Ohio - Bucolic ~ Pastoral ~ Rockwellian ... Beautiful !

OHIO

The definition of bucolic is rustic, countrified, rural, pastoral. That’s exactly how I would describe Central Ohio. Round a corner and poof, there’s a beautiful bucolic scene straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting. Acres of fields, gold and dry now after the corn has been harvested and cut, bordered by maples and pines. Many of the Victorian-style farm houses are situated near small ponds, where their children likely spend much of their summers swimming.

When we arrived, the leaves had already begun their annual color change. Hopefully, some of those amazing shades of orange, crimson, yellow, and chartreuse will come through in the photos. But as you all know, seeing photos isn’t nearly as good as being there.

The air has been cool, dipping into the high 30s at night. The campground is beautiful and relatively empty. Rain is expected tonight, and we love hearing it pattering on the roof.

Tomorrow, Rick and I will meet with Dr. Dick Shiels, the historian in charge of the Newark Earthworks. Newark is the terminus of our trip and the reason we came to Ohio. I’ll be writing a magazine article or two about the Newark Earthworks, which is the world’s largest geometric group of mounds created by native people about 2,000 years ago. I was invited here by Susan Fryer, director of the Newark Earthworks Museum and head of the local Convention and Visitors Bureau. I’m also thinking about writing a children’s book about the mounds for the Ohio schools, though I’m not sure I want to make that commitment right now.

Rick is sharing some of the bucolic photos we took in the area. Enjoy!