Hallowed Ground Tour 2012-2013-2014: 2014

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This is an online journal of our travels through approximately 175 miles of "Hallowed Ground" in our beautiful Mid-Atlantic region, beginning in Gettysburg PA, traveling south to Charlottesville VA. We are following the route suggested in the book The Journey Through Hallowed Ground by David Edwin Lilliard (The Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership, 2006). We plan to visit all of the stops along the route through the course of this year. Please stop by [often] to see where we have been lately!

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Where will it end??? (And other fascinating memories...)

I had planned to finish this tour in 2012... but now (in the beginning of 2014) we have yet to reach Charlottesville. I guess I'll just have to keep on touring. Culpeper is 70 miles south of my home in Charles Town. Charlottesville is 46 miles past there, about another hour. We are now on the third leg of the trip, nearing the end of the Journey Through Hallowed Ground. There is still so much to see along the way! We have done some backtracking recently. Here are some highpoints:

The Bull Run Festival of Lights (Centreville VA, 2013).

Tour of the Utz Potato Chip Factory (Hanover PA, near Gettysburg, Nov 2013)

Tour of Old Town Harpers Ferry (WV, Oct 2013). Close to home and always interesting, even during a government shutdown.

8th Trip, continued: Culpeper VA

Same day, Friday December 26, 2013: Farther down Route 15 we arrived in Culpeper. I have passed this town many times over the bypasses but had never stopped to visit. On South Main Street, we took the tour of the Museum of Culpeper History. This quaint town was prized by both sides during the Civil War, and it's easy to see why. Culpeper stands midway between Washington DC and Richmond, VA. It was a well-established town in the 1860s and continues to this day. The museum had displays from very early (eg. prehistoric) days, through colonial times and the Civil War and continuing to today. We were pleasantly surprised to see old Main Street with its quaint variety of interesting shops featuring fine Virginia products. Virginia wine abounds in Culpeper. We shopped in The Culpeper Cheese Company (E. Davis Street) . Eddie and Alison enjoyed a glass of good Virginia beer there. We also strolled through antique shops on the same street. There are several blocks of good local shopping. The Trip Advisor app is really helpful finding food and attractions in unfamiliar towns. After this pleasant afernoon, we returned home on VA 522 rather than 15. As always, I marvel over the excellent roadway system in Virginia. These scenic historic roads are still in excellent repair and will take us anywhere efficiently.