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UTUMN ARRIVES TODAY, ushering in cooler weather and wanderlust.
Mountainsides splashed with color, crisp apples, sweet cider and fat pumpkins lure travelers to leave subdivisions behind for the joys of the open road.
Many people have favorite destinations for these annual autumn pilgrimages.
Mine is the little village of Thurmont, Md., the adjacent Cunningham State Park and the U.S. Park Service's Catoctin Mountain Park. My family has been going there every fall for a quarter of a century or so.
Thurmont is an easy two-hour drive from Fredericksburg, 14 miles north of Frederick, Md., on U.S. 15. The little town is quaintly historic and has a couple of cozy restaurants. But the real attraction is the two parks with miles of woodsy trails and beautiful views east from the top of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
When you're tired of hiking, you can get back into the car and go a little bit north of Thurmont on U.S. 15 to Catoctin Mountain Orchards, where you'll find every kind of apple in season, cider, Concord grapes and shelves and shelves of jellies, jams and preserves.
Larry and Maggie Jones of Dunnellon, Fla., who used to live in Fredericksburg, wrote to say that Thurmont was their favorite fall trip, too. They liked to go on the second weekend in October, when the little town stages its annual fall festival with craftspeople, food vendors and other attractions. This year's festival is Oct. 14 and 15--see colorfest.org for more information.
Olivia Perry of Bowling Green in Caroline County wrote that her family's favorite trip is to the Graves Mountain Apple Harvest Festival in Syria.
Graves Mountain Lodge is about an hour from Fredericksburg, west of Culpeper.
The festival takes place on two consecutive weekends in October--Oct. 14, 15, 21 and 22 this year.
There is food for sale, bluegrass music to listen to, hayrides to enjoy and apples to pick, among other activities. More information is at gravesmountain.com.
Rick Kirk and his family, who live in Stafford County, combine the Apple Harvest Festival with a jaunt along Skyline Drive ($15 entrance fee per vehicle is good for six days), ending up with dinner at the main lodge at Graves Mountain.
They also enjoy the Chili-Chowder Cook-Off over in Chincoteague. This year's event is scheduled for Oct. 21. Information is available by calling 757/336-3700.
Kirk writes that the northern route to the Eastern Shore, across the bridge at Annapolis, Md., is shorter than the southern route through the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. Chincoteague is 119 miles from Fredericksburg as the crow flies, but 225 by road. Allow four hours to get there.
At the cook-off, expect local wares for sale, music to listen to and, of course, samples of chili and chowder for a fee. Festivalgoers get to vote for their favorites, with much suspense over who's going to win.
Kirk said his family comes home by the southern route, stopping at a seafood restaurant for dinner on the way.
"It's a great day," he said.
With festivals seeming to highlight the favorite-trip narratives, we checked out Virginia's official tourism Web site at virginia.org/fall, and found a humongous list of festivals occurring all over the state for weeks to come.
We picked 10 that piqued our interest and were far enough away to make it an adventure, but close enough to be enjoyed in a day or a weekend.
The Shenandoah Valley Hot Air Balloon & Wine Festival at Historic Long Branch sounds like fun. In addition to balloon rides, there are arts and crafts booths, children's activities, wine tasting and live entertainment. Reservations for balloon rides, which cost $175, must be made in advance.
The festival is in Clarke County, 10 miles east of Winchester, and takes place Oct. 21 and 22.
The cost is $10 per person each day, or $15 for a weekend pass, which is available for advance purchase only.
More information: historiclong branch.com; 540/837-1856.
The October Fall Farm Fest at Sky Meadows State Park is a family-oriented festival that runs each weekend in October and features pumpkin picking, cider squeezing, apple-butter making and getting acquainted with farm animals.
Sky Meadows is right up against the Blue Ridge in Loudoun County, on U.S. 17 just south of its intersection with U.S. 50. Admission to the park is $4 per vehicle.
More information: dcr.virginia .gov/parks/skymeado.htm.
