This is a shot of the red clay found around the Roanoke area. It’s an acidic soil that’s common around the southeastern United States; sciencey types call it a “ultisol.” The rust color results from … actual rust, if I understand correctly. It’s full of iron oxide.
I don’t think my camera phone does it justice — it’s actually redder than it appears below. I have no doubt Roanoke natives hardly notice it, but it looks strange at first to a carpetbagger.
Market Street and its vicinity.
These were taken along South Jefferson Street.
I’ve mentioned this before, but the mountains around Roanoke are so high that their peaks ascend the clouds. You can see them from our back porch.
I will never tire of seeing that.
I saw an absolutely fantastic production of William Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” in Roanoke the first weekend of October, performed by Showtimers Community Theater.
I then was treated to a tour of the entire theater itself. The wooded hilltop location is a renovated 1908 church secluded from its surrounding residential neighborhood — it’s a small touch of ambiance that further makes the venue an easy destination for people looking for an atmospheric night out. (Showtimers has been operating since 1951.)
The Roanoke Star has crested Mill Mountain more than 1,000 feet above the city since 1949. It is visible for 60 miles, and results in Roanoke’s nickname as the “Star City.”
The views of the Roanoke Valley from the mountain’s crown are breathtaking.
Eric Robert Nolan, Author 