Of all the photos I could possibly take on Friday's hike up to see the wild ponies along the Appalachian trail - this is by far my favorite!
No faces - just quilty friends resting after a long climb and looking out over the beautiful mountain views.
And we BEAT the rain (which really didn't fall on Friday) and we made it back by dinner time happily exhilarated over our efforts to climb, climb, climb and see all that we could see.
Yeah, those clouds look ominous - but they didn't do anything!
The threat of rain was nothing but a big fake out!
And yes, I remembered the sunscreen, bug spray AND my hat!
Pony Love!
Little bit of Zoey in the bottom corner!
Love the white spot on this ones shoulder!
What a great day!
Everyone who came with me was a first-timer. And seeing this all though their eyes just makes it that much more worth it.
Mama's got some GIRTH!
It's so green and lovely this time of year!
Just munching away -
I took photos of this side of the trail so that folks could see that it can get a bit "intense." It's a trail - not a road, so it wouldn't be recommended for anyone who had trouble with climbing over rocks.
You know, bad knees? Iffy ankles? Balance issues? Just be aware. There is no handicap access to see the ponies. It's about a mile uphill to the "turn around" spot where we start to go back down.
Yes, it can get a bit steep and tricky.
We kept a slow easy pace - it wasn't a race, we just had to get there.
Sometimes after a rain there WILL be mud puddles and places to walk around and avoid.
And though there is never a guarantee that you will see the ponies out and about, I believe there has only been one time when I didn't see ANY - and that was around New Years when they had moved off to other areas.
Most of the time you'll see a few of them just grazing not far from each other.
I believe we saw 9 or more this day -
During "tourist season" I try to take my groups up on week days only. Weekends can be pretty crowded, parking at the park can be a struggle - and the more people there are, the less comfortable the ponies can be and they move further away off into the brush. (Who can blame them?)
Appalachian Trail Girls!
Friday afternoon was still fairly busy - in fact, we caught THIS happening. Click to Play:
Now this looks like fun!
It was after our hike was done that I sat to finish the binding on my Merry Little Houses quilt in Pat Sloan's tour for her new book Holiday Celebrations.
I've loved visiting the other stops along this tour since it began with the TWO mega-giveaways from Martingale happening now (see the prize packs on my May 31st POST. You can enter on their blog here, and over on Instagram here.) and seeing what everyone has been making from Holiday Celebrations.
Have you been visiting the other sites? If you need to get caught up, click to Saturday's Post where I've linked all the stops up through yesterday - and enter to win my own Gift-Away there!
The Holiday Celebrations tour continues today - so head on over to Becky Thompson of Power Tools With Thread and see what she has up her sleeve! Don't forget to sign up for her Gift-Away (See her YouTube Video Gift-Away instructions!) as well!
Our weekend flew by in a flash - Today is the last retreat day for the June Quiltvillians who will be making their way home tomorrow. and
I have more to share - design walls full of beautiful projects-in-progress, gorgeous quilts-over-the-rail porch photos and more, so stay tuned!
I'm also working hard behind the scenes for things coming up soon - My next PDF pattern release (Around the 15th) our next Leader & Ender challenge reveal (Around 4th of July) and the big one for me - I've started pulling fabrics for our Quiltville Winter Mystery!
That's a lot of behind-the-scenes stuff that will be revealed in due time - but can you see me scrambling to get it all done in order and on time? Whew!
How was your weekend?
Quiltville Quote of the Day -
Today is another step on your way toward where you want to be tomorrow.
Baby steps forward is still forward!
Have a great Monday, everyone!
7 comments:
Boy I needed to hear that quote today.
Great quote and amazing quilt.
My Holiday Celebrations book came in the mail yesterday and I can't wait to get into it, however this is Grandson day so there will be a very worthwhile delay. Thank you for sharing the horses. You live in such a fantastic area and are so blessed by all that is around you.
Hi Bonnie,
I would bet the pony with the 'girth' is definitely pregnant. look for a baby on your next hike!
Just starting a new quilting design on a donation quilt, so I needed this quote today too. Thank you Bonnie for all you do for us and others. I hope some day to meet you in person at Quiltville Inn.
Taking a break from cutting to sneak a peek and boy, was it worth it! I absolutely love your pony posts!! Yes, Momma pony looks like she's expecting any day! Thank you for sharing your joy! Have a good evening!
How far is your house from the retreat house? Retreat house is beautiful. Have a great sewing and walking time.
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