Skyline Drive, Shenandoah National Park, VA

  Virginia is a state in which I have traveled extensively through the years.  There are so many places of historical significance, sites of Civil War battles, scenic drives, caves and other attractions that it makes it really difficult to narrow down where you'd like to go when your time is limited.  I narrowed down our choices by deciding that we didn't have time to meander much through the interior of the state or head to the coast.  At some point I would love to take the kids and spend a week visiting Williamsburg, Jamestown, Yorktown, Busch Gardens and locations around Norfolk and Virginia Beach.  This time we really needed to travel more quickly through the state to reach Washington, D.C., so we decided to head up Hwy 81 along the backbone of the state and take a scenic stretch of Skyline Drive along the way. 

  Skyline Drive is a 100 mile stretch of road in Shenandoah National Park.  It starts where the Blue Ridge Parkway ends, and runs along on top of the ridge of the mountains alongside the Appalachian Trail, with an amazing view of the Shenandoah River Valley to one side.  There are four locations where you can enter and exit the drive.  We entered at Swift Run Gap, the second entrance from the south, and exited at the next.  The speed limit along Skyline is 35 MPH, so you can watch the views and the wildlife and pull off at the numerous scenic view stops along the way.  There is an entrance fee, but we purchased a National Parks Pass for our year of travel and so our entrance was free.  

  Just a short distance from our entrance, we came across our first scenic view.  We stopped repeatedly along the way, exploring the various hills, rock walls and trails along the way.  Wildflowers were still blooming along the sides of the road, attracting hundreds of butterflies.  

  The kids found a butterfly that let them hold it for a few moments before it flew away.

  The kids wanted to stop at every opportunity, because there are different rocks and trails to explore, and views off of both sides of the ridge.  

  Bubba the Scientist spotted an interesting sight, as usual -- a Monarch caterpillar chowing down on some Milkweed.  He always finds the bugs.  

  The entire drive is enjoyable, even the stretches where the panoramic vistas of the entire valley are not visible.  It wasn't easy to get a picture while driving, but the tunnels of trees were very majestic.

  We had brought along a picnic lunch in the cooler, so we decided to stop at Big Meadows, right at the midway point of Skyline Drive.  There is a gas station, picnic and camp sites, lodges, a camp store, souvenir shop and a visitor center, but we arrived after the visitor center had closed.  The Appalachian Trail runs very close to the picnic sites, so we decided to have a quick meal and then head down to take a short hike on the Appalachian Trail.  The picnic sites were lovely, and we had a few guests.  

  After checking the map, we headed down the trail from the picnic area and found the AT. 

  There were beautiful ferns growing in abundance along the path, and dozens of different varieties of mushrooms and other fungi.  Is this a photo of fungi or a fun guy?  (Maybe a little of both!)  He saw mushrooms of nearly every color.

  The hike was pretty excruciating for me and for Michael, as we were hitting the second day after our Spartan Race and were brutally sore.  I thought it was a good idea to stretch our legs and work out some of the kinks, but it was somewhat painful!  We kept the hike fairly brief and headed back to the car. 

  

  The last stretch of the drive we were treated to the site of a glorious sunset over the Shenandoah River Valley.  We hated to rush, because the informational signs at the scenic views were really fascinating - details about locations in the valley, Civil War information and maps of where Stonewall Jackson marched his troops through the area, and many other interesting facts.  We hurried along until we found a few more stops to catch the spectacular sunset.  

  So many of the locations we've visited, we can barely drag ourselves away.  There's never enough time to really see everything.  This is one more of those locations that we would love to return and visit again.  Ideally, I'd love to drive in from one end, camp somewhere along the way, explore the trails and relax for a few days, then drive the rest of the route.  (I also plan to tackle the Appalachian Trail at some point in my life, so I'm sure I'll remember this stretch of trail when I do!) 

  Comments, questions or suggestions?  Enter them in the comment field below.  

 

Spartan Race!

