Mountains and Wine and Bears... Oh My!

Happy Monday everyone! As usual, I have a lot of catching up to do. Since my last post, we had a visit from the fabulous Ms. Britt O'Brien, celebrated the 1 year anniversary of the Hurriquake, and I participated in the 3rd Annual LivingSocial Olympics. Throw in a few happy hours, a bunch of bike rides for Mr. Smith, a few gym visits for me, and some culinary experimentation {sounds fancier than cooking}... and there you have our last few weeks. Sound exhausting? Little bit.

Since Zeke and I feel like we've been moving at lightning speed with no end in sight, we decided to slow things down a bit and spend a weekend by ourselves. No friends, no phones, no Arlington or DC.   Sound wonderful? It was.

Zeke is training for a ride next month called the GranFondo, a 104 mile loop through the Shenandoah Mountains of Virginia. He rode last year and made it roughly 60 miles... he didn't really know what to expect. This year, he recruited a riding buddy/Cycling sensei Richard "The Body" Canlas and has been really good about training. I'm really proud of him, so when he mentioned there was an organized training ride in Harrisonburg on Saturday, I wanted to be a supportive wifey and said I would tag along with him for the night if he wanted to go.

Harrisonburg is a cute little town about 2 hours South West of Arlington, and is home to James Madison University. A bunch of our friends went to college there, and we're always up for exploring new areas, so I was excited to check it out!

Roooooad trip!

I did a little research and found this cute little B&B in downtown Harrisonburg called the Joshua Wilton House. It had great reviews, so I was pleasantly surprised when we pulled up. It defninitely exceeded all of our expectations! It was built in 1888 and had such a cool historical feel. The rooms were filled with really nice antiques, but it wasn't weird or stuffy.

Of course we felt right at home... we found out it was a fraternity house at one point.

"Quick! Take a pic before I unpack all of my crap and the room is a mess!"

Zeke found a cool farm-to-table restaurant called Local Chop House & Grill, so we made reservations for later that night. You know I'm a sucker for steak, so I was pretty excited!

Cool building, in an old factory.

Watermelon Margarita & Mojito

Everything on the menu is fresh from local farms- pretty cool!

I was particularly excited about dinner... they are known for their steaks. You pick the cut, the rub, and the sauce it's served with. I went with a filet cooked Pittsburgh style, no rub, and the Whiskey Cider Jus. If you're a steak fan at all, I highly suggest you check out the menu here to make your mouth water from the different combos.

One of the best steaks I've ever had... srsly.

And to end the night with a bang....

BACON and salted caramel ice cream.
It was ah-ma-zingggggggg

Nice surprise from housekeeping

I enjoyed a three course breakfast while Zeke was hard at work on the bike. #winning 

Afterwards, we piddled around town and explored the cute downtown area...

I have a weird affinity for doors... aren't they pretty?

Downtown

Enough said.

Farmer's Market
{Pretty proud of this one... going in a frame fo sho}

We realized pretty quickly that like most college towns, there wasn't much else to do besides bar hop, and nothing was open yet, so we loaded up the car and headed back to Arlington.

I'm not sure when the Spontaneity Bug bit Zeke, but we stopped to get gas in New Market, VA off of Highway 81, and he had a genuis idea. There's a beautiful scenic 106 mile detour called Skyline Drive that runs through the Shenandoah National Park, and he suggested that we veer off and enjoy some Virginia mountain scenery. Since we didn't really have plans for the day, I was game!

I'm about to overload you with some scenery pictures, but we had so much fun driving around and soaking up the amazing views! We don't have mountains like this in Texas! {I know... I sound like a total hick. But we don't.} I'm sad that it took us almost 2 years to make it out to this part of the state, but now that we've seen it, we're hooked.

Right after he tricked me and acted like he was falling.
{I was not amused}

Butterfly!

Saw tons of motorcycles 

After we drove the park, we hit Highway 66 and were ready to head home. Until I saw this...

