Living on the East Coast we are surrounded by historical cities, landmarks, battle sites etc. It can kind of be overwhelming sometimes, and with all the awesome stuff there is, there are a lot of lame things too. Sometimes you will hear about this awesome place and you go and it is a foundation and a plaque. Oh that was definitely worth the hour and a half drive (said in the most sarcastic voice possible)! Well Harper's Ferry was worth it! Plus it was free! With only a 45 minute drive ahead of us we were on our way!
Before we went to old town Harper's Ferry we decided to take a little detour to a flea market!
I had heard about this flea market before and we had high hopes that we would find some cool stuff. Then we showed up and those hopes were dashed to pieces. There was a lot of junk. Unless you wanted hunting equipment or tools, which seemed to be good quality, everything else could have been put in one large pile and burned. Holli would tell you it was ok, but don't let her trick you, it was super lame.
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| She did find this little sewing machine, but it was broken, so burn it with the rest of the junk. The guy at this booth was really nice and loved Charly! So we will spare him from the junk burning. |
We found a couple of things that I think were a little pricey for what they were and went on our way.
Harper's Ferry has a lot of history behind it. It is nestled in the hills of West Virginia and is right where the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers meet. It used those rivers to it's advantage and became one of the more industrious towns in America. With the power of the rivers and the abundance of metals and natural resources it began producing a lot of weapons. With that and it's proximity to DC it was the second largest Armory to the US. It was also the location of John Brown's raid that was a catalyst to the Civil War. It was captured multiple times by both sides during the war. It also played an important role in helping Lewis and Clark along their way. A lot of neat stuff to see!
We started off by having a picnic by the river where apparently I could not stop squinting. After lunch we headed into town!
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| The main drag when you first come into town |
There are a lot of cool museums and little shops a long the way that do a really good job of painting the towns history. As a bonus they are air conditioned, which helped on a very hot day. I think I read a lot more than I normally would because I wasn't ready to face the heat!
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| Well...she was born in the South... |
We then hit the treacherous looking stairs up to the old church, then up to Jefferson Rock (which is a scenic overlook that Thomas Jefferson is said to have stood), and finally to an old cemetery. This hike is not for the faint of heart. Also, not for someone carrying a child. There were a couple of times I didn't think I was going to make it.
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| Charly obviously perturbed by the steepness of the staircase |
And the hike must have wore her out because by the time we started our descent that kid was out!
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| There wasn't anything on this earth that would have woken this kid up! |
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| At the bottom of the steps |
We decided to stop at one of several ice cream shops in town and then went home. It was a very satisfying trip and the best part was we still had a good part of our Saturday left. Now when does that ever happen?
