Day Five - The Old Dominion State
Join us on our adventure across the Commonwealth of Virginia
Shenandoah National Park
The walk back down
After one of the most beautiful sunsets that any of us had ever seen the night before, we had the luxury of waking up and having one last view of the mighty Appalachian mountains from our incredible campsite. Even though it was still just the morning, packing up all of our gear was very physically taxing. This was due to the infamous heat and humidity that the American South is known for, which had made itself present yet again. Our gear was back in the van after the hike back down, and we prepared ourselves for yet another day of exploration.
A view from the auto road in Virginia
Leaving Shenandoah
After a breakfast that we would quickly become accustomed to for the majority of the trip, pop tarts, we started our day by continuing the drive south through the stunning Appalachian mountains of Virginia.
A view from a roadside stop in Shenandoah National Park.
We still had a decent amount of time left for the day, and we couldn’t make any further progress out West or South, as we had promised Dylan that he would be able to visit his sister who lives in Woodbridge, VA that night. So we figured that we would take the time to do a real hike for the first time on our trip. The hike was on the longer side, and to a series of waterfalls, but unfortunately, our plans would very quickly be forced to change.
Walking down the trail, and making pretty good speed, morale was very high until we had reached the first waterfall. Now, I’m usually the kind of person who can find beauty in almost anything, especially in the natural environment, but this waterfall was incredibly underwhelming. This wasn’t to say that the walk itself wasn’t nice, with thick vegetation, and giant boulders covered in moss. We then asked hikers returning from the other falls if the hike was worth it, to which they had shockingly replied that it, “wasn’t really worth your time.” Now, I’m sure most of the people reading this are aware of how more “nature” oriented people are, so hearing outdoors enthusiasts encouraging us to turn around really gave us more doubt for whether or not the hike was actually “worth it”.
Above is one of the beautiful boulders that we had seen along our hike
Despite the fact that the other hikers mentioned that the views further down the trail weren’t exactly anything spectacular, the humidity and heat were overbearing, and the generally lower morale, we continued on our hike. After advancing forward on our hike by around another mile, maybe more, the weather started to take a turn for the worse. With drops of rain now coming down on us, and all of the other factors that have been laid out before, we finally decided to turn back and head to the car. Now, we sat in the car, cold, wet, and tired, with a burning question, “What do we do now?”
“What do we do now?” was a very good question to ask after the disappointing hike. We couldn’t continue to drive the auto-road and tour the mountains as clouds now sat on top of the mountain range, blocking most viewpoints. We couldn’t drive out of the area with rain, as we had to be back in the DC area by the end of the night, and we didn’t want to waste a day just lying around. Luckily, we had seen that if we headed to the Capitol of the Commonwealth, Richmond, we would avoid the rain. With the first real explosive argument of the trip taking place at a Taco Bell along the way to Richmond, we were all finally excited to get out of the car and do something.
Above is a picture of the four of us from earlier in the day before the hike.
Richmond, VA
Capitol Grounds of the Commonwealth of Virginia
To quickly rehash some history, the first English people to arrive in what is now the United States were in what we now know as Virginia. The “Old Dominion State” would be the one of the largest and most important states throughout the history of the United States, with seven out of the first ten presidents being born in Virginia. In fact, Virginia gave birth to more people who would eventually go on to be president than any other state in the country. So with a history this deep, and this rich, we knew that the state capitol grounds were going to be terrific!
Above is a statue of the heroic figures from American history that were from Virginia, with some famous examples of First President George Washington, Meriwether Lewis from the Lewis & Clark expedition, Third President Thomas Jefferson, etc
Above is an example of the buildings that have been built around the State Capitol, with some incredible architecture.
Above is a monument to the Civil War General, Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. Jackson died in an incident of friendly fire but had left a legacy of standing still in the face of bullets and cannon fire, showing great bravery and standing still like a stone wall. This is why he would later gain the nickname, “Stonewall Jackson” from the soldiers that served under him. A quote from the General below gives us a glimpse into his mind for how he was capable of such bravery on the battlefield.
“[M]y religious belief teaches me to feel as safe in battle as in bed. God has fixed the time for my death. I do not concern myself about that, but to be always ready, no matter when it may overtake me. That is the way all men should live, and then all would be equally brave.” - Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson
Above is a view of the State Capitol building, which was closed to visitors that day due to it being a weekend.
Above is the Governors Mansion of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Above are pictures of the wonderfully manicured State Capitol Gardens.
End of the Day
Out to the Beach, and to visit family members
Our second day in the Commonwealth of Virginia was coming to a close, after exploring everything that we could on the State Capitol grounds, we moved out to the beach before sunset. Now, of course, we didn’t know this before arriving, but after around an hour-long drive to the ocean, the police were closing the beach down before sunset. Apparently, the beach that we were going to had been experiencing rowdy teenagers rioting on weekend nights, so we weren’t allowed to go to the ocean. Somewhat bummed out by this, we got back in the car and prepared for our multi-hour drive back up to the Washington DC metro area to spend the night at the new apartment of Dylan’s sister.
A map of the route that we took through Virginia that day
A map of distance as the crow flies from our furthest point West for now, to our furthest point South for now, to where we ended the night.
Excited for the New Dominion State!
Wow so cool!