Sunday 8/ 31 / 2008

Just a small circle trip today of 110 miles.

Today we toured the Luray Caverns one of the largest systems in the eastern US. We did choose the busiest day of the year for them. Wow there was many people. Still we had a great time. We took many pix which we will post to Picasa but for now, follow the link above to view the professional pix. The caverns are beautiful.

We had lunch at a old local place called Brookside, which is beside a babbling brook. The pork chop sandwich was "out of this world"! They also have cabins you can rent.

After lunch we drove south down the Skyline Drive through the Shenandoah National Park. As their site reads."Gazing across the horizon from the peaks of Shenandoah National Park it’s hard to believe you are just 75 miles from the bustle of our nation’s capital. Take Skyline Drive along the crest of the mountains through the woods and past spectacular vistas. Hike in the shade of oak trees along the Appalachian Trail, discover the stories from Shenandoah’s past, or just relax in the wonder of wilderness."

We did have a great time here. The nice winding drive on a perfect day enjoying the views.
We did view a Black Bear Cub about 2 1/2 feet tall but he scampered off before we could get the camera up to shoot.

We did a hike to the summit of one area called Hawksbill. It was about an hour to the top and about 20 minutes down. Gravity worked with us on the return. LOL. The summit was 4,000 ft.


Here is a view of the trail and trail markers.
On the way Kathy spotted a doe and a buck. She was able to get very close to take some pictures. We will have more on Picasa later but here you can see how close she was able to get.

We also met a very nice couple who were on the trail with there dog, Bradley. They also where able to get close to get some pix. Then we shared stories and since they work in DC, they gave us insight on parking and getting around DC.

Here is one of their pix.
Then we stopped by a local Italian Bistro, ordered a pizza to go and back to the condo.
With all the walking we ate relaxed then crashed.
Let's see what tomorrow brings.....