I like the ocean, and I like camping, but I have mistakenly tended to see the two as mutually exclusive.  That’s where Assateague State Park comes in. On the northern tip of a 37-mile barrier island south of Ocean City, Assateague blends campground with ocean in a very pleasing way.   Our visit started in mid-afternoon on a Saturday in May, rain threatening but holding off as we pitched our tent. The real challenge was the wind, which was both strong and steady. So strong and steady, in fact, the tent kept billowing out as we tried to assemble it, and even after we had it together and staked …

So far, all of the destinations I've visited for this column have been on the Virginia side of the Potomac. Perhaps my radius of operations has shrunk, but crossing the Wilson Bridge in particular seems to pose an odd psychological barrier for me these days.  But in my quest for another day trip, I decided to widen the aperture a bit and venture across to the Maryland side. So on a warm-ish Sunday in early April -- while most of  Metropolitan Washington was sardined around the Tidal Basin peeping at cherry blossoms -- we went a few miles south of the Madding Crowd to National Harbor. A self-…

“The number of blogs and websites about this hike attest to its popularity. The number of search and rescue missions each year attest to its danger.” -National Park Service brochure A hike on Old Rag Mountain is neither for the faint of heart nor the faint of physique, which disqualified me on both counts.  But I insisted on hiking this 3,291-foot beast anyway for a number of reasons: because it’s there; because I needed the exercise; and because I needed something to write about for my next Patch article. So, noting the NPS’s disconcerting admonishment above, I was off. With fellow Viennaite…

Virginia’s burgeoning wine industry has drawn the attention of vintners nationally and worldwide.  There are now over 140 wineries in our state, more than 60 of which straddle I-66 north to the Maryland border, and south toward Charlottesville.   Any number of these would make fun, easy day trips from Vienna, but our experience at The Winery at La Grange during Christmas break, last Labor Day weekend, and during several previous trips makes this one a standout. Located in Haymarket on 20 scenic acres near the southern end of Bull Run Mountain, its scenic grounds, beautifully restored manor …

Westmoreland State Park is a forested treasure, a 1,300-acre arboreal oasis on the Potomac, in Montross, Virginia-- about 95 miles southeast of Washington, and about 1,000 miles from Washington's stress and intensity.  Perched on cliffsides overlooking the river, Westmoreland offers hiking, fishing, boating, swimming, tent and cabin camping, and most importantly, it offers chilling. That last offering was especially salient for my wife Laura and me, as on our way down, our Mazda MPV overheated southbound on I-95.  After pulling over to the side of the highway (and thanks to our friends Dave …