beyond the beltway

NYC Wine Bars

In honor of my aunt Cathy, who's hoping I get a weekend away soon for wine-bar hopping in NYC (I hope my husband is reading this), and who also thinks my blog is "terrific," I share with you a useful little summation of wine bars to visit in NYC from Bottlenotes.com.

A Fall Walk at Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve

A Fall Walk at Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve

The spooky origin story of Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve, the blazing fall colors and the fact that there’s a warming tavern meal and a cold beer just around the corner in Leesburg convinced me that there is no better place to take a walk during the stretch between Halloween and Thanksgiving.

Off Season Tubing in Harpers Ferry

Off Season Tubing in Harpers Ferry

As summer draws to a close, it would seem wise to put aside such warm-weather activities. But what I learned from that gorgeous Monday white water tubing with the help of the Harpers Ferry Adventure Center is that there is no better time to go than when no one else is going.

Discover a Charlottesville Swimming Hole

Discover a Charlottesville Swimming Hole

Maybe not everyone gets as excited at labyrinthian adventures through the trees as I do, but when I stumbled upon info about the Blue Hole swimming hole at Sugar Hollow while researching a recent trip to Charlottesville, I got jazzed!