  Michael and I discovered Spartan Races a year and a half ago when I was invited to participate on a women's team for a Spartan Sprint in Burnet, Texas.  I had no idea what a Spartan Race was, but when I learned that it involved mud and crazy physical obstacles like climbing a rope, balancing on logs, jumping or climbing over 8' walls, crawling under barbed wire and other fun stuff, I was ready to sign on the dotted line.  Unfortunately, the rest of the women's team decided they didn't have enough time to train, so they all chose not to register.  Our unofficial "team" ended up being me, my husband, Michael and my brother-in-law, Juan. After the first race, we were hooked.  We have been training for one Spartan Race or another for the better part of a year and a half.  This year, after completing the Burnet Sprint for the second time (with much more competitive results!), Michael and I signed up for the Glen Rose Spartan Beast.  A Sprint is between 4 and 8 miles, and a Beast is from 12 to 16 miles.  The mid-distance race is a Spartan Super, which is from 8 to 12 miles.  We learned that if you complete all three of these events in one calendar year, you earn a Trifecta Medal.  Since we were going to have 2 out of 3, we started looking for a Super we could run.  Lo and behold, the Mid-Atlantic Super in Nellysford, Virginia was along a route we were interested in taking with the kids.  Being slightly insane, we signed up for that one, as well.

  We figured out right away it takes a little more logistical planning to run a race out of state.  In addition to transportation and accommodation planning, we also had to think about having everything we might need while on a road trip, and how to transport and clean our muddy gear after the race.  It also was pretty difficult for me to train, as the race was several weeks into a planned road trip with the kids.  Somehow, we managed to figure all of the details, and race day arrived with us feeling relatively prepared.

  The race venue was Wintergreen Ski Resort near Nellysford.  It's up in the Appalachian mountains near the Blue Ridge Parkway.  We went in figuring that there would be some pretty good hills (mountains?) and trail running, so we'd tried to train for that.  The views driving up Hwy 81 in Virginia were stunning, but seeing the mountains made us realize that however much we'd tried to run hills in San Antonio, the mountains of Virginia are a different beast altogether.

  Race day dawned, and we were up not long after 5am to eat breakfast and drive the 30 minutes to the parking for the event.  Then we caught a shuttle bus to take us up the mountain to Wintergreen for registration.  We had decided to go ahead and use our new Nathan Intensity hydration vests (similar to a CamelBak) as a trial run for the upcoming Beast race.  Since the vests have several pockets, we also loaded up with some Honey Stinger gels and waffles, Gatorade chews, a Kind bar, and various other fuel in case we needed it.  We loaded our water and Gatorade mix into the vests in the parking lot before hopping on the shuttle.  (Side note:  I really like the fact that the Nathan brand water bladder opens all the way across the top to make it easy to fill and easy to clean!)

  As our shuttle bus tried to squeeze past another oncoming bus around a turn coming into the resort, the buses clipped one another, and the window two seats in front of us shattered as the back corner of the other  bus slid by.  Safety glass rained down all over the unlucky occupants of that seat.  In good Spartan spirit, several other racers helped them to pick it off of themselves once the bus stopped, but it didn't seem like a particularly good omen to start the day.

  It was a cool morning - only 53 degrees when we arrived, but we warmed up and checked our bags and prepared to start the race.

 We couldn't see much of the course to know what we were in for, but the information Spartan sent out the week before the race said that it would be some steep terrain and straight into the woods at times.  They said that the best times would be around 80 minutes and the slowest would come in around 6 hours.  I figured my last Sprint was over 5 miles in just under an hour and a half, so I was expecting 3 hours for this race, maybe 3.5 if the terrain was really steep.  Michael's heat started 15 minutes before mine, so after seeing him off to the start and heading back up for one last bathroom break before beginning, I saw that race organizers had posted a map of the course.  You could tell at a glance that the course took you up and down every single ski slope at the resort.  That didn't sound great, but it was time for my heat to start and so off I went.

  I could tell a few minutes into the course that it was going to be tough.  They sent us up a steep hill right off the bat, with some walls to hop over for good measure.  By the top of the first hill (mountain), I revised my goal of finishing with a good time to just getting through the course without embarrassing myself.  Through the first couple of miles, I passed about 10 other women.  By about mile 2 I had some very athletic folks from the heats after mine catching me.  I was hanging in there on the uphills and jogging a bit on the downhills when they weren't too steep for the first few miles, and breezed through the obstacles on that part of the course, as well.  Here's an official race photo from the sandbag carry.

