My favorite time to visit Cacapon Mountain, the one closest to me, is early in the morning. I drop my daughter off at school, then take the dog up to the overlook. Before we start our walk through the woods, we sit and look out over the treetops. Quite often fog or mist is drifting through the trees, swaying gently in the ever-present breezes. If I squint, I can imagine the valley as it must've looked back in the days when the valley was a sea. The mists become waves, the trees, seaweed. Then, I close my eyes, and the sounds of breezes becomes the tide. If I'm really tuned in, I can hear them: the calls of the spirits of the mermaids that lived there. I believe they are still here, now become dryads and sylphs here in the mountains.
My favorite activity, besides just walking and smelling the air, is creating Stone People. I was inspired by a New Hampshire artist, Mark Ragonese, when he was one of our visiting artists last year. He taught the children to build simple sculptures by piling stones into shapes. You can see my Stone People at my Myspace -- someday maybe I'll post them here!
http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewPicture&friendID=98884605&albumId=902336
OK -- the sun is setting and there is so much still to do!
kubiando!