Rixeyville.
The name of a simple, small Virginia town. Not even a town really, just a collection of houses, several churches, and one business. So small that the "Town Limit" signs are literally on opposing sides of the same 4"x4" post. Rixeyville itself is super small but my memories attached to the area are so very large.
I was first introduced to Rixeyville through camping trips with the Royal Ambassador boys program at church. Every year the RAs would assemble on the Gillespie "Big Woods" property, just a short distance from Rixeyville. Many great memories come from those annual camping events - the early trips with my brother and Dad, then the later trips made on my own. Over the years Rixeyville became synonymous with the Big Woods land to me and the mention of either now sparks floods of emotion within.
The Big Woods property is a tree farm of a little bit more than 150 acres. The land is a mixture of heavily wooded areas, several meadows, a pond or two, rocky outcroppings, and hilly riverbank. Surrounding the Big Woods is a working farm on one side, a State road on another side, a large parcel of trees on the third side, and the Hazel River. The land is bisected by a pipeline for natural gas - the clearing for which allows a ready made trail/road for easy access along the property. The tree farm was run in a natural manner (i.e., it was left alone) for over fifty years. Some areas were full of fine mature growth trees, other areas had tangles of blowdowns but the entire property was beautiful to me. Over the course of the twenty year relationship I had with the Big Woods I walked the trails through the forest, explored the rocks, relaxed by the ponds, and fished the Hazel River more times than I could ever count. I cut trees to clear the fire roads, mowed grass to keep the meadows accessible, and even re shingled a rustic cabin. I did all of this at first to gain access to the land. Later, I did these tasks simply because I loved the land.
The Big Woods property was owned at first by John Gillespie and his wife Ruth, then later by their son Danny. John Gillespie died when I was still young and I don't remember much of the man. I do know that from the time he bought the land until well after his death, Mr. Gillespie made sure the Big Woods were always open to area church groups for the purpose of introducing boys to the great outdoors. I became friends with Ruth and Danny at about the same time. Danny was constantly travelling to support his business and his spelunking habit(he prefers to simply call it 'caving'). Danny made it a point to be at Big Woods each year for the three day RA camp outs and would spend most of his Friday nights at camp cooking the meat for Saturday's big lunch. I helped cook for many of the years and have many great memories of sitting around the large coal pits talking about Danny's latest and greatest travels. Danny was a bit wild around the edges but proved to be a great example for how to treat everyone with respect and kindness. I met Ruth during one of the Friday night cooking sessions - every year she would be at the house way up the pipeline from the camp, cooking potato salad and making many other preparations for the Saturday feast. The night I met her the whole cooking crew was in her tiny house slicing beef and talking and joking until after 2am. That night was the start of my good friendship with Ruth.
Ruth granted me access to the land to hunt or fish or explore. I visited with Ruth quite a bit when I was at the property. I told her how the property was faring during the winter when she was unable to get out and about. Ruth would tell stories of the times when she was growing up and we discussed how times had changed for both better and worse. One random story that stands out is that the first car wreck in which vehicle airbags were credited with saving lives happened along the State road outside her front window. I remember reading about that story in Readers Digest when I was young - she remembers hearing and then seeing the accident.
Ruth died about ten years ago and I miss our conversations.
After Mrs. Gillespie passed away I continued to visit and care for the Big Woods with the help of several other people who deeply cared for the Big Woods. Years passed. Danny and I became more distant due to his travels and his having located in West Virginia near a commercial caverns. During a visit to the Big Woods to go fishing I learned that the property had been sold. I talked to the new owner for a short while and learned of his plans to slash the woods and develop the parcel into a subdivision of about twenty houses. I was broken hearted.
All of this disjointed rambling was brought on by a trip I took yesterday. I wanted to get out and take some photographs of nature. I started for the mountains but for some reason veered South and followed the old familiar route....along 29 South through Warrenton, ease West by way of Route 211, and turn left at the lonely gas station onto 229. I was heartened to see little had changed along the way. J&D's Auto Upholstery Shop has become J&D's Handyman Services (I guess the upholstery work wasn't paying all of the bills). The volunteer fire station still has the slightly off kilter portable sign out front advertising the next fundraising breakfast. The mom and pop general store in Rixeyville has removed the old gas pumps that crowded the highway but still soldiers on, selling soda and coffee and wonderful sandwiches (along with cigarettes and lottery tickets). I turned off Route 229 at the sharp downhill left just beyond Mom and Pop's store and eased the car along the road leading to Big Woods. I passed Ruth's house which has been sold to several new owners since her passing. The last owners added an unsightly wire fence and a shoddy two stall horse barn. I crept along the gravel road past the cabin and small plot of land belonging to the crazy 'machine gun' guy. I passed the ugly gash in the face of the woods where the developer had begun to build. To my surprise there was only one house nearing completion. There was a real estate sign near the old cattle gate that opens into Big Woods. The information printout attached to the sign shows that my beloved Big Woods is up for sale again. Apparently Danny had bought a bulk of the property back from the developer (at the developer's loss) and has listed the land again. Asking price for the 121 acres? $990,000. I leaped at the thought of being able to own my favorite spot in the world. I then patted my pockets and realized that I am short of funds by about $989,875.
Memories will have to do.
(Thanks for bearing with me and reading my post of randomness! I could probably fill twenty blogs with my thoughts and memories of the Big Woods, Danny, Ruth, and all of the people and events that make these woods such a special place to me but I'll spare you and hold the memories within.)
