Day 2.58: McGaheysville, VA to Harpers Ferry, WV

We woke up after a great night’s sleep in the bed from the 1700s, got ready, and went downstairs to enjoy a wonderful breakfast. Abe had been asked the night before if he wanted tea or hot chocolate on the stove as an alternative to coffee, and was pleased to have selected the stovetop hot chocolate, which was delightful. Arielle enjoyed her coffee, and we both liked the bowl of fruit and two waffles that were freshly prepared for us. We got a tour of the bed and breakfast from Jordan and were impressed by the age of the place and all the history there. As we loaded up our car, we were amused by the sight of a number of cows right by it.

We drove into Shenandoah National Park and headed to the South River Falls Trailhead, where we hiked down to a waterfall. It was a long downward trip in forty-degree weather, and the way back up was intense, prompting Arielle to want to give up. Fortunately, we did make it back up and then enjoyed our leftover pasta from the night before as a reward for our hard work. We stopped at a few overlooks along the remainder of the relatively lengthy forty-mile drive that seemed to take forever due to the 35mph speed limit and the windy nature of the roads.

The most exciting part was that we saw a bear and her cub! Don’t take our word for it – watch the video below!

Finally, we exited the park and drove about half an hour before crossing a major milestone. We entered West Virginia, which is officially Abe’s forty-eighth state and Arielle’s forty-fifth. We were about ten minutes away from our hotel when Abe decided to make an unscheduled stop at A & W to get his beloved Root Beer Freeze. We saw a sign inside that floats were $2 for any size, and despite some repeated miscommunication with the cashier, we both ended up with the largest size of a Coke Float and Root Beer Freeze, both of which were very good.

We drove about ten minutes to the Clarion Inn Harpers Ferry – Charles Town, which was just off the main road. The man who checked us in at the front desk was very social and kept us there chatting for a long time, though we did get a number of helpful recommendations. Rather than go out, Arielle opted to finish her Coke Float and have the leftover garlic bread and marinara sauce from the restaurant the night before. Abe ordered takeout from the restaurant we had planned to go to, the White Horse Tavern, which happened to be located inside the hotel. They even gave him a steak knife and a real plate for his steak with French fries and broccoli since he could just leave it in the room after. We watched some TV in the room while eating and then went outside to sit in the car while watching the sunset.

We thought about going down to the pool later but decided not to since there wasn’t a hot tub and it just wasn’t that all that appealing. We went to sleep, making this a relatively early night compared to others.

Approximate number of miles covered: 121