6 National Sites in 1 Day in Virginia!

July 2nd was a busy, busy day but we only traveled about 3 hours distance from Virginia to Maryland.  After going to George Washington Birthplace home the day before, this morning we got up and started out to see 6 national historic sites en route to Maryland.  The only disappointment was that the Robert E. Lee house is under renovation and won't be done until 2020, so that will have to go on the back burner for another time.

Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania is just below Prince William

The first stop was in Fredericksburg to see part of the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park in Virginia.  This is, by far, probably the largest area for sightseeing and impossible to do in a day...even a week!  There are multiple locations in areas such as Fredericksburg, Chatham, Chancellorsville, Wilderness, Spotsylvania Courthouse and Historic Salem Church - each one with a unique story to tell.  There are tours at each location and lasts 3 hours each!  Here's a map of all the locations and an overall map of the entire region.  So, if you decide to do this site, plan on spending at least a week!  The main Visitor Center is there in Fredericksburg with two areas of exhibits as well as a small store in an adjacent building.  There is parking along the back of the building and a 2-spot RV parking area next to the Visitor Center.

This 3D image was quite compelling to me.  So sad.

Next to this Visitor Center is also the Fredericksburg National Cemetery.

After this, we drove to Prince William Forest Park.  I'd never heard of this park before and it's actually one of the oldest parks in the National Park System!  The parks has a few campgrounds and cabins plus an RV Campground on the upper edge of the park on Hwy 234 and Pleasant Road for all the big rigs.  As you can see by the map, it is adjacent to Quantico National Cemetery and next to the National Museum of the Marine Corps.  This park has multiple hiking trails and quite forested trails of peacefulness and calm for being only 25 miles from Washington D.C.  In 1936, it was called Chopawamsic Recreation Area and opened it's door to house children's "relief" camps during the Great Depression by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.  But, in 1948 it was renamed Prince William Forest Park and has welcomed hikers, campers, bikers and nature lovers for decades.  Also, part of the park was used as the CCC - the Civilian Conservations Corps, a program to reduce unemployment and teach job skills. Over 2,000 people enrolled in the CCC and the CCC built the cabins that are there today that housed up to 200 children during the summer months.  These cabins were segregated as boy, girl, black and white cabins.  Camp 1 and 4 were black camps and 2, 3 and 5 were white camps.  Prince William Forest Park is unique, interesting and today serene and delightful.  Also, the Visitor Center is very rustic with a cabin-like feel and the store looks like you stepped back in time.  I really enjoyed our time here and next time we come to northern Virginia, this would be a great place to stay while we enjoy a jaunt around Washington D.C.

Following Prince William Forest Park, we drove to Manassas National Battlefield.  Scott and I went here in 2016, so we just stayed long enough to stamp my National Passport book and move on.  Back in 2015, we did take a tour of the grounds on a VERY hot August day.  Manassas is a historic battlefield where two battles were fought.  Ever hear of Bull Run?  This was the first battle at Manassas on Henry Hill where the Henry House is located and occurred July 1861 at Stone Bridge against Gen McDowell of the Federals vs. Gen's Beauregard and Johnston of the Confederates where the Confederates took the advantage.  On the 2nd Battle of Bull Run, August 1862, Gen's. McClellan and Pope vs. Gen's. Jackson and Lee which again, the Union found defeat.  The second battle much greater than the first.  We saw the tree-lined battle areas and learned all about the devastation of the these battles.  Here is the map of the area.  There is a huge parking lot with places for RV parking along the perimeter and around the bend if none are available as we did.

Photo by Steven Markos

Photo by Outdoor Project

Photo by Wiki Commons

Our next stop was Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts in Vienna, Virginia.  I'd never heard of Wolf Trap before and what it is is a huge stage in the picturesque natural setting on the border of Virginia and Maryland.  It started as a gift to the American people from Catherine Filene Shouse who donated the land and five existing building for the park.  In 1966, Congress accepted the gift and the area was known as Wolf Trap Farm Park.  The Filene Center opened in 1971 and is now a world-class entertainment facility even after two fires.  The property also houses the Children's Theatre-in-the-Woods area.  And, there is also a walking trail through the woods at Wolf Trap that is a 2.5 mile round trip loop.  While there is ample parking above and below - even for RVs - I was surprised at the amount of seating this arena holds and the huge array of daily performers.  Seating is via tiered seats and a sloping green grass.  When I was there, Barenaked Ladies was rehearsing as I was taking photos for their concert that night and nearly every night is a concert in the summer as well as opera.  There are concessions there as well.  I will say that after getting to Wolf Trap on narrow streets, the "Visitor Center" is just a small shack with a shelf for the stamping station and wasn't even open when I got there about 1 pm.  Thank heaven a park employee was cleaning the bathrooms and opened the door for me!  The main thing is the ticket sales counters and the stage - not the National Park.  Here is the park map.

This is the national park stamping center!

This years Opera Schedule

This years concert schedule

This years continued concert schedule

Literally down the street from Wolf Trap before crossing the border into Maryland and this was the George Washington Memorial Parkway and Great Falls Park that sits right on the Potomac River.  From this location, you can access about 30 National monuments and visitor sites over in Maryland and Virginia not including Washington D.C. sites!  This location has a wealth of history!  The George Washington Memorial Parkway is a long drive that runs from Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens past Arlington National Cemetery to Turkey Run Park and into Maryland, a distance of  24.9 miles one way.  Since there are many places to stop along the parkway, we chose the Great Falls Park because it was close to Wolf Trap and because it was a scenic waterfall on the mighty Potomac River and it didn't disappoint.  We took the dogs over to the waterfall and loved the roar of the water as it cascaded over the rocks.  It was breathtakingly beautiful.  At Great Falls Park, there are 6 main trails to hike: Patowmack Canal Trail (2.5 miles), River Trail (3 miles), Old Carriage Road (3.2 miles), Swamp Trail (1.8 miles), Ridge Trail (3 miles) and Matildaville Trail (2.2 miles).  There are also very short .8 mile hikes to the falls from the Visitor Center and also trails for bikes, horses and hiking in other close locations. Due to the strong currents of the Potomac at this location, DO NOT get into the water!  However, at Great Falls Park, they do offer Kayak tours and instruction.  There is also rock climbing, whitewater boating, horseback riding and guided programs at this location.  Also at the Visitor Center is a concessions building for food and drink as well as a small gift shop and exhibit area.  There is a very large parking lot that can access even the largest of rigs but it's a little difficult to get out of the park, but doable.  We really enjoyed our time here and our lunch.  Here's the park map.

This is the length of the Geo Washington Pkwy

All of the parks we went to today were amazing and highly recommended.  Again, I'd park the rig close by at a campsite or RV Park and experience these things more easily via vehicle than rig.  The roads are quite narrow and would probably be more enjoyable sightseeing via auto or truck.