dont water ski, and the last time I caught a fish I cried. But those hills and valley oaks recharge my batteries and they always have. If time permitted Id drive there all the time. Thanks for reading!

[Frances]

I'm wondering why I haven't been there in so long. It's right in our backyard. We used to practically live there; camping, waterskiing and fishing. Thank you for so many wonderful photos and a walk down memory lane.