“Lake Accotink first appeared in 1919, when the Army Corps of Engineers dammed Accotink Creek to create a supply of drinking water for Fort Belvoir, which was then called Fort A. A. Humphreys,” James Fish, Assistant Park Supervisor informed me, recounting the history of Lake Accotink Park in Springfield. “It was created to be 110 acres and 25 feet deep – today it’s about half that size, with shallower depths, due to siltation caused by development.” The Accotink Creek watershed comprises about 51.1 miles, or 12.4% of the county, according to a restoration plan adopted by the county in …
Recently I did an article on the Manassas Gap Railroad for Centreville Patch. My continued curiosity about the subject led me to the Conway Robinson State Forest, off Route 29 near Gainesville. The forest comprises of 444 acres in very close proximity to Manassas National Battlefield Park. As an avid hiker interested in taking a stroll through the woods, the park's 5.1 miles of trails over less-than-rugged terrain offered an appealing invitation to enjoy the week’s mild weather without an extended trip out of town or too much wear-and-tear on the knees. A portion of the trail system …
Sometimes can openers, too, and maybe the occasional flying dutchman, but mostly cannonballs – from the diving board, the side of the pool or even the high dive. Plunging into the water with legs gripped tight, creating a monumental splash that empties the pool and soaks everybody on deck – nothing makes summer more enjoyable. The cannonball is an indulgence, sure – but everybody loves them, especially those sunbathers. “Thanks for cooling us off!” they’ll say, as they leap up and squeal with delight. They may follow that with some choice words about my personal hygiene, but that’s all …
Personally – and yes, I do view this as a weakness on my part – I always tend to associate Patsy Cline with the movie Nell. The 1994 movie featured Jodie Foster as a girl who grew up isolated in the woods, reaching maturity devoid of any human contact while developing her own garbled language. Nell’s big breakthrough in the movie occurs when she forges a connection with kindly country doc Liam Neeson by singing a garbled, unintentionally comical version of “Crazy.” I cannot, to this day, sing that song without lapsing into an imitation of Nell. My wife, however, who is smarter and more …
According to local folklore, on August 10, 1813 the British planned a nighttime attack on St. Michael’s Maryland during the War of 1812. The maritime community made an ideal target, but the residents had received word of the arrival of the British fleet and outsmarted them, putting lanterns in the masts of ships and the tops of trees, causing the British cannons to overshoot their target. That story is likely apocryphal, but it speaks to the rich history and maritime tradition found in St. Michael’s, which has also metamorphosized into an ideal day trip destination for those seeking …
I've never really been a fan of bowling alleys, probably because you have to wear borrowed shoes. I am, however, a fan of free stuff. Summer is now here and many stay-at-home parents or people who work irregular hours, like me, know the horror of suddenly-home-all-the-time kids. You love your kids, sure, but you desperately want to find something for them to do for a little while every day. There are pools and there are parks, but really in the end is there that much to do in Northern Virginia on an average Tuesday afternoon? AMF Bowling Centers, fortunately, are offering free bowling for …
Occoquan could be the greatest little town in the entire Washington metropolitan area. If you stand on the waterfront and use your imagination, you can easily see it as a near perfect retreat, nestled as it is in the river valley, providing a gateway to the Potomac and beyond. It could be spectacularly beautiful. Unfortunately, it has a water reclamation plant at one end, an immense overpass carrying 123 into Woodbridge at the other and, beyond that, another immense overpass for I-95 that carries travelers all up and down the East Coast. It is a great town; charming, quaint and full of …
Ah, Father's Day, the day in which the daily struggle to build a home, make a living, raise the kids and try to instill some sort of character in them is rewarded at last with a greeting card, bottle of after-shave and maybe an ugly tie. It is the one day a year set aside to appreciate somebody who put aside all of the manly aspirations his testosterone-addled brain once thrived on, or at least dreamed about, for the sake of his family. These former alpha-males who buckled down and got serious are usually honored by television commercials that portray them as blithering idiots, helpless …
Finally, they’ve done the disco right. Not that it can really be called disco. Most people have moved past the polyester suits and moderately plasticized funk of the 1970s. When one attends a “disco” nowadays, they are hearing something far different, usually electronic, that’s spun by a DJ who has moved his craft beyond simply, as my old-farted self might prefer, playing the danged song. The beat typically sounds like “doomp doomp doomp doomp” to my 40-year-old ears, but I’m sure it sounds much subtler to those under 30. “Doomp doomp doomp” gives me a headache. I do, however, feel it to …
It's Memorial Day weekend, and that means many of us will hit the beach. By "many," of course, I mean too many. Way too many. Every year when summer starts thousands upon thousands of people in the area cram into their cars and head to the sliver of ocean front communities that run in a line from New Jersey down to the Carolinas. This yearly race for the ocean kicks off each Memorial Day and, for many who make it that first weekend, they'll promptly wonder why on Earth they went. The beaches are quite lovely, but between the crowds and the mayhem, the headaches can quickly overmatch the …
