Author: mchazen

The drive was an easy cruise down the interstate and along the Pennsylvania Turnpike.  Finding the campground was somewhat of a challenge, but we eventually got pointed in the right direction.

The countryside changed again to mostly rolling hills, farms and wooded areas.  The pine trees are gone and we are now in the land of leafy, tall trees.  The farms and towns remind Jeanne of Eiterfeld, Germany.  Clearly, every square inch of property is tended in some fashion.  This is Amish country and the communities seem prosperous.  There really are horse-drawn buggies on the roads here, which is challenging for motorists.  On the one hand, you need to get around these “Farm Vehicles”, but on the other hand, you don’t want to frighten the horses.  On the hilly roads, the buggies seem to appear out of nowhere.

The campground is far from the Turnpike accessible by small country roads and is mostly situated on hillsides.  We pulled in, hooked up, kicked back and planned the next few days.

This was the last day at the “Farm” and we stayed at the coach to catch up on domestic chores and prepare to move on.

Picture of coach at the "Farm" in Haymarket, Virginia.

One of seven fishing holes on the farm.

View of grazing area and alfalfa fields.

Another view of open fields at the farm.

After sunset, we went for a walk.  It was a pleasant, warm night.  We sat on a flat rock overlooking one of the alfalfa fields and watched the fireflies.  It was quite a show.  Waves of fireflies would rise out of the alfalfa, tens of thousands of them, then slowly settle back into the field.  We would wait a few minutes and the show would start all over again.  It was mesmerizing.

This really is a nice spot and I hope the family decides to keep the property as a working farm.

Contemporary note:  When Jeanne and I reminisce about the trip, we usually include the special firefly night in Virginia.  It was a memorable moment in time that will be ours forever.

We caught a break in the weather and the morning air was cool, dry and crisp.  The workout was easier than normal and we both could have run forever.  I also suspect the old farmer was not alarmed by the Pilates this time.  Anyway, after our workout, we set out for our last day in Washington, DC.

Since we started later in the day, we only had time for the Renwick Gallery of American Art and the Phillips Collection.  Both were very interesting.  The Renwick had some excellent examples of American arts and crafts that we enjoyed very much.  Time slipped by and we soon had to return to the coach.

Upon return, we prepared an excellent dinner of fried catfish and watched a movie.

Contemporary note:  For readers wondering how we moved around the Washington DC area, there was a Metro station not far from the Haymarket campground. At that time, the station was literally the end of the line.  We left the Jeep at the parking garage and blended in with the rest of the commuters.  It worked out well and the ride gave us time to reflect on the day’s activities.

This was the day we were waiting for!  Finally, the NRA National Firearms Museum!

Buffalo rifles at NRA National Firearms Museum. Ed, this is for you.

Rifle captured and modified by Indians.

This is from the what-were-they-thinking exhibit.

Historic 4-Bore Elephant Rifle carried by Stanley on his search for Dr. Livingston in Africa.

Marty at National Firearms Museum.

The exhibits at the NFM are organized in a way that takes the visitor through the history of firearms, from the invention of gunpowder to modern arms.  Each phase of development is highlighted with period exhibits.  The firearms and related artifacts were genuine and at one time had been in actual use for their intended purpose.  It is hard to describe the number of firearms on display, which has to be in the thousands.  Many of the artifacts have been donated or are on loan from private collections.  Thankfully, the NFM provides computer terminals where visitors can inquire on any item of interest.  The system is efficient and informative.

The museum is fascinating and we spent most of the day there.  The artistry of the presentation pieces was astonishing.  Equally interesting was the what-were-they-thinking exhibit that included great ideas that didn’t quite work out as planned.  We lusted after the shotguns, where are our special weakness.  There is even a complete old-time shooting gallery restored to its original condition.

If you are in the Washington, DC area and have any interest in firearms, this is a must-see.

The plan for the day was to take a break from sightseeing and run some errands.

