Oh Shenandoah, I Long To Hear You

Hi there blog!  It's been a couple of weeks but I've been quite busy preparing for Halloween (which you should know by now is my absolute favorite :), and for Angela and Zac's wedding, and also for my trip to Virginia which I am going to tell you all about!  (The rest will have to wait for a later entries namely because I owe you more entries since I have been absent for so long.)  (You should know I have been writing though!  750words.com is my new favorite habit!  You should check it out).  Anyway, in preparation for our trip (and also because it was just time to trade in my dad's truck) my Mom got a new car!  A 2011 Hyundai Tuscon fully loaded.  It is pretty bad ass.  It a built-in touchscreen with XM radio and GPS which I love.  But my favorite feature has to be the double sun roof.  It extends into the back seat so it makes the car feel really sunny and open which if you know anything about me, you should know that I love love love tons of natural light.  Hopefully, though, we never roll it because we would be screwed.

Anyway, we left for Massanutten on Saturday the 23rd.  Massanutten is in the middle of the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia which was gorgeous this time of year.  My Aunt Sandie traded in her timeshare in Texas so that we could go to this resort which was really really beautiful.  I have to say overall, it was a little boring because most of the activities in the valley were geared towards old people (there were a TON of old people btw, which my aunt claimed was only because they were the ones that could afford to go to such a resort). (Being a poor actress who lives with her parents, that does seem like a pretty reasonable explanation to me.)  We got in late Saturday night so we couldn't really see much of the resort or the valley.  But the next morning, I woke up super duper early for the first time in a really long time and this is what I saw.

A Massanutten sunrise

Definitely a beautiful way to see the valley for the first time.  We didn't do much that day other than explore the resort a bit.  In the afternoon, the guys went in search of a sports bar to watch the Steeler game and we gals drove way up the mountain and went for a short hike.  Here's a view of the valley from up on the mountain.

 We took turns leading the hike only stopping if we found a good spot for pictures.  Mom was overly concerned about running into bears most of the time.  But overall the hike was a great way to start off the trip, introducing us to the landscape of the valley colored by the fall foliage.  We hiked til sunset.

Walkway leading to The Chapel

Monday we planned a trip to the Lauray Caverns about an hour away from the resort.  I have to say I have never seen anything like that in my life.  I am not sure that I have the right words to describe the experience of being in the caverns so I will tell you a bit about the tour.  It was my first semi-self guided audio tour which was a bit strange.  You have this individual discovery of the history of the caverns juxtaposed with the shared experience of being led through the caverns - but I don't think I would have had it any other way really.  It was almost like being able to discover the majesty of the formations by yourself with all the comfort and security that comes along with being in a group.  Anyway some highlights of the caverns aside from the awesome formations were the cool, incredibly clean air and a stalag-pipe organ that was engineered to strike different stalagmites and stalactites with small rubber mallets to create different pitches.  The room that the sound filtered into also used to be used for balls and is still often used for weddings.  (It's nicknamed The Chapel.)

However, despite the awesome beauty we found in the caverns, Tuesday proved to be hands down my favorite day of the trip.  We went zip lining which was incredibly enhanced by the beauty of the changing leaves (and not to mention the beauty of our handsome guide, Logan. ;) I'm not going to lie, it was pretty sexy the way he never told me to brake so that I could come flying into the next platform for him to catch me.  Definitely didn't hurt the experience at all. :)  Plus this course had these cool little connection obstacles that you had to do to get to the next zip like a rope bridge and a wooden

Logan clipping Mom off the zip

bridge with missing planks.  No worries though, we were clipped in at all times so there wasn't any danger.  Also, the way you got down from the final platform (which was at least 40' high) you had to helicopter down which is always so much fun (and a bit scary :).  But the highlight had to be having the group sing an early 'happy birthday' to me atop that late platform tower.  With the spectacular view, the excitement of the zip fresh in my blood, and the sweet serenade of people I love (along with a sexy guide), I'd have to say that moment is pretty high up there on my list of favorites. :)

Wednesday was super rainy but despite the less than lovely weather Mom, Aunt Sandie, and I went in search of a winery - we were, after all, in the wine country of Virginia.  We ended up at the Barboursville Ruins and Vineyards about forty minutes away where for just five bucks they let us taste seventeen wines (and some of them twice!:)  Needless to say, it was well worth the trip plus the wine was pretty fantastic.  We each ended up walking out with three bottles each and a serious buzz.

Thursday was our last day.  We spent a good deal of time relaxing and reluctantly packing up.  But before leaving we went go-kart racing and played a round of mini-golf which I won! (Quite possibly the only round of mini-gold I have ever won).  Guess those high school golf lessons paid off.  :)  

  

Forever and ever et awesome trips,

Cara

Favorite Songs of the Road Trip:  

Yankee Bayonet - The Decemberists

Kings and Queens - 30 Seconds to Mars

Miss Murder - AFI

Anna Molly - Incubus

Sway - Voxtrot

View of the golf course and mountain ridge - Massanutten Resort in Virginia