Northern Virginia - Part Two

Oh we have enjoyed this area so much!! Here are more pictures of the our beautiful campground. I call it "ours" because during the week, we are usually the only ones here on these 100 plus beautiful wooded acres with the Shenandoah River running through it on two sides. On weekends, the campground gets about half full and then empties out again by Sunday or Monday. It's dark and quiet and can be a bit creepy but we love it! Oh, did I mention that a bear or two also call this home? Apparently they wanders around at night. We keep telling the manager of the campground that we should get paid to stay here and provide security! So far, they haven't taken us up on it. What a beautiful place to call home for 5 weeks!

This is our view right outside our door.

New cabins in process of being built for rent on the campground property.

Large American Sycamore leaf on the Shenandoah River.

The Shenandoah River

Tent campsites on the river.

EXPLORING THE LITTLE TOWNS IN THE 

  SHENANDOAH VALLEY AND BEYOND

We have spent a lot of time driving to the towns up and down the Shenandoah Valley. Along I-81 we have visited: Winchester, Stevens City, Middleton, Strasburg, Woodstock, Edinburg, Mt. Jackson, New Market, Harrisonburg and Staunton. Then, in the valley, Leesburg, Front Royal, Luray Shenandoah, Elkton. We've also gone to the other side of Shenandoah National Park and North to: Leesburg, Sperryville, Warrenton, Culpeper, Manassas and Washington DC. Every town has a story and loads of history with historic downtowns and quaint shops. Below are photos of some of the neat places and things we saw in these towns.

The place mat at a little cafe in Sperryville, VA

WOODSTOCK, VA

The Woodstock Garden Cafe
Farm to table savory soups and sandwiches
right in the Nursery where trees, flowers and plants are grown and sold.

EDINBURG, VA

Tom spent two Saturday's taking Fly Fishing classes from the famous
Harry Murray, a legend here in Woodstock and nationally.

LURAY, VA

Page Theatre ... yes.. it's a little odd! A little old man owns
this theatre and is usually the only one working.
He is NOT one for conversation!

Decorated throughout with red lights and
odd/unique statues.

The tiniest screen we have ever seen in a theatre.
Looks like it is 7 ft. x 14 ft.
Full size armor on each side!

Yes, right in the tiny theater.

As you walk in....

Everything trimmed in red lights... even the bathrooms.

One beautiful fall day we decided to tour the Luray Caverns. I don't know why but it was such a disappointment. There were so many people, even this late in the season. So commercialized and touristy. Toy stores, souvenir shops, ice cream shop, fudge, maze, outdoor toys for kids, museums etc. It was sicking.

Then, down in the caverns, the stalactites were dormant, dead. Most were not moist and were no longer alive and growing. They were dry and flaking away. Too many people had touched them. Too many people had broken off the tips. The damp coolness of a normal cavern was gone. Too many people had already disrespected the cave and it's beauty. There were many lights and I do understand that putting in the lights requires wires and getting into the depths of the formations to install the lights. But I saw so many areas that were actually "built" by someone to create formations and stone.

Who owns the caverns? It seems like it is only a money making venture for the owners. Why do they allow so many people through? Why are the people allowed to walk so closely to the formations that they can break the tips off? I keep imagining what it must have looked like when they were first discovered and what those people must have thought when they first saw it. It was terribly sad to see it in the condition it was in. However, I did see some areas that seemed untouched by humans (except for the lighting). The photo below is of a beautiful "curtain" formation and it is perfect! There were a couple water ponds with amazing reflections of the beauty on the ceiling.

Very large curtain formation

A pool with a perfect reflection of the ceiling.

Another reflective pool.

 There was a museum which was included in the cost of the cavern tour. The Car and Carriage Caravan Museum was very interesting! It is a museum of antique vehicles, some dating back before they were powered by an engine.

1892 Mercedes-Benz, one of the oldest cars in the country still in operating condition.

1912 Hudson

MOUNT JACKSON, VA

This water tower is amazing and beautiful. 

SPERRYVILLE, VA

Really?? Made daily and they are antique??  

NEW MARKET, VA

This was a great museum which captured the civil war.
To me it was confusing and full of contradictions. And very sad. 