Jeanne’s knee was bothering her and she decided to skip the workout.  The old (and I mean really old) farmer that owns the property was cleaning the pool when I showed up with my box of weights and Pilates mat.  He could relate to the weights but wasn’t too sure about the Pilates.  He probably thought I was some nut-case from California.  Anyway, the weather turned warm again and the run was challenging in the heavy morning air.  After three gallons of sweat I returned the coach and prepared for the rest of the day.

We went to Fairfax for a meeting and had lunch afterwards.  In the afternoon, we returned to the coach to hang out and enjoy the campground.

The past two days were spent in Washington DC visiting museums and memorials.  The venues included the Museum of American History, the Textile Museum, White House, Capital, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, the new WWII Memorial, Korean War Memorial, Viet Nam Memorial and the old Air and Space Museum.  We also visited many other sites and probably walked twenty miles.  Although books can be written about each site, I would like to briefly discuss just a few:

Picture of Capital Building taken on an overcast day.

Jeanne with Washington Memorial in background.

Jeanne and Marty in front of White House.

Wide view of Pacific side of World War II memorial.

Jeanne in front of bronze reliefs at WWII memorial. The series of reliefs tell story of war from mobilization to homecoming.

Dedication of CBI (China-Burma-India) theater of war.

Closeup of Pacific side of memorial.

Closeup of Atlantic side of memorial.

Lincoln memorial.

View of reflecting pond looking from Lincoln to Washington memorials. The WWII memorial is in the center and hardy noticable.

Korean War memorial.

V2 rocket at Natinal Air and Space Museum.

V1 rocket suspended in flight.

X-15 suspended in flight.

Jeanne in front of Spirit of St. Louis.

Japanese Zero in flight at Air and Space Museum.

The WWII memorial was recently dedicated and positioned between the Lincoln and Washington memorials.  The site is quite large, but was cleverly designed so that it blends in with the reflecting pool and the rest of the mall.  A large fountain separates the Pacific and Atlantic sections of the memorial.  All the States and Territories are represented as are each of the major war theaters and battles.  A quiet reflecting pool memorializes the Americans who died.  There are a series of Bronze reliefs depicting the conflict from mobilization through victory.  If you are ever in Washington, I would encourage you to visit this site.

We noticed a distinct change at the Air and Space Museum.  On our last visit, the WWII aircraft exhibits were the biggest draw.  This time there was much more interest in the space exhibits, especially by the younger people.  There was also a large exhibit focused on the relationship between computers and the space program.

On a lark, we visited a museum on Jewish military history.  Before arriving we truly wondered what we would find: David’s Sling?  The Staff of Moses?  Sampson’s hair and scissors?  The wall of Jericho?  It was none of these.  What we did find was stories of Jewish WWII veterans and their war experience.  Many of the stories were Jewish immigrants that escaped from Europe before the war only to return as part of the American forces.  The stories were compelling and I realized that my father was part of this story even though he served in CBI (China-Burma-India).

This was also our first visit to the Korean War Memorial.  It was very well done.  There is a subtlety to the memorial and it is one of those things that takes time to appreciate.  If you visit the memorial, take your time and be sure to notice the troops are fighting uphill.  I took some pictures, but they do not do justice to the site.

We stumbled into the coin collection at the Museum of American History.  The exhibit included coins that were used as long ago as 400 B.C.  You realize that the ancients weren’t very different from us in a commercial sense — the idea of a profit margin is very old.  And, there probably was a need for skilled accountants.

We visited a textile museum not far from Embassy Row.  There were fine examples from all over the world, both old and contemporary.  Jeanne enjoyed this very much and the displays gave her some very good ideas for future projects.

We woke early and did our workout, taking advantage of the many paths running through the farm.  The hills were challenging.  After a quick breakfast, we headed for the new Air and Space Museum located at the Dulles airport.

This part of the Air and Space Museum was recently built and includes a beautiful building (hanger size) where larger aircraft can be displayed.  On display were several rare and one-of-a-kind aircraft that had been in storage due to lack of display space.  Of particular interest were the many WWII artifacts, including the Enola Gay.  I would encourage the reader to view the photos associated with this day.  We spent most of the day there and came away really impressed.  This is a must-see for anyone interested in aviation.

