Monday, November 3, 2014

Fall Adventures Part 1

We decided a couple of weeks ago that we wanted to go somewhere to enjoy the beautiful fall colors and scenery in the mountains of Virginia. So, we had heard great things about James River State Park (JRSP), so we booked a cabin and headed out this past weekend for a fun "camping" adventure.

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Located off of Route 60 West, about 2 hours from home, in Buckingham County, this beautiful fairly new Virginia State Park was an easy drive away.

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About 7 miles back from the main road (Route 60) you come to the entrance of the park with friendly faces welcoming you!

Fall Vacation 2014

We were directed to Cabin #18, which was pretty much a small house! Neat, clean, and well appointed with all you might need!

Fall Vacation 2014

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Fall Vacation 2014

Fall Vacation 2014

Fall Vacation 2014

Fall Vacation 2014


This is my extent of "roughing it"! We were excited to get unloaded and hit some of the trails before dark on Friday! Since they were calling for rain on Saturday, we wanted to see the part of the Park that everyone comes for, the Tye River Overlook. We parked at the Visitor's Center and started the hike from there...

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It was a perfect afternoon for a hike and Charlie was ready to go!

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We stopped for a bit to do some leaf catching!

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And, then headed onward...

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The trail leading to the overlook was an easy gravel/grass fire road. When we reached the path to the overlook, we stopped for a pic where one of us was a little less than interested in posing...

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We couldn't wait to see the spot where the James River and the Tye River meet.

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We stopped and read all of the signage...

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And, when we arrived it was like "WOW!"

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There it was...the joining of the two rivers at almost a 90 degree angle...

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It is true that on a clear day you can see forever...

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Truly a beautiful sight to behold!

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Compare the sign with the view! It's right on!

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We stood there for some time taking in the beauty of the view, and then headed back stopping for a few pictures...

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What do you think of Charlie's acorn hat?

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What a good boy!

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We hit the Dixon Landing Overlook Trail on the way back...

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Next, we headed over to the Visitor's Center...

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And took some more pics...

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There was still some time before dark to check out some of the trails nearby (Green Hill Pond, River).

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After the Green Hill Pond we headed over to do some of the River Trail.

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Charlie had to stop and scratch his back.

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The colors were pretty...

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And, even though it was a little chilly, Charlie still had to check out the water!

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He enjoyed seeing the horses! They were everywhere!

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The river was pretty.

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The river trail didn't take us as close to the river as we had hoped, but it was still a nice flat stroll.

It was getting dark so we headed back.

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I couldn't wait to get a campfire going and roast marshmallows!

We had the essentials!

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And, Dynamo got the fire started while Charlie and I snuggled!

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I quit Girl Scouts early on, so I never got to experience the fun campfire and s'mores. I couldn't wait!

We had our fancy meal...

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And, got to work roasting...

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Dynamo was awesome!

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I tended to burn my marshmallows!

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It was a great end to our first day's adventures! Part 2 up next!



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