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A New Lark Cometh to Clarke… an open invitation to friends and residents of beautiful Clarke County Virginia
We are about to embark on a new lark! A complete makeover of our A Lark Through Clarke County blog. And we want YOU to help us either create the new look or suggest the nature of the content for this blog.
Originally, our mission was to bring a behind-the-scenes look at “A Lark Through Clarke Stable Tour and More” as the tour event unfolded. But alas, as announced a while back, the stable tour is no more.
Our focus changed earlier this year to stories about the rich history of Clarke County. But now we want to broaden our horizon to include current stories of community interest and happenings throughout Clarke County.
We are inviting YOU and all friends and residents of Clarke County to share their stories with us. To that end, we invite you to take a moment now and offer your comments about where we go from here. That is, what would YOU like to read about when you visit this blog? What events or stories would be of special interest to you?
You might be asking, how do I post my comment here on this blog? It’s easy. Here’s the “how to” of posting a comment:
First, you scroll to the bottom of this blog where you will find several links, one of which includes the word “Comments” — below we’ve captured a screen-shot displaying those links along with an explanation of how to proceed to post your comment.
IMPORTANT NOTES: When posting to this blog, you are required to enter your name (a pen name, nickname or first name will do) and email address in the space provided. At your option, you may also enter a website address. This could be the website address of your personal web page, the address of your place of business, or the address of a web site that is relevant to this blog, e.g., http://www.clarkehistory.org
Next, enter your comments in the larger text box provided. You might ask a question about the proposed new content for this blog. Or you might be bold and let us know you would like to become a regular contributing author to this blog! Or, you may prefer just to let us know what topics you would like to see covered in this blog. Of course, if you opted to enter a website address relevant to this blog, such as cited in the example above, you might post a comment such as:
“I would like to suggest that we blog about the forthcoming art show at the Mill in Millwood. The link you see above will take you to the Clarke County Historical Society (http://www.clarkehistory.org). At the top of their home page, you will see a link to “ART AT THE MILL” — here you will find information about the Fall 2010 Art Show, which kicks off early in October.”
Be sure to check over your entry to be sure your comment is free of errors and then click on the “Submit Comment” button. Your comment will be published once it has been approved by the Blog Administrator. C’est moi — PJ
Voila! You are done. We are looking forward to hearing from you!
Stable Tour Highlight: Art Show & Picnic Lunch in Millwood
The Stable Tour Committee convened today and we’ll be briefing you shortly on preparations for the Lark Through Clarke Stable Tour and More. Meanwhile, don’t forget to register at the stable tour web site to receive updates via email.
Several people have asked if the Locke Store in Millwood (situated opposite the Old Mill on Route 723) will be offering box lunches during the stable tour. The answer is yes. In fact, special box lunches will be on hand that Saturday, October 9th. A couple of small picnic tables are available on the porch outside the entrance. However, as you will quickly observe from the picture above, seating is limited. Larger picnic tables await you, a mere hop, skip, and a jump away, in a natural park setting behind the historic Burwell-Morgan Grist Mill (circa 1782)—the oldest operable mill in the Shenandoah Valley and purveyor of corn meal for the Locke Store. On leaving the store, just cross the street and follow the pathway past the entrance of the Mill.
At the far side of the Mill, you will be greeted by the sound of rushing water as you pass by the overflow from the 20-foot water wheel housed within the Mill itself. The Old Mill is closed for the winter, but will be open for the October 9th stable tour.
As you continue along the pathway, you will come upon a charming walking bridge over the bubbling stream, leading to a park setting where you may enjoy your picnic lunch in peaceful surroundings.
Of course, this time of year, the picnic tables are not in use, understandable when considering the below-freezing temperatures this month. But wait: take a closer look at the photo below. Do you see what I see? There appears to be someone seated at that last table. Click the circled area for a closer examination, if you dare!
The Burwell-Morgan Grist Mill will be hosting an annual art exhibit the week of the stable tour. This exhibit is featured as one of nine stops on the stable tour. So, either before or after your picnic lunch, you definitely will want to check out the Mill before proceeding to other points of interest. But you don’t have to wait till October for a first hand look, inside and out. You may enjoy a virtual tour of this unique historic mill now!
Coming soon: Unlocking the Secrets of the Locke Store.