To continue the spontaneous theme of the weekend, we hung a left and decided to check out a vineyard. We figured the views were spectacular, and we were only 45 minutes from home, so what's one more stop??? 

Zeke saw that the grapes were ready for harvest

I pulled over and snapped this pic... another framer!
Pinterest is to cooking what Instagram is to photos.

They offered 6 wines, 3 with pairings.
This was our favorite... plum chutney {we bought 2 jars!} 

We were correct about the view- breathtaking! Live music on the patio... good wine... heaven.
We started thinking to ourselves... do we REALLY need to go home tonight?

A few glasses of wine later, we thumbed through the Virgina Tourism magazine, found the name of the town we were in, and looked in the directory for B&B's in the area. To our surprise, there was only one listed... The Woodward House on Manor Grade.

I called the number, and a nice lady named Joan answered the phone. When I asked if they had resevations, she said "Well honey, we got one room left, you're welcome to come have a look-see". I immediately knew this place would either be wonderful and homey, or backwoods and creepy.

We puled up to this...

A litte mix of both homey and creepy.

Joan was so happy to see us. She took us on a tour of the house, and we didn't know wether we lucked out or were about to be characters in a slasher murder mystery.

She showed us to the room...

Which happens to be my first name! Sweet.

Next, there was a K in the sitting room. Her sister's name is Katherine.
Another coincidence!

Next, here's the bedroom. Cozy... nothing really weird here.

Then she showed us the rest of the place. We walked into the room where breakfast is served...

Ok... maybe a little creepy.

Taxidermied rooster guarding the breakfast room... creepy as well.

Just as I was turning to Zeke to say "Babe, let's get the hell out of here", Joan came back and TOTALLY redeemed herself. She showed us to the bar area which was fully equipped with wine, whiskey, and a full keg of Southern Tier. Unlimited. All night. 

You had me at "unlimited".

We brought our bags in from the car, unpacked, and went downstairs to enjoy some ice cold keg beer. The B&B has 7 rooms, and they were all occupied, so we met a few of the other guests. They were mostly either old couples or hippies. We were the only non-AARP, non granola-making couple. But we met some really nice, down to earth folks. They gave me some great advice on hiking trails, how to get fresh water from a stream, and what to do if you encounter a bear. {You are supposed to clap a lot. True story.}

Later that night, we drove down to the local steak house for some din din {per Joan's recommendation}.

Not too shabby, actually! No food pics, but we left happy with full bellies.

We made it back to the B&B in time for another pint or two... watched the first half of the Texans game... and slept like logs. We woke up to a delightful surprise downstairs... another home cooked breakfast with fresh fruit, muffins, omelets, and oatmeal. I know I say this a lot, but it was one of the best meals I've had!

Fresh butterscotch muffin with walnuts and home made butter. I die.

Farm fresh egg omelette with garden veggies

Homemade flavored sugar and granola for oatmeal

After breakfast, we waddled back to the room, packed up, and hit the road for real this time. Our stay at the Woodward house ended up being a great experience. We equate it to visiting your cooky aunt in the country. She makes you feel at home, makes sure you're well rested and fed, and hugs you when you leave. If you're ever in Front Royal and are looking for an open bar and a comfy bed, give Ms. Joan a call.

We made one last stop at The Apple House for some fresh cinnamon donuts....

I waited outside, there were moose heads inside and it weirded me out.
But the donuts were amazing- thanks for the referral Nick & Janice!

Looking back on the weekend, Zeke and I agree that it's one of our favorites since moving here. We enjoyed the time so much that we're actually going back this weekend for Labor Day! This time, we want to rent a cabin in the National Park, do a little hiking {now that I know how to fight off bears}, and maybe visit the Luray Caverns.

Here's what to look forward to in some upcoming posts:

• Recap from Britt O'Brien's trip
• Labor Day 2012
• Trip to Austin in 2 weeks for Texas State vs. Texas Tech
• Anything else random that happens between now and then

Have a great Labor Day weekend!

Xoxo, 

Mrs. Smith