Virginia

Why did the dinosaur cross the road? We may never know...

There is a lot of history in the state of Virginia, but it is hard to soak that up if you are flying down the highway. So I recommend finding a secondary roadway and exploring a little bit. If you don’t, you might miss that cave woman in Glascow (which may even be decorated for a holiday – who knows?!) or see Stone Henge? No, not Stone Henge! It’s actually Foam Henge.

Yep, FoamHenge! The things you see in Virginia!

This particular one we stopped at had a wood burning stove and checkers at the entrance.

And we were happy to come across the old-fashioned general stores (still going strong in most little communities). One we visited (the town name escapes me at the moment!) had a little wood stove in the store and had chairs in front with a checker board for folks to play. Most times you can’t even find a bench at Walmart! There are also plenty of antique stores and malls to stop at. I think we stopped at more of them in Virginia than any other state we’ve been in. Although we try not to stop at ones with cafes…

Mountains are a-plenty in Virginia and that means there are plenty of cavern tours! Yet they can have a pricey admission cost. So if you are planning to visit an area, check out the local caverns website and see if they have any specials. Some of the larger caverns have joined with local attractions with “combined” or “multi” admission tickets. For a few dollars more, you may save money on a few attractions. I know they did that when we visited Natural Bridge Caverns and a few others sites.

Natural Bridge is a popular attraction for families.

Don’t forget to soak up some history…

Don't forget the history! Spend a day at Appomattox Court House.

We also discovered Route 11 Potato Chips in Mount Jackson. You can watch them make their kettle chips, try some samples and even purchase a box (yes, a box… and yes, yes, we did!) of chips.

Route 11 tour with free samples... just watch out for the crab-flavored ones!!!

No free samples at the Walton's Mountain Museum! And yes, that is the Recipe Machine.

For some reason I’m hungry…. well, I guess you get the picture! A lot to see and do in Virginia – so if you plan to head that way, don’t be afraid to stray from the highway! Okay… well, maybe be a little afraid!