Today & tomorrow: Waynesboro Fly Fishing and Wine Festival

Waynesboro will host the 14th Annual Virginia Fly Fishing Festival today and tomorrow. The festivities will take place in Constitution Park located on the banks of the South River with vendors, workshops, and a beautiful walkway for visitors.

The weekend weather is expected to be perfect -- sunny with temps in around 70 today and 80 on Sunday. Check out the website for the entire lineup of activities. Come play in the Valley!

It's spring in Roanoke

 I found spring this week, and it was in Roanoke. The flowering trees and forsythia haven't begun to bloom in my corner of Augusta County -- just jonquils and daffodils -- but in Roanoke it was a flourish of color and green grass.

 Azaleas were in full bloom at this house off Plantation Road.

We had driven to Roanoke Friday to join political friends and Ed Gillespie for lunch and I was surprised as we entered the Roanoke Valley with all the colors of spring.

Spring is finding its way to western Virginia....

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
April 4, 2014

Road trip! Warm spring day in western Virginia

 It was a beautiful spring morning when a friend and I headed south from Staunton to Lexington and then turned west on I-64 heading toward the Allegheny Mountains of western Virginia. If you've never driven this stretch of interstate, you've missed a beautiful part of Virginia and West Virginia.

 This is the on-ramp for I-64 west of Lexington. Look at the scenery ... mountains, trees, blue sky.

 First stop was Clifton Forge snuggled along the mountain bases.

 There's a Tea Room in Clifton Forge!

 And then out the western side of Clifton Forge back onto the interstate to nearby Covington.

 The Chocolate Festival is this Saturday at the Armory in Clifton Forge. Sweet tooth mandatory....

 Covington is a combination of small and large homes ...

 ... the railroad ...

 ... and a quaint downtown.

 They have a new Visitor Center that also houses the Alleghany Highlands Chamber of Commerce.

 By afternoon temperatures had reached 70 degrees as we lunched in Covington, then back on the road toward Lexington ...

 ... and the familiar sights of that area.

 The Blue Ridge Mountains were ahead of us as we traveled east on I-64 and then north on I-81 before turning east on I-64 at Staunton to drive up and over to the eastern side of Afton Mountain before heading back home to Staunton.

Afton Mountain and Waynesboro in the Shenandoah Valley below. This part of Virginia touches hearts and souls ... it's a wonderful place to call home.

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
April 1, 2014

Celebrate Thomas Jefferson's birthday at Monticello

Friday, April 11
At Monticello

Monticello will mark the 271st anniversary of Thomas Jefferson's birth with a celebration and ceremonies on the West Lawn. Held in conjunction with Founder's Day at the University of Virginia, the event will feature remarks by James H. Webb, Jr., former U.S. Senator from Virginia and the 2014 recipient of the Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Citizen Leadership, and the presentation of wreaths honoring Jefferson by local, state, and national organizations. 10 a.m., free and open to the public. (Admission required for house tours.)

Other Events
You may also be interested in related events being held at the University of Virginia as part of Founder's Day:

April 11

• 12:30 p.m. Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medalist in Citizen Leadership The Frank Batten School of Leadersip and Public Policy will host a talk by James H. Webb, Jr., former U.S. Senator (D-Va.) and Secretary of the Navy, decorated Vietnam veteran and successful author, journalist and filmmaker, in Old Cabell Hall Auditorium.

April 12

• 10:00 a.m. Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medalist in Law: A public talk will be held in the Caplin Pavilion featuring Kenneth R. Feinberg, an attorney who has administered the compensation funds for victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the 2007 shootings at Virginia Tech and the Boston Marathon bombings.
• 3:30 p.m. Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medalist in Architecture
  The School of Architecture will host a public talk by Toyo Ito, a Tokyo-based architect who combines conceptual innovation with superbly executed buildings, as in his masterpiece, the Sendai Mediatheque, which reimagines what a public museum and library should be in the digital age, in Old Cabell Hall Auditorium.

Learn more about all Founder's Day events

First day of spring: Virginia outdoor getaways

 Jonquils in my yard, March 13, 2012

It's the first official day of spring and many are ready to get outdoors after being cooped up inside during a long, snowy winter. Virginia travel and tourism folks are ready to help make that happen with deals and getaways to wash away the winter blues. Check them out here and while you're at it, you may want to check out the 10 Virginia Spring Festivals You Don't Want To Miss.

More from Virginia Is For Lovers....

17 Scenic Drives for Virginia Wine

21 Influential Virginia Women

14 Reasons to Experience Virginia’s Most Iconic Scenic Drives

Virginia’s Coastal Spring Drives

Virginia is for spring lovers....

Photo by Lynn R. Mitchell
March 13, 2012

Late winter snow in Augusta County

 These photos were taken just before dark on Sunday as snow continued falling west of Staunton. At 9:00 it is 27 degrees and still snowing.

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
March 16, 2014

Historic McDowell ... 2014 Highland Maple Festival

Sugar Tree Country Store is closed on Sundays but open the rest of the week. During the maple festival they sell Brunswick stew, maple sugar candy, maple ice cream, and other food.

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
McDowell, Virginia
March 14, 2013