Wagon WheelLuray Valley Museum, Virginia In my last post from the Shenandoah Valley I shared my photography from Luray Caverns. To get to today's photographs you don't even have to move the car. Leave it right where you parked it for your visit to the caverns and walk just a little bit down the hill to visit the Luray Valley Museum.

After visiting the caverns this is a great place to spend some time mostly outside. You will time travel back to the 1800s and have an opportunity to slow down and think about the lifestyle comparison. See if you can soak the whole place in without peeking at your cell phone!

The Luray Caverns "complex" offers several attractions bundled in the admission and the museum seems to be the least visited of them all. Yes, it is rather small and if you visited places like this before it may feel repetitive. However, the fact that most people flock to the maze, the rope adventure park, or elsewhere, is a good thing in my opinion. It leaves you with more space and time to enjoy, look around, think about the days gone by, and yes, to take pictures without crowds.

You can take in the rural setting or focus on the details of the individual buildings or artifacts. I tried to go for a combo of both approaches to put the museum in my memory book.

ChestLuray Valley Museum

The wagon wheel, a cliché for museums, was something I just could not resist. It was placed against the wall of a blacksmith shop (closed) and the hints of fading red on its spokes matched the wall color scheme nicely. The freshly painted vent was screaming for attention too. And since two objects would not really look all that great they worked in the chimney cap in the wall to make it a trio.

A more mysterious, almost abstract, close up of a rustic chest in the museum. I loved just about everything about it. The weathered peeling paint providing beautiful colors and textures, the knob and its shadow, and the dual keyholes. While this is the most detailed photograph in this series you don't have to stop there. You can further zoom in to capture a section of only the paint, or one of the keyholes

And finally a beautiful barn, the Burner Barn, offered plenty of other photographic opportunities. The barn itself is a beauty, its door with a trio of windows, and the fences lining the driveway, all creating a never-ending supply of angles.

Overall, a very nice and relaxing visit at the end of the day, with a measured dose of history to go along.

Burner BarnLuray Valley Museum, Virginia

Burner Barn, Luray Valley Museum, Virginia

Enjoy the beauty that surrounds you! (#etbtsy)

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References: Luray Caverns Attractions - Luray Valley Museum