  It became apparent early on that there was not going to be any flat ground to run on.  Every time you finished climbing to the top of a steep slope, the course turned sharply and you started back down a steep, muddy and slick slope, or off through the woods where no trails have ever existed, but always on a steep incline going up or down.  This made it impossible to run on the uphills, and created a huge strain on my knees on the downhills.  By about mile 4, my knees were screaming with every downhill step.  When we hit the mile 5 marker, we had just passed a couple of obstacles and started up a steep, long slope.  It was drudgery at that point, with people just trudging slowly along, frequently stopping to sit for a minute or to flop in the grass to catch a breath.  I tried to keep moving as much as possible, just one little step after the next.  When it looked like I was about to crest the hill, the course turned to the right and I could then see that the path continued up an even steeper hill, and I wasn't even halfway to the top.  It was a demoralizing moment, but I took some satisfaction from the fact that most of the people around me looked even more miserable than I felt.  I heard some runners comment at this point that it looked like a herd of zombies staggering and moaning up the hill.  I would love to post photos of this part of the race, but I noticed that none of the race photographers seemed to want to climb up the mountain to get the shot.  Strange, huh?

  The climb from hell turned out to be over 1 mile, pretty much straight up.  At least we had a water station on top of the mountain at mile 6, but that wasn't much consolation since I then had to start down the steep slope where my knees started screaming again with every step.  We climbed from the bottom of the mountain all the way up to where these apartments are pictured.  This was the view of them from the finish area.   The view off the top of that slope was beautiful.  I wish I'd been able to carry a camera to capture it, but not enough to take one and climb that mountain again.

  After coming down the horrible slope, I was feeling pretty depleted.  Then we hit the log carry obstacle.  You had to grab a log from the stack, then head down a ski slope.  And then down some more.  And even more.  You could probably call it torture at that point, since every step had me wincing on the downhill, with the added benefit of knowing eventually you were going to hit the bottom and then loop around and have to carry the heavy log every bit of the way back up to the top.  In a Spartan Race, if you fail an obstacle you must do a 30 burpee penalty before you can continue.  By the time I started back up the hill I was wishing I had just taken the penalty at the top and skipped the whole thing.  I had to pause a few times along the way, but I made it back up in one piece, as did Michael.

  At around this point, another racer with a GPS device mentioned that our elevation climb on the course had exceeded 3500', with more mountains to climb.  I was really grateful that I had carried the hydration vest and fuel, and started having to share some of my snacks with other racers who were trembling and suffering from leg cramps.  It seemed as if the end of the course would never come.  At one point we started into a rocky creek bed and climbed down the mountainside over wet, muddy and unstable rocks.  The thought crossed my mind that if anyone slipped and broke an ankle, the rescue workers would have to climb out the same way we were, and that would be a slow and hazardous proposition.  It's the first time during an obstacle course race where I really felt like they had taken it too far, and I wasn't very happy about the fact that it would be so difficult for help to come if you took a misstep.  I was particularly upset about the fact that the course had been underestimated so badly in the information that came out prior.  I think racers need to know what to expect so they can prepare and make an informed decision about what they are able to endure.  Thankfully, I made it through that section safely, as did the racers around me.  We finally reached the home stretch, which in this case -- Surprise! -- stretched up another long mountain, this time with an inverted wall climb, a rope climb out of muddy water, a climbing wall traverse and an inclined wall with a rope to conquer before the fire jump, the gladiators and the finish line.  I've never been so happy to make it a finish line!

I love Michael's fire jump photo - he looks like he is falling out of the sky.

  When it was all said and done, the fastest finishers ran the race in just under 2 hours, and the slowest were closer to 11.5 hours.  The course was nearly 9 miles long.  Over the two days of the race, over a thousand racers took longer than 6 hours.  That made me feel quite a lot better about my finish in just over 5 hours.  Michael came in at around 4:40.  We both felt a tremendous sense of accomplishment at surviving this course and finishing the race.

  After catching our breath, we headed down to shower off in icy water and clean up for the ride back to the hotel.  We skipped the power wash in lieu of the garden hose variety, but it was entertaining to watch other racers opt for the quick method.