This is where the battle of New Market took place, The Bushong farm.
They utilized the students at Virginia Military Institute (VMI) to fight in the battle.
These boys were only 15 to 18 years old.

A painting of the battle. You can see the Bushong home in the background.
The Bushong family hid in the basement during the battle.

                                               
                                               

WINCHESTER, VA

We spent a lot of time in Winchester. Since we just bought a new truck, we had the bed sprayed and a cover installed for the bed. While this was being completed, we spent the day in Old Town Winchester. Lot's of neat shops and places to eat. 

HARRISONBURG, VA

We have been here several times. We found a great artist guild in the old town area. We bought wonderful deserts in a bakery. We went to a movie here also. They have the big box stores so we had to hit Michael's and Lowe's! On the suggestion of a former co-worker of Tom's we went to Billy Jacks for Beer and Bacon. Yes! It was delicious.

MONTECELLO IN CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA
This is site that should not be missed. Our history with slavery is complex and heart wrenching. Thomas Jefferson added to this conflicting history. He was forever curious about our world and how it works. He loved new innovative discoveries that helped explain and document the world. He wanted to understand everything. He was the author of the Declaration of Independence and the Statue of Virginia for Religious Freedom, third president of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia. His home and gardens reflect his skills as an architect and gardener.  Then there is the contradiction of his words and his actions regarding slavery. He wrote, "All men are created equal .... " and yet he owned slaves right up until his death. Only 4 slaves were freed in his will. It's hard to understand, hard to know what it was like living in that era, very hard to know why he did this and what his rational was. But Monticello certainly has knowledgeable staff and they address this contradiction head on. You can easily spend several days here learning about our history.

These two pictures are of the front of Thomas Jefferson's house; the main entrance.

These two are the back of Thomas Jefferson's house.... the one you see on a nickle.

The garden that supplied most of the food for over 300 people each day.

Yes, Thomas Jefferson was 6'2"!

We have driven Skyline Drive, the scenic drive through the Shenandoah National Park, three times now. We have eaten at the Skyland Cafe and Restaurant and the Open Meadow Cafe. It never gets old and the views are beautiful! Here are a few more pictures. It is late November now and getting very cold. Some were taken on a very cold late afternoon with wind chills below 0 degrees... 

The sun peeking through in some areas.

Only 32 degrees outside with a strong wind.

The Shenandoah Rive down in the valley.

WASHINGTON DC

The best part of living in West Virginia and Virginia was the fact that we were only a couple hours away from Karis. For 7 weeks we were able to visit often. She loves coming to where we are and staying with us. Then for Thanksgiving, she drove out and picked us up and we went to her place in Washington DC for 3 days. We explored some new things together, ate at unique restaurants, made a great Thanksgiving Day meal, went to a movie (Thor), decorated her home for Christmas and enjoyed our time together! 

Eating at P.J.Clarke's! Expensive but yummy!

You can't go to DC without eating breakfast here!

THE NEWSEUM!!
Karis' place of employment! What a great place to work! All about our First Amendment Rights!
Every morning they put the front page of major national newspapers out on display.
A special exhibit right now is "Creating Camelot". It's all about the Kennedy era.
Karis was responsible for all the marketing for the exhibit. 

While we were at the Newseum, we were parked HEREe!! Yes, we could have been arrested!!!

UNITED STATES MARSHAL VEHICLES ONLY!!

The whole Thanksgiving weekend was beautiful! These pictures were taken on a beautiful morning in Washington DC! Although I am not happy with the person in office.... I have great respect for our history and our country. We will get through this and we will become a better nation for ALL people.

I was completely sober when I took this sideways picture!!??

This is a beautiful portrait of our 4 female Supreme Court Justices.
This huge painting hangs in the Portrait Gallery Museum.

Decorating for Christmas

Time to say good bye to Karis. We have loved living so close to her for 7 weeks! But, we will be together again at Christmas time.

Silliness before a tearful goodbye!

We have been traveling for over 3 months now and love it more than ever! We can pick up and go whenever we want... explore wherever we want and rest when we want. It's wonderful! We are learning so much, meeting interesting people and getting to know our country.

And now, we are off again... stay tuned!