Christmas - 2015

Thanks to everyone who has followed along with Photography In Place this year. We will be taking a short break over the holidays, but will resume posting on January 4th.

Merry Christmas and best wishes for a peaceful and prosperous New Year. See you in 2016!

Fox

Orange, Virginia 

Amtrak northbound

Orange, Virginia 

The northbound Amtrak Cardinal passes in front of the depot in the town of Orange on December 20, 2015, loaded perhaps with folks going home for Christmas.

The Cardinal runs between New York and Chicago three days a week, but does not stop in Orange. The colonial revival train station was completed in 1910. Passenger service to Orange was discontinued in the early 1970s.

Third Sunday - 2015

Front Royal, Virginia 

Asbury Chapel - 1916

"Asbury Chapel (now Asbury United Methodist Church) was build in 1848 and named for Bishop Francis Asbury, who evangelized throughout the Shenandoah Valley from 1783 to 1805. During the Civil War, the congregation met irregularly, and the church was used as a hospital, probably after the Battle of Front Royal.

In 1916, the building was dismantled, revealing bloodstained floorboards. Using original materials when possible and following a similar design, the congregation completed the present structure the next year. The reconstructed church was dedicated on the fourth Sunday in October, 1917." *

*Text from the Wayside marker located at the church.

The Knotty Pine

Front Royal, Virginia 

Every time I drive through Front Royal, I see this restaurant and think I will stop and take a picture of it some day. Earlier this month I finally did it. It looks like the kind of place that used to be common in small towns. There are not many left.

Hope you will stop by on Sunday for our regular Third Sunday post. In the meantime, have a good weekend and thanks for reading Photography In Place.

Side door

View from the tracks

Pleasant Valley, Virginia 

Pleasant Valley is a small railroad town just south of Harrisonburg, Virginia. The Shenandoah Valley Railroad operates trains several times a week between Pleasant Valley and Staunton, Virginia. I stopped by there last Sunday afternoon to photograph the lovely old wooden train station that still stands but is no longer in use. The picture above was taken along the tracks just north of the station.

Gray house

Shenandoah County, Virginia 

I came across this empty old house in the Shenandoah Valley as I was on my way to Timberville earlier this month. It's a lonesome looking place that appears to have been unoccupied for a long time. There is a "For Sale" sign in front

Morning on the Shenandoah River

Shenandoah River State Park - Bentonville, Virginia 

Outline

Harper's Ferry, West Virginia 

Last week I camped for a few days at Shenandoah River State Park, near Front Royal, Virginia. I drove up to Harper's Ferry one day while I was there and spent the day photographing the town.

My trip also included a trek through the upper Shenandoah Valley and a visit to the town of Front Royal, as well as long walks along the Shenandoah River. Over the next couple of weeks I will be sharing more pictures taken during my recent travels.

Moss bank

Greene County, Virginia 

Small worlds—moss growing over the edge of a muddy bank.

Thanks for reading Photography In Place.

Stone face

Shenandoah National Park 

It may be just the way the light strikes this outcropping, but I see a sad, patient stone face, eyes raised to the sun, bound forever to this ancient rock.

Fence and shadow

Antietam National Battlefield - Sharpsburg, Maryland 

Denver & Rio Grande Western #491

Colorado Railroad Museum 

This locomotive is a 2-8-2 "Mikado" type built by Baldwin in 1902. It is said to be the largest operating narrow gauge steam locomotive in the western hemisphere. This picture is from my visit to the Colorado Railroad Museum in September of this year.

The day I was there, the locomotive was pushing Thomas the Train around the grounds of the museum and this is the only shot I managed to get of 411 without Thomas. I don't know what is in the bag hanging over the number below the cab window.

Treeline at sunset - Mattawoman Creek

Charles County, Maryland 

If you are tired of the foggy pictures that ran all last week here on Photography In Place, take heart. No more fog for a while.

This shot was taken in early October on what was to be my last Potomac River trip of the year. Mattawoman Creek empties into the Potomac near Indian Head, Maryland. The Algonquin word "mattawoman" means "where one goes pleasantly."

Fog/stop

Shenandoah National Park 

Hope you have a clear weekend ahead. And as always, thanks for reading Photography In Place.

Fog/rock/3 trees

Shenandoah National Park 

Fog/dead tree

Shenandoah National Park 

Fog/tree

Shenandoah National Park