  We're signed up for the Beast in December and another Super next year, but somehow I think that the terrain in Texas will seem quite enjoyable compared to the Virginia mountains.  If we could finish this race, we can finish anything.  (Note to race organizers - that was not a dare!)

  In spite of this race being far more difficult than we - or anyone else - had anticipated, I'm glad we did it.  There's nothing quite like challenging yourself physically beyond what you think you can accomplish, and then rising to the occasion.  It's a feeling that truly motivates you when times are tough.  I wish that everyone would endeavor to experience that feeling.  Your next chance to race with us is December - still plenty of time to train!

 

Oneonta, Alabama

  Oneonta, Alabama is a frequent stop on our travels.  (It's pronounced "On-ee-on-ta".)  My grandmother, whom we have always called "Bambi", has made this area north of Birmingham her home for decades.  It's a small town nestled in the mountains that grew up around a train depot in the late 1800s.  I've heard it said the town was named by a railroad worker who was reminded of his home in Oneonta, New York.  I love the mountains here, and have fond memories of running wild in the woods as a child. 

   This area is known for several old covered bridges.  I had the time to go by the Easley Bridge for a photo.

  Along many of the roads in the area, you'll see acres of kudzu.  This non-native invasive vine was introduced at the turn of the century to prevent erosion, but quickly grew out of control.  It can grow as much as a foot per day, and takes over trees, telephone poles and lines.  It completely obscures the objects as it grows, choking out native plants.  As kids, we called these large unidentified blobs covered in vine "kudzu creatures."  They frequently look like animal shapes.  I found a field with some great "kudzu creatures" while driving up a mountain.  The road is clear because some people live up it above the overgrown property.

 
  After looking at some of the shapes and blobs, we had the startling realization that one of them is actually a house completely buried in the kudzu.  There is a trailer back on the property that is fast becoming obscured, as well.  You can see the shape of the end of the house in the picture below.   It makes you wonder what else is hidden under the vines.

  We encountered this patch of kudzu on the way to Palisades Park, just above Oneonta off of Highway 231.  We played at the park as kids, but it has grown quite a bit through the years and now has some very nice facilities, including pavilions, lodges, gazebos, picnic areas and more.

  This old stump guards the parking lot.

   The park also has a small meditation chapel on the edge of a cliff overlooking the valley.  It's a really serene spot.  Here's the chapel and the view from it.

  There's also a monument to those from this area who fought in the Civil War.

  The views are beautiful, but there are some pretty large (and dangerous!) cliffs and rock formations.  We scrambled on some of the large rock formations years ago, but now there are actually over 90 mapped climbing routes ranging from 5.4 to 5.12 difficulty and some great cliffs for rappelling.  Permits are required to climb, but only cost $2 for a two week pass.  This view shows some of the drop.

This was a spot where I climbed around as a child - I remember scrambling down between the rock and the tree. 

  Bubba explored a few of the paths near the edge of the cliffs, but we didn't bring any climbing gear this trip.  Somehow we'll have to make room for it on our next one!  I was itching to try out some climbs and rappels.  It's a great park, and well worth a visit if you are ever passing through the area. 

  My grandmother, Bambi, runs the Knit Shop in downtown Oneonta.  On Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays her "Knit-wits" gather to knit and socialize.  Many of them work on prayer shawls as part of a ministry at one of the local churches.  To date, they have knitted and donated over 600 shawls.  We always enjoy visiting with these wonderful ladies (and gentlemen!)

  My daughter learned to knit several years ago on a visit to the shop.  Here's a photo of us both knitting at my grandmother's home from a couple of years ago, just after she learned to knit. 

 

We really enjoy visiting the shop and having 4 generations of women in the family in one place.  Here we are:

  While Oneonta may not be a hot spot for tourists, if you you ever find yourself in the area then come on down on a Wednesday, Thursday or Friday and you'd be welcome to take a look at yarn, get a free knitting lesson, or just sit and visit for a while and enjoy the Southern hospitality. 

  Have a great location to visit where you live?  Tell us about in in the comments of the post titled: "Survey - Where should we visit?"