Sights from a Sunday - Apples, Overlooks and Retail. Lots of Retail.

Yesterday, Shira and I managed to mix in a little Apple Picking at Hollin Farms, hiking at Sky Meadows State Park (a few miles from Hollin Farms) and shopping at Fair Lakes Center (located on the way home from Sky Meadows).

Hollin Farms was a winner. They had quite a variety of apples to pick from, and while the open area of the orchard didn't strike us as particularly large, it served our purposes well. And Sky Meadows is just gorgeous. Holy Smokes! Has it really been 6 years since we've been there? That was a lifetime ago. Besides the fond memories of hanging with The Boys there, it's also one of the first glimpses I had of the Appalachian Trail. The small backpacking trips we've done along the AT can probably be traced back to that sighting.

But the most impressive and awe inspiring part of the day was Fair Lakes Center. How can a Target, BJs and Walmart and 55 other retail establishments all exist in one shopping center? (Like, Modells Sports next to Sports Authority, right next to Target and Walmart, that also sell sporting goods. Mind. Blown.) That seems like enough retail infrastructure to power a small 3rd world country. Yeesh. I don't know whether to be appalled, proud or just thankful for the convenience. Here in Arlington, we have relatively close access to Target and BJs, but not like this. Is that what life is like in the suburbs?

Some photos from the day...

Thew view from Hollin Farms:

Shira picking forbidden fruit.

Apple tree leaves. At this point, Shira's annoyed at me for not paying attention to the task at hand.

Mission accomplished!

Let's do the Overlook trail at Sky Meadows. It's gorgeous, is it not?

Us. Did I mention that the Overlook trail was all uphill? You're welcome.

Bug!

Pretty, and appropriately named, Milkweed Bug.