High atop the Blue Ridge Mountains, straddling the border between Loudoun and Clarke County, sits Bears Den Trail Center. Originally a rustic getaway on which a summer home was constructed for a prominent Washington physician and his opera singer wife, Bears Den Trail Center's main lodge was built in 1933. Built to resemble a European castle, complete with turrets and masonry, it sits a short walk from the Appalachian Trail. It serves as a stopping point for thru-hikers or as a destination for those looking to spend a day in the woods. "It was purchased in the 1980s by the Appalachian Trail…
I, personally, have never done the Cross County Trail all the way across the county, though I’m sure somebody out there has. I do know, though, that every time I’ve tried to travel an extended, continuous length of it, I’ve run into a road block somewhere. Currently a portion of the trail that passes beneath the Dulles Toll Road, according to Fairfax County’s website, is closed thanks to construction delays caused by snow. During a recent jog, I also had to dodge traffic crossing Pickett Road in Fairfax thanks to the tunnel being blocked. The Cross County Trail, though, is a marvelous idea…
In 1858, a small village named Tudor Hall sat at the confluence of the Manassas Gap and Orange and Alexandria railroads. The tiny little town was renamed Manassas Junction, and the meeting of these two major rail lines became a principle target for both Union and Confederate forces during the Civil War, causing it to change hands on multiple occasions, which eventually led to the destruction of almost everything. “It wasn’t much of a town before the Civil War,” said Lisa Sievel-Otten, Living History Interpreter at the Manassas Museum. “But afterwards almost everything was destroyed. Soon, …
Starting this Sunday, May 1 the Flying Circus Airshow will get underway in Bealeton, VA, about 1 hour south of Chantilly. It will run each weekend until October. The show has been in operation for almost 40 years, said Joe Callen, principle architect of the extravaganza. “The first show took place back in 1971,” he informed me. “It originally started out as a WWI-style barnstorming show, with Sopwith Camels and other WWI-era biplanes. Over the years we’ve added a lot more WWII aircraft, which are easier to maintain and not as fragile.” While some of the aircraft may have changed, the …
It's springtime, and that means that I will likely spend a good portion of the next few months at Great Falls park. While Great Falls isn't a secret, it does represent the best outdoor recreation to be found anywhere in Fairfax County. I ventured out this past Monday with my 8-year-old daughter and met up with my brother and his two boys, ages 9 and 11, and their beagle, Lakota. It turns out we picked the right day as the river crested that evening well above flood stage. I have seen Great Falls at numerous stages over the years, but never as high or threatening as it appeared that day. …
Wednesday arrived damp, gloomy and very English. For some mysterious reason it gave me an urge to visit an English garden, which eventually led me to visit Oatlands Plantation off Route 15 near Leesburg. “Oatlands was first built in 1804 by George Carter,” said Kirsten Edwards, the Curator of Collections and Education at the site. “He added to it until the 1820s, changing it from a Federalist style to more of a Greek-revivalist style, until he passed it to his widow who managed it through the Civil War years.” The mansion contains numerous architectural features popular at the time, …
I like to think of golf as a metaphor for life; you start with a broad expanse before you, and as you move along, you progressively shoot for a smaller target. Once you've moved into your short game, you're focused exclusively on a tiny cup, and whatever path you may have taken to get to that point, you inevitably end up in the same hole as everybody else. Fortunately, I'm terrible at golf and have a short attention span, so playing with me involves wandering a lot in the high grass before eventually giving up. I arrived at Burke Lake Park early on April 7, a fantastically gorgeous day, …
Ideally, once every spring you should be able to get downtown to walk beneath the cherry blossoms. The scene is breathtaking, and nothing could be more ideal than strolling along the edge of the Tidal Basin with the Jefferson Memorial behind you, enjoying the spring sun while reciting Japanese poetry, trying desperately to impress the exchange student you met two days before on the subway. As the fragrant petals waft slowly around like a dream of falling snow, it’s easy to find yourself drifting far, far away from the cares of the city — until reality sets in. “Mommmmmmmmmmmm! I want some …
I've always been fascinated by the "mountain." From different vantage points in Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William counties you can see it, such as from the Alto Plaza restaurant in Centreville, or from certain points along the Bull Run mountains. It isn't exactly attractive, per se, but it's interesting, since it's quite obviously man-made. It seems completely out of place, and it has about three or four small trees along the top of it. I had to find out what it was, so I spoke with Donna Taylor, one of the owners of Ticonderoga Farms. "It's the dirt from your basement," she informed me…
Tourist traps are cool. Those weird little roadside businesses full of merchandise that no right-thinking person would ever buy were they fully possessed of their senses have always fascinated me and represented one of the great pleasures of hitting the road. For that reason, I always take a moment to browse through the brochure stands at rest areas and motels just to see what kind of creative, capitalistic ventures a particular area has invented. For years I've lived in Virginia, and for years I've wondered about Dinosaur Land. Located in the Shenandoah Valley between Winchester and Front…
