Mount Vernon is the 18th century Georgian-style mansion located on the Potomac River in Virginia just sixteen miles from Washington, DC. The mansion that George Washington called home is situated on a 50 acre plantation which is now a living heritage museum and a national historic landmark. George and Martha […]
Recent Posts
7 Elements of a Good Ghost Tour
Halloween is a time for ghost tours – but these days ghost tours are popular year round. The ghost niche is hot and guided tours that take guests through areas known for paranormal activity and unexplained “events” have never been more popular. As a ghost tour guide and as […]
Andrew McCarthy’s LA Times Article Sells Ireland Short
The LA Times article, In Ireland, Optimism is in the Air, written by Andrew McCarthy suggests that the economic crash has brought the Irish to their knees, and in their humiliation they’ve cast off their arrogant, materialistic attitudes and are returning to the days when they were hospitable and […]
What is a Buyboat Anyway?
The Chesapeake Bay Buy Boat Reunion was held this year (August 3-4, 2012) at Somers Cove Marina in Crisfield, Maryland. What’s a Buy Boat or Buyboat? It’s a boat whose captain would buy a waterman’s catch directly off that waterman’s boat, and then take the catch to one of […]
Bear Lake in the Colorado Rocky Mountains – Step into a Higher Existence
Bear Lake – Rocky Mountain National Park Bear Lake sits at an elevation of nearly 10,000 feet above sea level. It was formed by ice-age glaciers and is surrounded by the jagged peaks of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. The staff at Rocky Mountain National Park have built an easy trail […]
Estes Park, Colorado – A Great Intro to the Rocky Mountains
Coming from Denver, Estes Park is about 65 miles. The hour and a half drive starts out on straight flat highway with the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains rising up out of the western landscape. It’s stunning really. I’ve done this drive once before and have also approached Denver […]
Grand Lake Colorado by Train – California Zephyr hits Granby Station
Cross Country Trip by Rail – Chicago to Granby on the California Zephyr Take the train to visit Colorado and the Rockies. Amtrak’s California Zephyr leaves from Chicago at 2 pm and arrives at Granby station the next morning. Noted as one of the most scenic train rides in […]
The California Zephyr – Traveling First Class in the Windy City
On the second day of our Cross-Country Rail trip, we boarded the California Zephyr in Chicago and set out for one of the most scenic rail experiences in America. But before we arrived in the Windy City, we awoke to the Indiana landscape, with three remaining hours on the Capitol […]
Address to a Haggis
The Travel Hag Campout at Elk Neck State Park was great fun despite the downpour over our pot-luck dinner. Eleven hags and hagmen participated, camping in tents, trailers and cabins at Elk Neck State Park– a 2100 acre, bay-side campground at the headwaters of the Chesapeake Bay. Though the hags […]
Outer Banks – I’m in Love and Worried in the Wake of Irene
As I write this post, the Outer Banks of North Carolina are being pummeled by Hurricane Irene. All those beautiful places we visited as a family just a few short weeks ago are in danger of being damaged or swept away. It is likely that the landscape will shift and […]
Amtrak US Rail Pass – Vacation Alternative to Flying or Driving
Amtrak has a US Rail Pass starting at $459 per adult that allows 8 segments (boarding or disembarking) over 15 days. That’s enough to get you across the USA and back. I’ve been wanting to get the feel of traveling by train, but for years I’ve heard it’s as expensive […]
16 Hags Paddled the Transquaking River – One got Towed
Our last Travel Hag Adventure was July 23rd when 15 hags and their hag-men met the outfitters where the Transquaking River is crossed by Drawbridge Road. Travel hags came from the Eastern Shore, Washington DC and Pennsylvania. About half those who met had little or no kayaking experience and most […]