Manassas National Battlefield Park and Harper's Ferry

Wednesday morning I got up early and drove out to Manassas National Battlefield Park, site of two Civil War battles.

I have never been there before, and I did absolutely no Civil War research; I was primarily interested in walking around and pointing my camera at things.  I started out at a farmhouse near the visitor center, and then walked several miles in a big loop.

The light didn't pan out, but it was a nice walk.  Thursday evening I drove to Harper's Ferry, WV to take in the site above the town.

The hike was only about a mile and half, but it was mostly up.  I wasn't the only one who thought to take in a pretty sunset while overlooking Harper's Ferry, but it wasn't crowded, either. 

Have a great day everybody!

Marc

Autumnal Shenadoah

I have this week off, but my prior plans have fallen through.  So I decided to make the drive this morning to Shenandoah, since a weather app was predicting a solid chance for a pretty sunrise.

Unfortunately, the rain and clouds did not lift in time for a pretty sunrise, but I still got to take in some pretty sites.

The leaf color has been bumped up for our enjoyment - the colors are somewhat lackluster this year.

All in all, it was a very nice drive and well worth the effort.  Have a great day!

Marc

Library of Congress

You may recall from last year that I took the kids to the Library of Congress.  The main reading room is closed to the general public (unless you are conducting research - get a card) except for two days.  The day finally came!

Since the reading room wouldn't open until 10, we were in no rush to get there.  Thankfully, Columbus Day meant that traffic was light, and parking was free.

We arrived just in time to hop in the queue and wait about 5 minutes for admission to the main reading room.

We walked around, checked out a couple of older books laying around.

We even delved into the card catalog room, where Ian wanted to look up Genghis Khan (no idea where that came from - but it did take us a bit further into the bowels of the card catalog room).

We finished up with a nice lunch at Bullfeathers, a local restaurant, and then made our way back home.  All in all, a nice day.  Cheers,

Marc

Hiking and Camping at Dolly Sods

I took Ian and Leah camping and hiking this weekend - just a quick overnighter at Dolly Sods Wilderness Area and the Nature Conservancy's Bear Rocks (abutting the northern end of Dolly Sods).  The park was PACKED!

We got there just after lunch and snagged the last camping sight - which we ended up sharing with another couple who arrived later (because that would really stink to drive all that way and have no place to sleep).  They returned the favor by sharing their campfire with us after we got back.

After setting up our tent, we drove about 4 miles to Bear Rocks, which sits at the very edge of the Allegheny plateau.  Both kids had a great time climbing on the rocks and exploring.

The leaves were just barely past prime, but it was still gorgeous.  It was a warm/hot weekend at home (and muggy), while we got to enjoy low 70's in the sun - perfect!

Looking south towards the sun, the blueberry fields were a gorgeous shade of red.

While looking for where to set up for my sunset photo, the kids found this rock which they said looked like a whale.  They were a ways ahead of me when I heard them say that, and as soon as I saw the rock, I could see the whale-resemblance.  Of course, Ian and Leah just had to climb it!

We brought our backpacks out so we could cook and eat dinner while waiting for the sunset.  Both kids brought a book/entertainment, so they sat with their backs to a rock and just enjoyed the sun and the wind.

It took me several hours to find my sunset composition.  Overall I am happy with the photo - I just wish we had had some clouds for some visual interest.

We stuck around until it got dark - we were going to take a photo of the Milky Way's galactic core setting, but surprisingly some clouds moved in and wrecked any chance of that happening.  The clouds cleared enough for us to see the Milky Way before the moon rose, so that was a treat.

It rained on us this morning, but nothing major.  Fortunately, the weather at home was dry so we could set up the tent and hammock to dry out.

Have a great day everybody!

Marc