We have officially started our first assignment together and so far are loving it! Our job is in Charlottesville, VA, home of the University of Virginia which was designed by Thomas Jefferson along with his Monticello, an iconic and historical plantation. There is a lot of history here, not only because of Thomas Jefferson, but Virginia is also where 8 presidents were born.
History to some draws them in, but for Aaron and I, we have been enjoying the all the outdoor activities this area has to offer. Have you heard of the Appalachian Trail? Well, it is a trail that goes from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine (or the other way around) that some people hike portions over time or hike the entire thing in one... yes it takes a long time. The people who have hiked this, I give so much credit to. That is just amazing! Anyway, Virginia has the most miles of any state bringing it to 544 miles! We live in Waynesboro, about 30 minutes west of Charlottesville and are nestled right in the middle of the Blue Ridge Parkway and Shenandoah National Park, both of which the Appalachian trail goes through. So yes, there is a ton of hiking right at our fingertips!
Waynesboro is a cute little city with little shops and restaurants on Main Street that we have been enjoying. One of our favorite places is the Green Leaf Grill. They have a great menu and we have never had a bad meal here!
We also ordered pizza to go from Benny Stivale's. Only 2 slices each though... One pizza would take up our kitchen.
There also a coffee shop, Farmhaus Coffee Co., that is so close to our apartment I'll probably go through few of their punch cards while I'm here!
Basic City Beer and Blue Toad Cider Company have been two of our favorite places as well. At Blue Toad, you can't go wrong with any of their ciders! At Basic City they have a huge arcade room and corn hole. They also have a giant projection screen for football games and Hops Kitchen is connected to it and they have great local crafty foods.
Seven Arrows Brewing Company is just down the road from us as well. They have great deals on Sunday's where a select beer is $5 to fill your growler. So Aaron and I got a flight and figured out what beers we like so we can enjoy their $5 deal!
We went for our hospital test drive to find that the hospital is practically in the middle of the college campus. There are students walking around everywhere and parking is horrible! We did find this little market where we bought some yummy cheese for our wine nights.
Then we went to Hardywood Pilot Brewery & Taproom for a couple beers and snacks.
Of course we have checked out some hiking as well. Our first hike here was Humpback Rocks Recreation Area. It's a 1.7 mile hike in the Blue Ridge Mountains that climbs a pretty steep grade making your heart race and body sweat in the almost 1 mile up. It is a pretty populated trail since it is short and fun, many people go with their children so it's not the best place if you're looking for a quiet hike. The views are beautiful though!
Another day we went to Turk Mountain which is in Shenandoah National Park. We went to the gate to find that for one day it is $30 a day. The smartest thing to do is buy an Annual Pass for $80. You'll then have access to ALL national parks for 1 year. There's also a Shenandoah National Park pass that's $55 if you don't plan to visit other parks, either way, you'll save money doing that rather than paying for one day. The trail for Turk Mountain is across from the parking lot. If you take the trail that goes off the parking lot you'll find yourself hiking the Appalachian Trail...well we did that for 1.5 miles. It was a nice trail, but not what we intended to do. Turk Mountain is an out and back trail that totals almost 3 miles...so our day ended up being 6 miles due to our wrong turn. Thankfully, Turk Mountain, I'd say, is an easy trail. It does climb elevation quickly at times, but it's not too difficult. At the top we had to deal with some loud chatty hikers, so we ate our snacks and headed back down.
Just down the road from us is Riverside Park and there are trails to go running or walking in.
Another wonderful thing we have been doing is visiting the wineries and distilleries! Who knew there were so many in Virginia? Ironically the road most of them are on is named 151 and it is only 15 minutes from our apartment. The first place we went to was Veritas which was beautiful! We were not thrilled with their wine, but you got a free glass with your tasting.
Then we went to Flying Fox Vineyard that is a sister winery to Veritas. Flying Fox is probably our favorite so far due to their phenomenal vermouth! I never thought those words would come out of my mouth, but it is amazing. If you're a wine drinker, I think you'd love it too!
Silverback Distillery was our next stop and we really enjoyed their fresh mixed drinks. The people working there are really friendly as well.
When my dad was flying in, Aaron and I went to Barren Ridge Vineyards where we met the nicest people and the owner Shelby was hilarious! On Friday's they have music that is free besides the 3rd Friday of the month where they host bigger bands and they have what they call "Sunsets at the Vineyard".
Virginia so far has been awesome! We had no idea there was so much to do or how beautiful this state is. Look for more posts on what we have been up to!
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