Living in the Foothills of Appalachia
Geographically speaking, I live at the point where three Appalachian states collide: the southern point of Ohio pokes itself into the states of West Virginia and Kentucky. This region is where I was born, reared, educated, and have worked my entire life. I live and teach in Ohio, but in a few short minutes, I can cross the Ohio River and arrive in either West Virginia or Kentucky. The Appalachian Region covers a 205,000-square-mile region that follows along the spine of the Appalachian Mountains from southern New York to northern Mississippi. According to the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), 42% of the area's population is rural. I live in a rural region that is beautiful, raw, and naturally hilly. Many times the foothills region gets overlooked. I want to raise awareness to its natural beauty and character through images on this page.
Come day-trippin' with me through the foothills of Appalachia.
Welcome to the Ohio River!
The West Huntington Bridge allows drivers to cross the Ohio River and move from Ohio to West Virginia. This bridge helps carry travelers to U.S. Route 52 between Ohio Route 7 and Interstate 64. This bridge opened the year in which I was born--1970. In this picture, I am heading back home from Huntington to southern Ohio on this bridge. (You can barely make out the bridge's concrete wall on the bottom of the pic. What matters more to me in this scene is the majestic river.) Did you know "Ohio" is an Iroquoian Indian word that means "it is beautiful"? Indeed, I believe it is a beautiful river.
Hello, West Virginia!
Here is Wild, Wonderful West Virginia in all its natural breath-taking beauty! To sit here upon the rocks, all troubles and stress flow away into the New River Gorge.
Carter Caves located in Kentucky has the highest number of caves in all of KY. Year-round tours are even available at some of the caves. Just beware of bats!
There's no place like home!
Seriously, this is a view from my front porch! How serene is it?! It's taken me MANY years to appreciate the beauty I get to witness daily in the foothills of Appalachia. Hopefully, all images here will inspire you as much as it now inspires me. The old adage is true: With age comes wisdom. Each day I practice appreciating this neck of the woods I get to call "home."
Imel's Greenhouse, Greenup, KY : Come sit a spell!!! That's how we do it around here. Take a load off your feet and tell us a story! (Honestly, I saw this bench repurposed from a truck tailgate and had to snap a pic. I just love repurposing instead of trashing.)
Harris Riverfront Park = View from Huntington, WV, into Chesapeake, OH. (Do you have your "ducks in a row" like in this pic?) Yeah...the Ohio River was a bit muddy in this image. We receive more and more rain each year.
Hawks Nest State Park = Hawks Nest State Park is located on 370 acres in Fayette County near Ansted, West Virginia. The park's clifftop overlook along U.S. Route 60 provides a scenic vista of the New River, some 750 feet below. (Wikipedia)
What's one to do in Appalachia when a sweet snowfall arrives? Why, drink it all in! This image was taken on the deck of our log house. We savored a local winery's special wintertime selection: Winter Berry. *Thank you Merry Family Winery for your wonderful wines!
January 2022
If you ever visit us in southern Ohio, you MUST partake of Whit's Frozen Custard. It's the BEST custard around! In case you didn't know, David and I prefer "Buckeye Madness." Well, we do live in the Buckeye state!
This face just melts my heart! Here's Holly hanging out on the balcony of the Shaffer Farms barn. She's always the BEST part of each day here in our rural setting. Summer 2021
Bardstown, Kentucky
We spent some time here before picking up our new border collie pup, Molly. Pics are from May 2022.
*More pictures to come as this website grows and develops. Hope you will return and see the changes as they occur.