Our rural countryside is diverse and beautiful, from pastures filled with cows, large majestic trees and rolling fields to scenic waterways. We meander often on little excursions as a family, roaming the back roads and fields to reconnect with nature. Our van is a transporter to imaginary wonderlands, waterfalls, and time frozen places.
On one such day, we loaded up for an exploration trip. We never knew what we would find. We headed out on the highway and turned down an old road that ended with a path of rocks and dirt. Venturing on, my daughter and granddaughter strained to see out their windows to catch glimpses of beautiful foliage or animals.
A rabbit dashed across the dirt road and hopped into a groove of old tire tracks. We slowed down to see if we could spot the small brown creature.
At another point, I spotted star-shaped, orange blazing flowers on the side of the road in a ditch. I had to get out and snap a picture. Then we were off again. We neared an intersection when a coyote took off running across the road and then bounded over an old fence.
We turned down another dirt road that seemingly went off into pasture land and followed woods on the opposite side. We rode only a few miles when we notice a small field of horses across from an old white house. We saw a few goats. One was standing in the back of an old rotting pickup truck. We stopped to get a closer look when suddenly out of nowhere dozens of cats sprang from hiding places in the tall grasses and from under the old dilapidated house’s wrap around porch. The cats came in various colors and shapes. We did not get out of the car because they seemed anxious for attention and maybe a little hungry.
“Who do you think is taking care of them,” I mused. No one knew the answer; so, we travelled on down the road until we came to a stream.
“This is my old swimming and fishing hole. I came out here to camp a lot,” my husband said.
We came upon a peaceful oasis. I could hear a gush of running water. We all got out and went down the hill and found a small waterfall. “This used to be a part of the old grist mill that is located back in those woods.”
I could almost hear the sounds of wagons and horses tromping down the old road to the mill to process their corn and grains. We drove down the road less than a quarter of a mile and came to another turn. I could see the old mill back in the brush sitting off the road. “All that history going to waste. I want to come back and explore more.”
I made myself a promise to do just that. I need a better camera and a way to hop an old and very big rusty fence.
Story brought to you by:
This Week’s Writing Prompts for Thursday 08/22
3.) Open your picture folders, close your eyes and pick a random photo to share and write about.
This week’s prompt: peace.
Self Sagacity’s Thursday Two Questions #149
- What old places and dirt roads do you explore in your hometowns?
- Do you and your family take Saturday exploration trips?
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A Great post. All readers will definitely like this post. Looking forward for your next post.
This sounds like a wonderful exploration! In our little county we do have grist mills – one was restored – but I don’t know if the owners were able to make anything of it – love finding interesting things down dirt roads! I do appreciate you sharing with Home and Garden Thursday,
Kathy
Hi Mary,
Funny how when I was a kid growing up here in the LA basin we always went for Sunday Drives. At that time the population was very low compared to the 26 million here in SoCal alone. At around eleven they moved us about 20 miles east of Los Angeles and we cried because they had moved us to the farm lands and the country areas. Now I live about 60 miles east of LA and you really would have to search to find a farm or any country land. It is all a concrete jungle.
Thank you for taking us on a beautiful ride and on such a beautiful day. I saw it all perfectly as if I was there. Loved the story about the cats. It was such a peaceful journey.
Thank you for also sharing this with us for this weeks Theme Thursday, calm and peace seemed to be everywhere. I hope you really do have a wonderful weekend and maybe do a little more exploring.
God bless.
Yes, very creative. I love waterfalls though. So powerful and majestic.
That was lovely, Mary! We have a waterfall near us that is very similar to the one in your picture and is known as “The Falls.” Creative, huh?
First I love the rose you have as you scroll down the page. I could actually picture
myself on your trip. It is interesting that there are so many beautiful places in the US we don’t think about.
I LOVE meandering through the country, and you took me there. Thanks so much for your beautiful post.
I am a country girl through and through…I appreciate this post!!! =)
Following you via Mama Kat! Hope you too can stop by and follow as well! coloradoblessedmom.blogspot.com
Sorry did my comment go through?
Hi there Mary, we explore the hikes around our neighborhoods, there are many more that we have yet to try. I also like to take the smaller roads in town, but we live in the suburbs. Time is always the constraint, I wish we can explore more.
Hi, got both comments. Thanks for your support.
Hi there Mary, we explore the hikes around our neighborhoods. There are some that we have yet to try. I also like to take some roads that are not so main…I guess time is always the constraint. Thanks for linking and posting with Thursday Two Questions.
What a vivid description, it indeed gives peace to heart and mind.:) thanks a lot for the encouragement.
This was a colourful post and I’d love to explore a place like that as well. Be careful when you decide to tackle that fence!
How lovely. Hubby and I love to explore too. Taking a road and just seeing what most never notice is an excellent way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
Have a terrific day. ☺
Really nice pictures.
When I lived in Tennessee riding the back roads was one of my favorite things to do. I still like to do it when I visit there. Where I live now in Los Angeles is not very conducive to country driving. I sometimes drive around town, but it’s not the same. When my kids still lived at home we’d take more exploration excursions. Now my wife and I usually stay home or close to it.
Lee
A Faraway View
In my hometown there are many dirt roads to travel, but we haven’t done this in years since our hometown is almost 4-hours away. Our explorations are kept to day trips in our area, usually you’ll find us somewhere in the TN or western NC mountains on such occasions. I’m eager to take such a trip with my camera in tow to see what new things I might happen upon to capture with the press of button. Thanks for visiting & linking up!
Thursday Thoughts: Parenting, Favorite Age, & Nates
Wow, what a beautiful post. It felt like I was really physically there, the way you described your little trip. Thank you for sharing that 🙂