Fall Getaways
Fri., Sept. 28, 2007
Summer is over, but that doesn't mean vacation time is at an end. Fall, which began last weekend, is a terrific time to be out and about in the Mid-Atlantic. The heat has abated, the air is brisk and dry and very soon the leaves will begin to change. You can feel a revived pep in your step when you go out of doors. I've put together a variety of fall getaways, several of them incorporating new travel experiences in our region. All of them are designed to help you enjoy our customarily pleasant fall here.
The Adventure Getaway
Go rafting on the new man-made white water rafting course at Deep Creek Lake in western Maryland, which opened earlier this year. You experience rafting that simulates the real thing but in a controlled setting. The one-third-mile course is perched at the top of the mountain at Wisp Ski Resort in McHenry. You climb into a seven-person raft (including guide) and bounce down a course filled with waves and boulders, as if you were on a real river. In a two-hour session, you may take the course five to eight times. A conveyer belt carries you and the raft back to the start. Steel plates beneath the course are raised and lowerd to change the flow, making each descent different. If passengers request it, the guide may even flip the raft. The course remains open Friday/Saturday/Sunday through October. You can opt for a Cascades descent (the easier Class II and III rapids) or the Deep Creek descent (Class III and IV). Minimum age is 7; from age 7 to 9, Cascades descent only. Price: $50 per person. Pre-descent instruction is provided; wet suits available. The descents sold out all summer, so reservations are recommended. Details: 877/300-2724, www.adventuresportscenter.com.
The Wine Connoisseur Getaway
You don't really know wines until you are familiar with Virginia's ever growing number of vineyards. You can choose from more than 100 vineyards. Grape harvest time is ideal for sampling at some of Northern Virginia's top wineries. As of this weekend, most of the white wine grapes have been picked, but the reds should be ripe for harvesting until about mid-October. I send lots of out-of-town guests on this wine drive: Expect to pay about $4 per person to sample up to a half-dozen wines. From Washington, take the scenic route southwest via Orange to Horton Cellars Winery in Gordonsville. The entrance road climbs past vineyards to a castle-like structure, complete with stone tower. Try the Viognier, a dry white. Ten minutes away, Barboursville Vineyards in Barboursville is perched atop a small hill. Its wrap-around colonnade reminds me of an ancient Tuscan monastery. Try the Pinot Grigio, another dry white. Begin your return trip north with a stop at Prince Michel Vineyards in Leon (near Culpepper), which prides itself on its Chardonnay, yet another dry white. Complete your sampling tour at Linden Vineyards in Linden. Its tasting room deck offers a gorgeous Blue Ridge View. Try Linden's dry reds-Cabernet Franc and Merlot. Snack on cheese and sausage on the deck. Details: Virginia Wine Guide, 800/828-4637, www.virginiawines.org.
The Spa/Golf Getaway
In July, the historic Bedford Springs Hotel in Bedford, Pa., originally built in 1806, re-opened after a seven-year, $120-million restoration. Sitting on 2,200 acres, it is now the 216-room Bedford Springs Resort, complete with an 18-hole golf course, large indoor swimming pool filled with mineral spring water, outdoor pool and a 30,000-square-foot spa. In its early years, the hotel drew such luminaries as Daniel Webster and Nathanial Hawthorne. But in the ‘70s it fell on hard times and shut its doors in 1986. A developer later fell in love with it, despite its derelict status, and the hotel is reborn. There is a Georgian look to the structure. Colonnades rise above wrap-around porches lined with rocking chairs that give a great view of the golf course. The spa features whirlpool bath, steam room and a full menu of treatments inspired by the eight mineral springs on the property. Elsewhere, the resort offers trout fishing on the grounds and 25 miles of hiking and bicycling trails in the vicinity. Guests describe the hotel as upscale in look but not at all stuffy. Room rates begin at $224 a night, plus an $18 resort fee. Details: 866/623-8176, www.bedfordspringsresort.com.
The Two-Wheeler Getaway
Are your legs strong enough to pedal you 316 miles from Washington to Pittsburgh? With the debut late last December of the Great Allegheny Passage, you can cover that distance on a continuous traffic-free hiking and bicycling trail. The route begins with the 184.5-mile Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath, which originates in Georgetown and runs to Cumberland, Md. The Great Allegheny Passage, which links seven western Maryland and southwestern Pennsylvania trails, carries the route from Cumberland to McKeesport, Pa., a bedroom suburb of Pittsburgh. An additional 10 miles of trail, to be completed by 2009, will carry the trail a final 10 miles into downtown Pittsburgh. The Passage portion of the route utilizes mostly abandoned rail beds. The entire way is mostly level, with a modest average grade of under two percent. To ride the full length might take a week; to hike it, about two weeks. You will find camp grounds along the C&O Canal portion, and motels and inns dot the route just off the trail. The C&O Canal Towpath is a unit of the National Park Service, 202/653-5190, www.nps.gov. The Passage is a project of the Allegheny Trail Alliance, 888/282-2453, www.atatrail.org. Both provide maps and information about lodging along their respective segments of the trail.
The Romantic Getaway
Head for Keswick Hall at Monticello in Charlottesville, Va. It's where my wife took me to celebrate my birthday (a significant one) in February. A luxury 48-room property operated by the Orient-Express Hotels organization, it is my nominee as the region's most romantic lodging. It is surrounded by well-kept horse farms with acres of green pasture. Looking something like a Tuscan villa (gold in color), it sits atop a small hill overlooking the resort's 660-acre property, which includes an18-hole Arnold Palmer Signature golf course. Snow was on the ground when we stayed there, but we enjoyed walking the course's beautiful rolling hills, dotted with ponds and groves of trees. Alongside the main building is a gorgeous "infinity" swimming pool with the same view, which is now kept heated year-around. A full-service spa with heated indoor pool is located in an adjacent building. Rooms are decorated in European and American antiques. On chilly days, a fire is kept burning in the Great Hall, and guests can read, relax or sip a beverage in several very comfortable public rooms. Fossett's, the main dining room, offers yet more great views of the golf course. It is named for Edith Fossett, Thomas Jefferson's chief cook. She learned the art of French cooking while serving Jefferson in the White House. A pub offers lighter fare. We never left the property during our three-day stay. But Jefferson's Monticello, the University of Virginia and Charlottesville shopping are all nearby. Details: 800/274-5391, www.keswick.com.
