A DRIVE ALONG THE SNICKERSVILLE TURNPIKE, VIRGINIA - FRIDAY, MAY 5TH, 2023 - PART 1

It was a perfect day for a drive.  I searched online for scenic routes not too far from where we live.  I came across the Snickersville Turnpike Scenic route, a bit of a drive from home, but have been further.  It's also not our first time in the 30 plus years of living here.  We enjoy it as there is very little traffic compared to the main roads.  Always peaceful to get off the beaten path. Today I am going to concentrate on those skies.  It was an absolutely beautiful day.The turnpike is a quiet, two-lane road but perhaps we should have gone earlier in the morning as people were coming home from work and it was busier than normal.  Not rush-hour-busy mind you.Below is a photo taken very quickly, trying to get the gate.  Two cars were behind us and we couldn't stop.  Still, it's a gate with a beautiful cloud-filled sky, and trees.  I often wonder who lives in these homes with their long driveways.We pass by farms and wide-open fields.  George Washington used to travel them as a surveyor.  By 1786 it was the first operating turnpike in America, and heralded by Thomas Jefferson as a success.  

I was curious as I wanted to find out how the word 'turnpike' originated. I read online that it was formed from the verb 'turnen', meaning "to turn," and the noun pike, meaning "a sharp-tipped weapon." With a slight change in spelling, turnpike later came to be used as the word for a simple gate placed across a road.  In order to pass through the turnpike, travelers would have to pay a fee or toll.  It was used between the mid-16th and late 19th centuries as gates or some other barrier set across a road to prevent passage until a toll had been paid.

   Our modern-day toll roads we try to avoid (way too much traffic), but we do have a device on our window that ticks down each time we use them, and we take the unmanned lane when approaching the line of kiosks, so that we don't have to stop, unless there is backed-up traffic in front of us.  On occasion we have forgotten to 'fill the money-pot' so to speak, and a ticket arrives a few days later.  Always nice to be able to get online to replenish that money-pot immediately.  Fortunately, it doesn't happen but rarely.

The history of the turnpike can be found here.

We pass by these old wooden, colonial-style fences in many historical areas.  I found a history of fences at this link.  There are all different styles.  The page also offers an interesting history lesson.  The website is called "Plants & Gardens in Colonial & Early America.", hosted by Barbara Wells Sarudy.

This is the last photo for today.  I will have more and post them as soon as I can.