Ante Up for a Winter Sleigh Ride
The Blizzard of 2009, arriving the week before Christmas, brings gleeful memories of my childhood in Plymouth Meeting, PA, where just about this time of year, our neighbors would surprise my sister and me with a winter wonderland ride on an old-fashioned sleigh drawn by two magnificent dapple grays, their sleigh bells ringing as they briskly trotted through the newly fallen snow.
This blog is dedicated to those who have never experienced the delight of riding in a horse-drawn sleigh. We start with a question posed by Flora Hillman, master storyteller and contributing writer and photographer at The Chronicle of the Horse magazine.
“So, what do you do when it snows over a foot? You take your camera and the old retired hunt pony (Ante Up, alias Andy), harness said pony up to the sleigh, hop aboard, and enjoy the snowy vista of Piedmont’s every beautiful Tuesday hunt country to the merry sound of jingle bells!”
Ante Up for a winter sleigh ride. Enjoy!
Flora continues–
The morning after the record-breaking Blizzard of 2009. Our area of Northern Virginia was hit with 21″ of fresh powdery snow—just perfect for a sleigh ride.
We put our sleigh—a 120 year old (c 1890) antique Portland cutter made by Union Carriage and Gear Company, Watertown, NY—to one of our foxhunting/driving ponies—a 12.2h Welsh Section C (pony of the cob type) who had been hunted for many years and driven for over 15 years as part of our former pair. At 27, he is now retired, except for the Christmas parades and sleigh rides!
To learn more about Flora Hillman and her adorable pony of the cob type, Ante Up, we encourage you to visit Auriga Farm.
Silent Auction Lark After Dark
This past Saturday, Christ Church, Millwood, hosted its annual Silent Auction and Dinner at the Millwood Country Club. Guests numbered over a hundred, and the sounds of clinking cocktail glasses and excited chatter filled the air as guests,
Silent Auction items displayed at one of five tables
clad in gay holiday attire, mingled and strolled between the five display tables to enter their bids. Auction items ranged from original oil paintings, antique china dishes and vases, a handsome china rooster, copper cookware, sterling silver, and a hand-crafted coffee table to certificates for gourmet desserts, a lunch and trail ride along the Shenandoah, a skeet shooting outing, tax preparation, and a five-page web site. Tempting trays laden with specialty cheeses and crackers, caviar and salmon delicacies accompanied the cocktails before guests sat down to an elegant table setting and enjoyed roast beef served with a delectable mushroom gravy, roasted vegetables, salad, rolls and carafes of red and white table wine, topped off with a slice of good old-fashioned (and very tasty) apple brown betty.
Dining at Millwood Country Club
Dinner was followed by the live auction conducted by auctioneer Billy Watkins. Satiated with good food and wine, the guests engaged in lively bidding, garnering a significant showing of generosity for a number of tempting items, such as the one-week stay in a five-bedroom vacation home on the coast of Maine.
The evening concluded with the announcement of raffle ticket winnings, among which was a dinner for two at L’Auberge Provençal—a top 100 Zagat-rated restaurant in nearby White Post. Proceeds from the fundraising event will benefit the ministry of Cunningham Chapel Parish.
Thank you Janet Hitchen for…
…sharing your beautiful photographs for use in our stable tour web site and displayed in our new masthead, above. Now everyone can enjoy the picturesque countryside described in this blog through the lens of Clarke County resident and professional photographer, Janet Hitchen. When one of our stable tour committee members first saw the landscape photo in the masthead of our Lark through Clarke Stable Tour and More home page, she exclaimed: “This is exactly why we moved to Clarke County!”
Our new masthead, compliments of Janet Hitchen, captures the essence of Clarke County— home to historic places, landmarks, people and, as you can see, breathtaking pastoral views, set against the majestic Blue Ridge mountains. The scenes pictured above and below are typical of what you will witness on your self-driven tour of Clarke County stables and historic farms, come Saturday, October 9, 2010.
In my initial post, I promised to bring you a behind-the-scenes look as we introduce you to the first annual Lark through Clarke Stable Tour and More. A visit to Janet’s Landscape and Hunt Country Galleries will give you a glimpse of the panoramic mountain views that envelop Clarke County residents and why they are both blessed and enthralled with the beauty that surrounds them.
Photo by Janet Hitchen, Photographer
To read more about Janet, click on the link to our About page in the upper right corner.
We will continue to feature photographs and stories of the families and their four-legged companions (pictured here and in our masthead photo) who live,
love and enjoy life around and about Clarke County, Virginia.