The Third Annual Chocolate and Fine Arts Festival takes place at the Archangel Arts Center in Rochelle, over in Madison County, on Sept. 30. Admission is free, and there's live music, fine art, dance, games and, of course, chocolate.
More information: archangel arts.com; 540/948-5628.
The Walton's Mountain Museum Anniversary Celebration; Mountain Cove Blues Festival; and Fall Harvest Festival and Haunted Wagon Ride are three events that take place in Nelson County on the same day, Oct. 21.
Walton's Mountain Museum is in Schuyler, and the anniversary festivities will have live gospel, country and bluegrass music; food; crafters' booths; hayrides; and more. That event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There is a $6 admission fee. More info: walton museum.org.
At noon, the blues festival strikes up in nearby Lovingston. Sponsored by the James River Blues Society, it features regional blues performers as well as wine tasting and food.
It runs until 5 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults; children under 12 are admitted free. More info: mountaincovevineyards.com.
So after that, you can shuffle on over to the harvest festival and haunted wagon ride that opens at 4 p.m. at James River State Park in Gladstone. It runs until 9 p.m. Kids can make their own hand-dipped candles, paint pumpkins and play games.
There will be a bonfire and the wagon rides, which cost $5 per person. Admission to the park is $3 per vehicle. More info: dcr.vir ginia.gov/parks/jamesriv.htm.
Autumn Peak is about the same distance away, but northwest instead of southwest.
This fall festival takes place at Massanutten Resort on Oct. 14.
In addition to the usual arts and crafts, bands and children's activities, attendees will be able to take the chairlift to Massanutten Peak to view the vistas. Admission is $10 per carload.
Participants are advised to bring lawn chairs or blankets. Coolers, pets and alcoholic beverages need to be left at home. Food and beverages are available for sale at the site. More info: mass resort.com.
The Roanoke Craftsmen's Fall Classic Arts & Crafts Festival is farther down the valley. This crafts show will take place Sept. 29 to Oct. 1 at the Roanoke Civic Center. There will be original designs and work from more than 180 artists and craftspeople from across America.
Admission is $7 for adults, $1.50 for children age 6-12.
More info: gilmoreshows.com/craftsmens_classics_roanoke_ fall.shtml.
Then there's the Blue Ridge Folklife Festival, which takes place Oct. 28 at Ferrum College in Ferrum. This is kind of far away (168 miles), but it's billed as Virginia's largest celebration of authentic regional traditions.
It is sponsored by the Blue Ridge Institute & Museum, and they ought to know what they're doing. The shindig features folk crafts; foodways; working dogs, mules and horses; plus entertainment on three stages. Admission is $9 for adults, $8 for children ages 6-12. More info: blueridge institute.org.
Down in South Boston they're running the Southern Heritage Harvest Festival on Sept. 30. Three continuous entertainment stages plus a scarecrow-making workshop and magic show are among the entertainment options at this street festival.
The Southern Heritage exhibits include woodworking, blacksmithing, honey making, quilting and pottery, along with a number of other crafts.
More info: soboharvestfest .com.
American Indian dancers and the annual Brunswick Stew Cook-Off highlight the "Taste of Brunswick" Festival in Alberta, way down in Brunswick County.
This is where the state and world champion stewmasters are selected--a not-to-be-missed event! It takes place Oct. 14 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
More info: tourbrunswick.org.
The Eastern Shore Birding Festival is just a hop, skip and jump through the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, at Kiptopeke State Park in Cape Charles.
The Eastern Short Chamber of Commerce sponsors what is called one of the best bird-watching events on the East Coast.
Timed to coincide with the migration of many East Coast birds, the festival features workshops, speakers, boat tours and other educational activities.
It takes place Oct. 6-8, and costs $4 per vehicle.
More info: dcr.virginia.gov/parks/kiptopek.htm.
So go, have fun! We'll be snowbound soon enough.
To reach LUCIA ANDERSON:
Email: landerson@freelancestar.com