After the museum, we ran some errands before returning to the coach to plan the next few days.

P-40 Warhawk, fully restored and in flight!

P-47 Thunderbolt ready for takeoff!

Arado 234 developed by Germany during WWII, which was the first operational jet bomber. This is the last one in existence.

Folding Japanese plane launched from submarine. Only one in existence.

Japanese suicide flying bomb. Take this on a one-way trip. A bad idea that didn't work out.

British Hurricane fully restored.

View of Hurricane from balcony.

Glider made from kit in the 1930s.

Rocket belt. This thing really does work!

Jeanne in rocket belt.

This is French. Looks like a good idea, but doesn't quite work.

SR-71 that set speed record between Los Angles and Washington. Flight took a little over one hour.

Skunk Works logo on SR-71.

Enola Gay, fully restored. This plane dropped atom bomb on Japan.

Top view of Enola Gay.

We got up later than usual and prepared the coach, which included a plan to get out of a really tight campsite.  After careful guiding by Jeanne, the coach was free and we immediately headed to a local fuel depot.  It was a good thing; the drive was longer than expected.

The trip took us through some beautiful country that was fought over during the Revolutionary and Civil Wars; many of the town names were familiar.  Our destination was a campground outside of Haymarket, Virginia, a small town along I-66 not far from Washington, DC.

The Haymarket campground is part of a working farm on rolling hills.  The campsite is surrounded by alfalfa, corn and woods.  The farm has four ponds for fishing that I’ll try later in the week.  This is a cool place and I’m sure we’ll enjoy staying here.

The weather changed and the morning greeted us with a cool, dry breeze.  How refreshing to do our workout in cool, dry air!  It was as if we could run forever!

The campground is located on hilly ground and is a much larger than we expected.  The gravel paths that wind through the campground (and around a 25 acre lake) are perfect for running.  This was the first time we ran in hilly country and happily found that we were up the the challenge.

Marty getting ready to catch the big ones at the Louisa campground lake.

Marty fishing at 25 acre campground lake on a perfect day.

Panfish! First catch of the day!

Another panfish!

And another! O.K., that's it for one day.

The weather was so nice, we decided to stay at the campground and enjoy the day.  After our workout and a late breakfast, we read, fished and lazed about.  Late in the afternoon, we began to prepare the coach for our next move.  However, maneuvering the coach into our current campsite was a challenge — I have no idea how we’re going to get out!

The past three days were a whirlwind of visits to historical sights.

The first two days were entirely devoted to visiting the Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Wilderness and Chancellorsville battlefields.  Although a few pictures were taken at Spotsylvania (and posted), a small camera can’t capture the look and feel of the battlefields.

It was eye-opening to view the lay of the land, see where the troops were deployed, where they maneuvered and where they attacked.   We frequently followed walking trails laid out by the Park Service that mostly paralleled miles of trenches and earthworks.  We could only imagine what it was like to have tens of thousands of troops camped on these hills and engaged in desperate battles.  Walking over the same ground gives you an idea of the scale of the events and makes it very personal.  I will think of these battle sites often and use the experience to help keep things in perspective.

Part of battlefield and earthworks at Spotsylvania. This is typical of the type of country at the battlefield sites and a snapshot does not do justice to the venue.

Another battlefield picture from Spotsylvania showing the terrain around the Bloody Triangle battle site.

Jeanne enjoying the gardens at Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson.

Well known view of the Jefferson home at Monticello.

Top of grave site marker for Thomas Jefferson.

Bottom of Jefferson marker.

On the third day we wanted to limit our travel so we visited Thomas Jefferson’s estate at Monticello, which was our second visit to the site.  Before taking the tour of the home and grounds, we spent time at the Visitor Center to enjoy excellent background material on Thomas Jefferson and the estate.  Especially interesting were the many artifacts.  Although the tour of the house and grounds was a repeat, we enjoyed it and took our time walking though the gardens and around the house.