2012 Free Virginia Travel Guide

A family enjoys an overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway

The Virginia Tourism Office is offering a free and updated travel guide for 2012 with new destinations, family favorites, and attractions “that put love at the heart of every Virginia vacation”.

New features this year include vacation ideas for all four seasons, a special section on small towns, scenic drives and a listing of the newest attractions to open in Virginia. 

The guide is full of trip inspirations and travel resources. Visitors can request a free copy of the 2012 Virginia Travel Guide in print or electronic form by going to www.Virginia.org or calling 1-800-VISITVA.

Montpelier Races in Orange County Nov 2011

 Horses race toward the jump!

 Ruth and Ann chumming it up.

 Sara and Grandma Edith taking it all in.

Liz walks the children to get closer to the action.

Fall color grandeur in the Blue Ridge Mountains

Peak fall color has come on fast in higher elevations the past week according to Virtual Blue Ridge, a supporter of the non-profit Blue Ridge Foundation out of Boone, North Carolina, and this weekend may be the best time to see the season’s grandeur in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

The 469-mile Blue Ridge Parkway begins in Virginia at Rockfish Gap on Afton Mountain between Charlottesville and Waynesboro, Virginia, 78 miles from Richmond. Brilliant yellows, oranges, deep scarlets and reds are reported from there south to the Peaks of Otter. Points north in the Shenandoah National Park also offer stunning vistas and there is an online update on fall foliage.

On the parkway south of Roanoke down to the Blue Ridge Music Center the scenery is also in peak color.  Higher elevations like Grandfather Mountain near Boone are past peak but still have beautiful color remaining.

The Virginia Department of Forestry offers weekly updates on its website along with a "Fall Foliage Hotline" at 1-800-424-LOVE (5683) providing the latest in fall color throughout the state from the Atlantic seashore to the Appalachian Mountains. These reports are available through early November.

Virtual Blue Ridge publishes weekly fall color reports online or you can call their fall foliage hotline at 828-298-0398.

Fall foliage reports for Virginia and free maps

The Virginia Department of Forestry begins its fall foliage reports around September 29, 2011. The state agency will provide weekly updates on the progression of fall colors in Virginia.

Typical dates for peak season are mid-October to early November for the western mountainous region, late October to mid-November for the central and piedmont regions, and early to mid November for the eastern regions.

Free Maps

Check out Virginia.org/Fall to find the best places for scenic viewing, when the peak is nearing and other fun activities and getaways to enjoy this season.

Order a Map of Scenic Roads in Virginia to get you on your way to see beautiful Fall foliage. The map comes with a Virginia Travel Guide to help you plan your trip. You'll also receive the supplemental 150th Anniversary Civil War Map of Scenic Roads.

http://www.virginia.org/TravelGuideForm/?guides=SCEN&t=eNewsFall11&eW=1&eNL=scenicmap

 

New Virginia fall travel planning website

The Virginia Tourism Corporation has launched a new fall travel planning website featuring destinations and events where loved ones or loners can celebrate the season.  Visitors looking to take in stunning fall foliage on a scenic drive can use http://www.Virginia.org/fall to plan the perfect trip. 

The new website features interactive mapping using GPS technology so visitors can search by zip code or locality to find the ideal fall experience.  

The wild pony roundup in Chincoteague

Ed Hagaman photo of pony and colt

Tens of thousands of people are flocking to Virginia’s Eastern Shore to watch the wild pony round-up on Assateague Island, held this Wednesday, July 27.

The Chincoteague volunteer fire department rounds up the ponies and herds them across the channel to Chincoteague Island. There some of the foals and yearlings will be auctioned off at their annual carnival before the swim back on Friday.

Made famous by the book and movie “Misty of Chincoteague,” the pony swim and auction began in 1925 when the town needed money to buy fire equipment after some devastating fires. Today it has become a national treasure and is often featured on Good Morning America.

The exact time of the swim isn’t announced more than a day in advance because of tidal conditions - the waters need to be “slack calm” to protect ponies born in the spring and early summer – but it’s generally sometime between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Island Wildlife

In addition to being home to over 300 wild ponies, Assateague Island is famous for its magnificent birds, attracting birding enthusiasts worldwide to this vital resting and feeding grounds. Over 300 species of migratory or resident birds may be seen here.

One way to view the island’s wildlife is by boat – nature tours are available seven days a week between late May and early October. There are also bike and kayak rentals.

Or you can experience the wild ponies, birds, beaches and stunning sunrises and sunsets on foot. Greg Pels, past president of Richmond Camera Club, organizes photography excursions there several times a year. See his slide show of birds and beauty at http://www.examiner.com/day-trips-in-richmond/chincoteague-fire-department-rounds-up-wild-ponies-on-assateague-island.

Assateague Island National Seashore has over 37 miles of unspoiled beach and spans 48,000 acres in Virginia and Maryland.

The Graffiti House in Brandy Station, Virginia

"He smells a Rebel." It was hidden for 130 years, those signatures, drawings and comments by soldiers during the American Civil War. First Confederate and then Union soldiers wrote on the white plaster walls of what was then a pretty new building, using charcoal from the the fireplace as they recuperated from injuries or did admin duty.

Now dubbed the “Graffiti House”, the two-story frame building is a treasure trove of wartime graffiti and it’s open to visitors on weekends year-round. Lying five miles north of Culpeper, Virginia, the house was built around 1858 on the railroad tracks near what was soon to become significant events. The 1863 Battle of Brandy Station for one went down in history as the nation’s largest cavalry engagement with 17,000 of them doing battle leading into the Gettysburg campaign.

Confederates and Federals

Confederates used the building as a hospital for this and other local battles. Then the Federal forces came in and used the building as a headquarters during their winter encampment of 1863-64. Soldiers from both sides left their mark on the walls with inscriptions, signatures, drawings and messages to the other side.

After the war, the graffiti was covered with paint, layers of it over the years, and even wallpaper. It was discovered during a renovation in 1993. The Brandy Station Foundation purchased the property in 2002 and has since turned it into a tourist destination. Brandy Station’s Graffiti House is on the National Registry of Historic Places and is a Virginia Historic Landmark.

The Graffiti House is located at 19484 Brandy Road and is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends -- Friday, Saturday and Sunday from April through October and Friday and Saturday in the colder months. There is an exhibit and gift shop on the first floor and tour guides knowledgeable in the building’s history staff the information center.